This Week's Podcast:
Episode 045 - Vampires in Folklore and Myth
As discussed in Episodes 021, 023, and 029, The State of Vampires episodes, vampires in film and literature have been a staple in media for a very long time. From such novels as John Polidori’s Vampyre, Sheridan LeFanu’s Carmilla and Bram Stoker’s Dracula, never mind the penny dreadful serial Varney the Vampire, all from the 1800’s, vampires have appeared as both the main character as well as the barely seen threat in genre fiction.
After the written story, next came the impressively done stage plays followed by movies. Culturally, vampires became a large part of visual entertainment that made them larger than life, in some cases as a monstrous and ugly villain as seen in Nosferatu yet in other cases as a charming yet sociopathic individual as portrayed by Bela Lugosi. But whether literature, stage play, or film, the historical monster from folklore and myth has been twisted and redefined from the original legends. Sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse, vampires have grown and expanded by becoming many subgenres all under the name of the vampire.
Dark Discussions is joined by a very special guest, publisher, historian, and author Inanna Arthen of By Light Unseen Media , to discuss the truth of what a vampire really is. Many questions and confusions are answered including whether the vampire was specific to one culture and/or religion or enlarged by biased single minded historians to include monsters from other cultures that have little traits of the vampire. Such topics as sunlight, garlic, religion, and the rural superstitious mind of the Eastern European peasant are discussed in great detail by Ms. Arthen and how the mythos of the vampire evolved to include the more famous modern tropes as well as those that have been forgotten or modified.
Prior Podcast Episodes:
Episode 044 - The Grey (2012)
After directing such a wide range of films as The A-Team, Smoking Aces, and Narc, Joe Carnahan takes the story Ghost Walker by Ian MacKenzie Jeffers to the big screen. Re-titled as The Grey, the film, starring Liam Neeson in arguably a career defining performance, shows why Mr. Neeson has been considered one of the greatest actors in the past twenty years. Having already starred in Star Wars Episode 1 and Schindler’s List, Neeson’s turn as John Ottway, an employee of an Alaskan oil company, brings a complexity to a character at a crossroads in life where living and dying may be one and the same.
When a plane crashes in the middle of the wilderness of Alaska, a group of survivors band together in a struggle for their lives. Having miraculously survived the unsurvivable, the group swiftly become aware of the fact that the elements and starvation are not the only things they should be afraid of. As a pack of wolves begin to stalk the men, a journey both for their lives as well as coming to grips with their own personal demons begins. From a nightmare of brutality, their trek widens into a passage towards spiritual relief and absolute deliverance.
With an existential back story that draws its horrors from the viewpoint of the ambiguity of human identity, man’s place in the world, alienation of the individual, and the loss of spiritual faith, the wolves, just like Moby Dick and Jaws, appear more as metaphors for each man’s burdens rather than monsters on the hunt. Dark Discussions delivers an episode discussing why all who are listening should see this film. No matter that the Hobbit, the Avengers, Batman Rises, or Prometheus are coming, the film that everyone should see in 2012 is The Grey.
Episode 043 - Paranormal Activity Franchise
In 2007, a low budget film made with a price of $15,000 USD began to make the film festival circuit to astonishingly high praise. One horror website, Dreadcentral, spoke highly of it two years prior to its 2009 general release to film audiences. The movie, Paranormal Activity, seemed to bring back the feel of the old ghost story that had been missing in genre film since the Nicole Kidman vehicle, The Others. But unlike the usual tale of the apparition, Paranormal Activity was both done as found footage and cinéma vérité with a twist. What may be haunting the residents may be more than a ghostly presence.
When the film was picked up by Paramount Pictures and Dreamworks for a price of $350,000, an original marketing campaign began which brought the film to the attention of audiences. Shortly after it went on to gross $193,000,000 USD. With such a success, in 2010 a follow up was made that was as critically praised as the original while going on to sweep Halloween box offices and possibly beginning a new horror franchise to replace the Saw series.
When, in 2011, a prequel was made which went on to become the highest grossing opening of any horror film in history, the Paranormal Activity franchise was secure. In a three year span, the trilogy made for a mere $8,000,000 USD went on to gross over $500,000,000 USD. Though a backlash by some horror fans has followed, the series has become a staple to general audiences while keeping to the roots of low budget film making. Eric and Philip discuss the franchise and how an inexpensively made film went on to become the center of one of the most popular horror franchises of all time.
Episode 042 - David Twohy Focus: 2002's Below
In 2002 a little seen gem of a film appeared with the generic title of Below. This itself may in part be partially to blame for the film having been overlooked. The movie was directed two years later by the Pitch Black helmed director David Twohy. The story takes place in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II focusing on an American submarine that begins to have what seems to be supernatural phenomena occur within its metal shell. With the tragic death of its lead officer, with the rescuing of three mysterious bombing survivors, with unexplained happenings of sound and site, the crew begin to wonder whether or not the submarine has a sociopathic saboteur aboard, whether it has been hexed by a long line of supernatural sailing lore, or whether the ship may actually have some sort of unexplainable malevolent entity within its hull.
