A Cure for the Common Craig

The Winter of Folk Horror is not yet ready to let 2024 go. Cozy up with the comfort of witches, as we discuss three very different witch movies. Dueling witches, a witchy cousin, and a town filled with bigots. Welcome to the Witchy Winter Wonderland!

When a skeptical college professor demands his wife stop practicing protective conjure magic, he opens himself up to be the victim of an opposing force in Burn, Witch, Burn (1962)! A young woman loses her parents in a deadly crash, moves in with her cousin, Linda Blair, and proceeds to ruin her life, in the Wes Craven TV movie, Summer of Fear (1978)! And then from there, the residents of a small town believe that three new arrivals are reincarnations of witches that invoked a 300-year-old curse in The Devonsville Terror (1983)!

Adorable animals return! And at least some of them are back for the attack. Hopefully, our cat children were not negatively impacted during our viewing of these features.

The bodies from a local cemetery are used to develop a new taste sensation for cats in The Corpse Grinders (1971)! An alien cat arrives on Earth, in need of repairs to his spacecraft, while trying to avoid the military, spies, and gambling debts, in Disney's The Cat from Outer Space (1978)! Lucio Fulci brings us his freely adapted film version of the Edgar Allan Poe classic, featuring a really pissed off cat who loves to shred human flesh in The Black Cat (1981)! And then from there, Hong Kong brings us three knights from outer space (two humanoids, one cat), pursuing some kind of grotesque space...thing, and a must-see cat versus dog junkyard brawl in The Cat (1992)!

We've covered the more obvious directorial efforts of George A. Romero over the years. But, there is unseen by most, an underworld of Romero films. Movies that are just as real, but not as well-known. We crack open that creaky Dungeon of Directors and unleash these lesser-known Romero films.

The residents of a rural Pennsylvania town are accidentally exposed to a bioweapon, transforming them into The Crazies (1973)! A young man by appearance, may be an 84-year-old vampire, or in reality just a serial killer, in the ambiguous Martin (1977). A peek behind the curtain of the lives of a motorcycle-jousting, traveling troupe of renaissance faire-style performers in the cult oddity, Knightriders (1981)! And then from there, a service monkey develops an unhealthy attachment to a quadriplegic man in Monkey Shines (1988).

Have you noticed that it's kind of cold outside? Well, not everywhere, of course. But if you live near us, then you know what we're talking about. Why not warm up with a dose of cozy folk horror? It's the return of one of our favorites, the Winter of Folk Horror!

We travel the world, once again, stopping first in Norway for a swim in the Lake of the Dead (1958). The over to Ireland to spend some time with the forest creatures we find in The Hallow (2015). And then from there, we visit South Korea, and try to familiarize ourselves with a variety of religious elements on the fly, to better understand Svaha: The Sixth Finger (2019).

What else there to do in January other than sit around being cold? You should probably heat things up, Italian-style, by celebrating Giallo January! And when Sergio Martino brings Edwige Fenech along to star in his movie, that always helps.

Join us for discussions of Mario Bava's early giallo, Blood & Black Lace (1964), the third film in Dario Argento's "animal" trilogy, Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971), and Sergio Martino's mix of giallo and devil cult subgenres, All the Colors of the Dark (1972).

It's a December tradition here on the podcast, to discuss some holiday horror. Or holiday violence, at least. It must be time for Horror for the Holidays V!

This year, we're featuring David Harbour versus John Leguizamo in Violent Night (2022), a bunch of naked Santa helpers running around in Finland in Rare Exports (2010) , and two spooky stories that share the same name, Whistle and I'll Come to You (1968 and 2010)!

We've always loved Julian Sands, and were saddened to hear of his disappearance and the revelation of his passing in 2023. To celebrate his life and career, we discuss a personal favorite, along with a pair of campier entries that, if nothing else, are fun to laugh about.

