Wake Up Heavy

The second episode of the Women in Horror Month special series is on Karyn Kusama's tense horror/thriller The Invitation. This movie triggers my social anxieties, contains my favorite horror sub-genre, and has a killer cast.

The first episode of the Women in Horror Month special series is The Slumber Party Massacre. Written by Rita Mae Brown as a parody of the slasher genre but filmed straight by Amy Holden Jones, what emerged was a slightly off-kilter horror flick that might just make you question what it is you like about these films.

[EPISODE CORRECTION: Brinke Stevens was in TSPM not Michelle Bauer.]

It's Women in Horror Month and I wanted to do my part to promote films directed by women and centered around women. This is the preview episode, and my plan is to put out a short episode every week in February, with the goal of compiling them all at the end.

This slightly sleazy, giallo-esque proto-slasher gained notoriety for starring Little Brooke Shields. But it was the anti-Catholic sentiment and shocking violence that got it condemned. Director Alfred Sole borrows from Hitchcock, throws in some Don't Look Now and tops it all off with a creepy masked killer. Enjoy!

[EPISODE CORRECTION: Jason Patric and Joshua John Miller are half-brothers, not step-brothers.]

WDIRT V1E1: THE BEAST WITHIN (1982)

Philipe Mora's films are quite varied, but they all share a certain bizarre quality. TBW is no exception. I remember the box art for this one so distinctly but never took the plunge. I wish I had because it's a very unique horror film from one of the busiest years for the genre. Plus, those bladder effects! [Starts at 00:01]

WDIRT V1E2: MESSIAH OF EVIL (1973)

From the screenwriting power duo who brought you HOWARD THE DUCK, it's the 1973 (or is it 1971? or maybe 1974?? or...) oddball MESSIAH OF EVIL (or SECOND COMING? or REVENGE OF THE SCREAMING DEAD? or RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD?? or the sublime DEAD PEOPLE???). Any way you slice it this is one kooky flick. If little 13-year-old Mark had laid his eyeballs on this one he might have grown up to be a weirdo! Oh, wait... [Starts at 12:37]

WDIRT V1E3: DERANGED (1974)

Ah, Ed Gein, that perpetual paradigm of perversion spawned myriad torrid tales of terror, including, but not limited to, PSYCHO, THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE, and SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. His horrific happenings may have been presented in their truest and most disturbing form in this wicked number from 1974 helmed by Alan Ormsby, starring Roberts Blossom, and produced in part by Bob Clark. I think this one looked just a bit too on the nose for young Markie back in the '80s. [Starts at 34:25]

Well here it is, the season finale of Wake Up Heavy. David Lynch's 1977 seminal masterpiece Eraserhead is not only my favorite horror film it is unequivocally my single favorite film of all time. Lynch has called it, "A dream of dark and troubling things," and there is no more apt description than that. A wholly personal film, Eraserhead is a confusing conundrum of confluences that proves impossible to dissect (pun intended) unless you are David Lynch. The story itself is based on very simple, very human fears, yet those who see it are compelled to analyze the bizarre images and perplexing scenarios in an attempt to alleviate the disquieting unease the film elicits.

--Special guest this episode is Mike White, host of the only podcast that matters: The Projection Booth.

This is a long one, so pace yourselves. Time stamps included for anyone who loses their place or wants to listen to certain sections only.

Part I: My history w/ Eraserhead & Lynch (00:01)
Part II: London & The Scala Cinema--Seeing Eraserhead on the big screen (19:03)
Part III: Synopsis & movie facts (28:24)
Part IV: Interview w/ Mike White (35:06)
Part V: ERASERHEAD 2000--the re-release on DVD (1:18:26)
Part VI: The "Weird" stuff (1:26:25)
Part VII: What influenced ERASERHEAD (1:32:56)
Part VIII: The missing scenes (1:39:23)
Part IX: Soundscape, motifs & favorite things (1:43:02)
Part X: Cast & crew, theories & wrap-up (2:00:24)

For more info check out the show notes.

It's a last minute pseudo-year-end wrap up. Keeping things confusing by offering this up before the season finale episode 'cuz that's how I roll. Plus, it's stuff I was going to include in that EP anyway, but thought it better to pull it out to knock down the run time and get this stuff out there before year's end.

Included herein are thank yous, podcast suggestions, ratings & reviews*, Patreon possibilities (and other $$$ talk), those damn stickers, the goal of WUH, a quick episode recap, and a preview of the season finale. Kind of.

*If you've left a review you'll get a shout out from moi. And if that ain't incentive enough to leave a review in the future then you're dead inside. Thanks to yinz who've left one, to anyone who's given a rating, and to every single person and bot who has pricked up their ears to listen to me gab about weird movies. You rock!

For the list of podcasts I mentioned please visit the WUH Blog.

It's that time of year! You know the time, when we watch Bob Clark's Holiday Classic for 24 hours. No, not THAT Holiday Classic, THIS classic! That's right, Clark's Black Christmas, the proto-slasher that, according to many, inspired John Carpenter's Halloween, and laid the bloody groundwork for one of the most popular horror sub-genres. I explore the similarities and differences between the two films, and offer up some potentially controversial theories.

[EPISODE CORRECTION: The murder that the urban legend of, "The Babysitter and the Man Upstairs," is supposedly based on actually took place in 1950 in Missouri.]

Hot take on a current movie I really dug. Trying to dig up the article about watching movies alone, will post when/if I find it. CHEDDAR GOBLIN RULES!! And so do The Carpenters.

Ah, Ed Gein, that perpetual paradigm of perversion spawned myriad torrid tales of terror, including, but not limited to, Psycho, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and Silence of the Lambs. His horrific happenings may have been presented in their truest and most disturbing form in this wicked number from 1974 helmed by Alan Ormsby, starring Roberts Blossom, and produced in part by Bob Clark. I think this one looked just a bit too on the nose for young Markie back in the '80s.

Please check out these later episodes of WUH as well: a second more in depth episode on Deranged, and one on Silence of the Lambs.