Having done the huge success Pitch Black, David Twohy once again delights viewers with a tale of supernatural intrigue that will have the observer keep guessing as the intricate secret of the tale slowly comes into focus. The screenplay written by Darren Aronofsky grounds the story in reality as the crew starts to slowly conclude that what is happening may in fact be paranormal as all truth based reasoning is debunked. Paranoia, claustrophobia, and the hard cold fact that there is no way out from thousands of leagues under the ocean horrifies all aboard.
Dark Discussions discusses the film spoiler free and why everyone who is a fan of horror should take a peek. Starring Bruce Greenwood and Zach Galifianakis in an early role, this Twohy-Aronofsky piece of cinema is a must view. Rounding out the episode, cohosts Mike and Philip discuss comparisons of the film with Dark City, The Thirteenth Floor, The Woman in Black, and a bit of the ghostly tales of author M. R. James.
Episode 041 - M.J. Preston's The Equinox
In the 1980’s and 1990’s, Stephen King’s prominence brought about a flood of mass market paperbacks to bookstores, libraries, and supermarket checkout lines. Horror reading had become the fad and anyone who had a manuscript seemed to have their books published. Unfortunately most of them were horrible or mediocre at best and by the end of the 1990’s the horror market completely collapsed leaving only a handful of the early authors having their books published for a mass audience.
Today a handful of great authors are still about including Jonathan Maberry, Gord Rollo, and Brian Keene. Others have dabbled within horror such as Douglas Preston, Michael Crichton, Lincoln Child, and Scott Sigler, but many of their books cross genres into techno-thrillers and science fiction. But for those looking for a throwback to the writings of Stephen King, a new novel from 2011 entitled The Equinox by M.J. Preston was released that brought horror back to its core.
When a tribe of native people in the Northwest Territories of Canada are snowed in from the world, they are forced to resort to inhuman ways of survival. When a presence is drawn to their suffering, an evil blankets over their continued existence until a misfortunate occurrence results in the spread of the terror to more populated lands. With its ensemble cast, the novel takes paths that lead to a serial killer, demonic monsters, and a police department that slowly discovers that there may be something deeper into the crimes that have transpired in their small farming town in Manitoba.
Dark Discussions is joined by the author of this fantastic novel which co-host Philip has stated is one of the top ten horror novels he’s read since 2000. With the novel readily available at such stores as Amazon and Barnes and Noble, folks should go out and check their local library or get a copy for themselves.
For further information on M.J. Preston, check out The Equinox website and the author page. Also you can listen to another interview by Mr. Preston at Ron’s Amazing Stories #31.
Episode 040 - High School of the Dead
With a large fan base for genre animated films such as Heavy Metal, Fire and Ice, and Beowulf, the West has been denied the variety of product that such nations as Japan has. The land of the rising sun has filled their fanbase with series after series of science fiction, horror, and fantasy animated films both based off of original material and graphic novels. Though Western fans have graphic novels, Japanese manga, and Heavy Metal magazine, cinematic animation has been very limited. Fortunately for decades Japanese anime has been imported and dubbed into many different languages bringing with them fantastical worlds and horrific visuals. Such series as Gantz, Texhnolyze, Ergo Proxy, Mardock Scramble, and Rin have been giving an alternate yet very fulfilling experience equally as Fringe, Dexter, and True Blood have to genre fans.
Dark Discussions focuses on one of the more popular Japanese imports from 2011 entitled High School of the Dead. When a group of five seniors and the twenty-six year old school nurse end up in the epicenter of a global zombie apocalypse, our six survivors attempt a breakout from the high school for lands more forgiving. With additional focus on the zombies, the series gives such shows as The Walking Dead a run for their money. Violence, adult situations, and kinetic mayhem make the struggle of our six core protagonists much more harrowing than your typical zombie media.
With a roaring soundtrack, fantastic animation, a story that has the undertow of the rot of society, and three hundred minutes of frenzy surrounding the action, Dark Discussions brings an overview of one of the most exciting and satisfying viewing experiences from 2011. Get ready for a new take on zombies that illustrates a tired topic and makes it as fresh as a recently risen corpse.
Episode 039 - The Best of 2011
The best of the year: 2011. The definition of what makes a film a 2011 film is pretty tough with genre movies. Many were released in 2010 through the festival circuit but were not available for anyone not in a major metropolitan area. Others were foreign films and due to distribution rights they never made it to cinemas in other nations and were instead released directly to DVD but months after their initial release in their home country. As a result, our definition of a 2011 film is a movie which was rolled out to thousands of theaters or released to DVD for the first time for mass consumption.
Since the films discussed are horror, to define a horror film can be a bit tough too. Each of your co-hosts had their own ideas. Horror comedy, dark thriller, supernatural suspense, exploitation, and of course slashers were considered. Even one film that was released years ago but has a new director’s cut is presented. But should films like Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Contagion, or Hobo With a Shotgun be considered?
Your hosts discuss top ten lists that include some standards like Insidious, Paranormal Activity 3, and Stake Land, but also less known films such as Dream Home, The Reef, and Kidnapped. Others that may raise eyebrows that are discussed include Jon Hewitt’s X, Lars Von Trier’s Melancholia, and Kevin Smith’s Red State. The conversation touches such topics as the biggest disappointments as well as what the new year has ahead. Is 2012 the year Hollywood bounces back with big budget films like Prometheus leading the way? As one listener, Peter from Massachusetts has done, go out and watch as many on our lists as you can.
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