What happens when a warlock escapes the clutches of death, travels through a portal three centuries into the future, to locate three parts of The Grand Grimoire to undo creation? Well, you'd better believe that a determined witch-hunter follows to try to stop him! Julian Sands is Warlock (1989)!

Not into warlocks and all that stuff? Well, how about Julian Sands as an infuriatingly meek surgeon who opportunistically uses a hit-and-run accident to imprison, and physically alter,  the woman of his dreams? Probably not a particularly healthy thing to do. It's a story of obsession and possession, with some questionable acting. But hey, if Boxing Helena (1993) is a match for your fetish, you do you.

And then from there, if you thought that the acting in Boxing Helena was bad, get ready for some of the most remarkably poor acting you have ever seen from a complete cast. Thankfully, Julian Sands returns as the warlock, the one marginal bright spot. Though it probably would have helped if these actors had some decent dialogue to work with. However, as it stands, Warlock: The Armageddon (1993) is probably best used as a device to torture your enemies.

So you heard us talking about our live podcast at Cape Con, but you were unable to attend? Well, you're in luck! We take you back to the beginnings of comic book horror, and then discuss two horror films adapted from comics.

It's a comic book movie team-up featuring Edward Scissorhands and Hagrid from the Harry Potter series! Kind of. You do get Johnny Depp and Robbie Coltrane on the same team, investigating the menace tormenting Heather Graham's character, along with other ladies of the night, on the streets of Victorian-era London. Could it possibly be Jack the Ripper? Whoever it is, they are clearly From Hell (2001)!

And then from there, let's go to Alaska, where Josh Hartnett is the youthful, handsome sheriff in a town that will be without sunlight for thirty days in winter. Nothing necessarily wrong with that, I suppose, as long as you are not a victim of seasonal affective disorder. Of course, there may be other problems. Like a group of vampires coming to town. Yeah, that could result in 30 Days of Night (2007) being a lot more challenging.

The Final Chapter of the 19th Annual A-Z of Horror Festival has finally arrived. Was it worth the wait? Well, let's call it a mix of good and bad. We have disappearing mothers, Kevin Bacon, a town filled with crazy southerners, werewolves, talking pets, a lost movie that should have stayed that way, and preferring the zombie apocalypse to going into work. Let's have ourselves a little chat about:

• Relic (2020)
• Stir of Echoes (1999)
• Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964)
• The Undying Monster (1942)
• The Voices (2014)
• Werewolf By Night (2022)
• Xenia (1990)
• You Are Not My Mother (2021)
• Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead (2023)

The Festival demands a second episode! Because, well, it's not over. Get ready for letters I-Q, featuring Martians, a minister's wife becoming a vampire, a deadly web comic, a mysterious lodger, a vile prince from Poe, two movies that involve an inheritance, an anatomical dummy, and sinister doppelgangers! Listen in as we discuss:

• Invaders From Mars (1953)
• Jakob's Wife (2021)
• Killer Toon (2013)
• The Lodger (1927)
• The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
• Next of Kin (1982)
• The Old Dark House (1963)
• Pin (1988)
• Qorin (2022)

The 19th Annual A-Z of Horror Festival continues...

If you're not ready for an October horror movie festival, then you're in the wrong place! We have letters A-H ready for you, featuring an evil car, zombies, vampires, vengeful spirits, and some seemingly regular people with some serious mental health issues. We'll discuss:

• Audition (1999)
• The Black Cat (1934)
• Christine (1983)
• Day of the Dead (1985)
• Effects (1979)
• The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967)
• The Grudge (2004)
• The House that Dripped Blood (1971)

Welcome back to the A-Z of Horror Festival! An October ritual.

Four years of this podcast, and we still haven't discussed Night of the Living Dead (1968)? Those things, ghouls, definitely not zombies, are surely coming to get us unless we remedy this, right now! Join us as we honor George Romero and celebrate 55 years of this horror classic.

There were Japanese horror movies made in the 1980s? Yes, it's true. Not all Japanese horror comes from the late 90s and early 2000s. Let's find out what Japanese filmmakers were doing with horror late in the decade, as we put a wrap on the Summer of the 80s!

There's no Bruce Campbell anywhere in sight. And Sam Raimi did not direct this. We also did not see Ted Raimi around anywhere! Okay, so the U.S. title may be a little misleading. But hey, when you work in late night television, and you put out a request for viewers to send in tapes, you have to expect that you'll receive some interesting material. Is that a legitimate snuff film, though? Well, I guess that we as the viewers had better investigate with this team from the studio. But I'm afraid that we all might just end up falling into the Evil Dead Trap (1988)!

Is this the Japanese equivalent of Eraserhead? I guess, maybe. Back in the 90s, this kind of became an endurance test, an instant cult movie making the rounds on VHS among friends, if you could find it in the local video store. An endurance test? But it's only an hour and seven minutes, you say. The runtime may not be long, but let's just say that the violence and subject matter can make this an overwhelming experience for some. Get ready for the polarizing, experimental metal fetish extravaganza, Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989)!

And then from there, we may as well close out the decade with the Common Craig's Top 5 Horror Movies from 1988 and 1989!

A body-swapping alien and a canister of liquid Satan. What? Yeah, that's pretty much it. And both movies have ordinary people being used as puppets of evil! 1987, how could you?

Guns, explosions, bank robberies, murder! Stealing Ferraris! And cassettes from a music store? When will this madness end? Well, probably when a cop and an FBI agent put the awkward "getting to know you" phase behind them and get to work. Enough with the awkward dinners at home, go find this maniac! But even with all of the destruction left in its wake, finding this villain might be more challenging than you think. Because they're chasing, The Hidden (1987)!

John Carpenter reveals to us, a well-kept secret in a run-down church in Los Angeles. A canister of primordial liquid, locked from the inside, guarded by The Brotherhood of Sleep. If this sounds intriguing, then you may want to put your skills in mathematics and science to the test, and join the group of grad students who are working to unravel this ancient religious mystery. Of course, you do run the risk of becoming a pawn, serving the Prince of Darkness (1987)!

And you know that the Common Craig has a Top 5 Horror of 1987 prepared to share with you!

Two years in one episode! Well, it really does make sense. You'll see.

First, director Stuart Gordon brings us some morbid, deadpan humor, based on the work of H. P. Lovecraft.  And let me tell you, Jeffrey Combs is absolute perfection as Herbert West. Who would have thought that bringing corpses, and decapitated heads, back to life, would be so amusing? And how about that green color of the re-agent serum? Can I paint a room that color, please? Oh, yeah. We're talking about Re-Animator (1985), here.

Then from there, Stuart Gordon is back! And so is H.P. Lovecraft! And Jeffrey Combs and Barbara Crampton from Re-Animator! It's like a family reunion with all of your favorites. But they've brought along the resonator. A device that stimulates the pineal gland. To the point where it just might burst out of the forehead of someone who has had a little too much stimulation. And let me tell you something else, it's not a pretty sight. It's like something, From Beyond (1986)!

And of course, it wouldn't be the Summer of the 80s without Common Craig's Top 5 horrors from 1985 and 1986!

Comet fever runs wild and city sewers should be off-limits! Look, comets can be exciting, I get that. But it just seems that it should go without saying that avoiding sewers is a good policy. Welcome to 1984.

Maybe everyone wanting to see the comet in Night of the Comet (1984) shouldn't be quite so eager? Unless you want to wake up as a pile of dust and clothes. Or some mutated zombie, and somehow not a pile of dust. Of course, if you were sleeping in a steel-reinforced projection booth, you're probably fine to go on living in this apocalyptic place.

And city streets seemed bad enough in the 80s. So, I can only assume that the sewers were even worse. C.H.U.D. (1984) seems to verify that. There are some kind of weird mutants down there. Radioactive waste. And come on, the smell cannot be particularly inviting.

The Summer of the 80s oozes on! And hey! Don't forget the Common Craig's Top 5 horror movies from 1984!

Time to venture north of the border to discuss one of the Common Craig's favorites, and a first time watch that doesn't work out so well. Death to snake movies that fail to deliver enough wriggling, writhing action! Long live the Summer of the 80s! And hello Canada!

Ah, the Common Craig's dreams of being some sort of video pirate, intercepting broadcasts, potentially seeing things that no one should see! Yeah, after watching Videodrome (1983), it really seems more like a nightmare scenario, I guess. Leave it to David Cronenberg to get me all worked up, and then slap me in the face with the potential horrors you may encounter. Best to leave these problems to James Woods and Debbie Harry. They're into some kinky stuff in this one.

As a snake movie connoisseur, I would appreciate this devil serpent getting more screen time. But maybe that's why the title really has nothing to do with this giant snake. Because they ran out of money during the production and could barely get it in front of the camera! I hope that Oliver Reed and Peter Fonda had a good time between takes, because Spasms (1983) did very little else for their careers.

And then from there, it's the Common Craig's Top 5 list of horror movies from 1983! Which probably does not include Spasms.

1982 brings us a rather odd pairing of a family facing supernatural terror, and a young man and his basket. The Hollywood budget and prestige of a polished Steven Spielberg production, and the raw sleaze and special effects of a $35,000 movie shot on the grimy streets of early 80s New York City.

If one of your family members starts talking to static on a television, you might want to consider packing up and moving immediately. But is static on television even a thing anymore? There's content 24/7! The TV people talking through the static are probably safer than the people talking to you on the actual shows! Wait, what were we talking about? Spirits and supernatural spookiness! And real skeletons in swimming pools! Leave the bodies where they are, kick back and relax, and watch some Poltergeist (1982)!

What's in the basket? Well, let's just says that it probably isn't clothes, like Duane says it is. Because I don't know if I've ever heard of clothes eating a bunch of hamburgers and hot dogs when you dump those into the basket with them.  It sure is weird and pissed off, whatever it is. Don't worry, you'll find out. Time for some fun family revenge on the seedy streets of New York, in Basket Case (1982)!

And then from there, it's the Common Craig's Top 5 list of horror movies from 1982! You'd better believe it!

It's 1981, and things are not okay. Seemingly normal people are doing some pretty messed up things. One might even describe these acts as...nasty.

A picturesque coastal town is the setting for the local residents to just kill people off whenever they feel like it. The local sheriff does his best to solve these mysterious deaths, but who can he trust? Especially when the mortician seems so into the art of perfectly preserving these corpses. You may not want to visit Potter's Bluff, or you could run the risk of becoming Dead & Buried (1981).

A divided Berlin becomes the backdrop for a family drama. Certainly no elements of horror here. Not at all. The intense, explosive, at times, end of a relationship, and the disconcerting beginning of another. But what is that thing that Anna has in that apartment? And why has she become so obsessed? Possession (1981) has scenes that must be seen to be believed.

And then from there, it's the Common Craig's Top 5 list of horror movies from 1981! The Summer of the 80s is really just getting underway.

We had better get a head start on summer, with the first in a series of episodes featuring horror movies from the 80s.  Because we're behind schedule with episode releases and we're going to have to do some cramming!

And there's probably no better way to kick things off than with Stanley Kubrick's version of the Stephen King classic, The Shining (1980). Is it just a little bit overexposed, though? Why is it so enduringly fascinating? Are the Grady "twins" actually twins? And can someone just go visit the location where The Shining was filmed? This is such a huge, intimidating movie, that we had to call in some backup. The Average Amy returns to the podcast to help us answer some of these questions.

How about a  slow-burn haunter that may be somewhat overlooked? George C. Scott moves into a historically preserved mansion after the deaths of his wife and daughter, and ends up as the point of contact for a ghost seeking to expose the truth in The Changeling (1980). It does include a really impressive, believable séance scene. Hey, you have to have a séance!

And then from there, it's the Common Craig's Top 5 list of horror movies from 1980!