On this episode of HorrorRealm Radio, Rich begins his horror film director retrospective segment with John Carpenter. The guys then talk about their favorite form of media to watch a horror film on. The show rounds out with The Bottom 5, the worst horror films with the best cover art, not a show to miss!
The show that won’t stay dead is back! Mike and Rich bring back HorrorRealm Radio. Tune in to hear about Halloween during Covid and to hear about the new format of the show!
One of the things that always attracted me to Universal is their ability to embrace “Joe Six Pack” type entertainment, particularly horror. No other major studio celebrates their relationship with horror. Even Disney has a horror movie or two in their past (though they’ve sucked. Remember “Watcher in the Woods”? Yeah, no one else does either.)
Peacock proves their relationship with horror with a great front page tab “Halloween” that opens to a splashy page with prominent films on display. In particular, they give great placement to their Alfred Hitchcock and Classic Monster work. So, what should you check out? WHERE TO START!
Alfred Hitchcock is a good opening salvo. A brand new The Making of Psycho documentary is full of great information. I recently “audiobooked” (I can’t bring myself to call that “reading” yet) the original Psycho and I forgot just how wonderfully Joseph Stefano adapted Robert Bloch’s wonderful novel. Then follow that view with a re-watch of Psycho (if you haven’t seen it yet, by jiminy, watch Psycho first!), The Birds, Vertigo and Rear Window! Here’s a hot take: I actually prefer Rear Window. Take me on in the comments below.
In the classic monsters, I think people forget how good some of those films are due to their “creaky” nature and not always having aged very well. I suggest the greatest horror comedy of all time, Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein. Yes, “the boys” made a few of these meet the monster films, but this one features one of only four times Bela Lugosi played Dracula on film (go ahead and check me on that) and a fantastic performance by Lon Cheney Jr. as the Wolf Man, Lyle Talbot. What makes this work is the monsters play their bits completely straight, making Lou’s over-the-top fear reactions all the more entertaining. If you haven’t watched it recently, take it in. You forgot just how good this one is!
It Follows is a solid pick of their newer fare. While I’m not willing to call it a new classic as many reviewers did when it came out, it’s a solid little suspense filled flick about an entity that infuriatingly defies simple definition. The suspense is well crafted and it certainly has earned its reputation for being creepy. Worth a look.
Let Me In is a remake of the Swedish Let the Right One In, which has a superior ending, but as for the rest of the film, I think this version is actually more fun to watch. In general, this film’s workmanship is superior to the original and the acting is far better. This is the film that made vampires scary again, and took some of that sparkle away.
The Funhouse is an oft overlooked scary movie. Tobe Hooper of Texas Chainsaw Massacre fame made this criminally underseen carnival creepfest that features the most disturbing Frankenstein monster mask ever committed to the silver screen. I’m not sure what to call it. Is it a creature feature? A slasher? A ghost story? This flick will having you guessing and hopefully screaming.
Give these movies a look while they are up on the Peacock.
Red Headed Revolution in association with Shackle Island Studios and Dunn & Dunn Productions are kicking off the Halloween season with a new horror anthology film!
Today, we are launching a new column: Universally Loved. This will be a banner for discussions regarding Hollywood’s most entertaining and hard working studio.
Disney, of course, has about 500 podcasts based entirely on their theme parks. People discuss the award-heavy Columbia and Paramount. Disney+ is in the news frequently as they purchase franchise after franchise to grow their headlock on the entertainment industry.
Often overlooked is Universal.
All. The. Time.
Universal has been home of some of the greatest and most popular films of all time. Their theme parks are the only ones that can legitimately compete with the house of mouse. They have great franchises, legitimately possibly developing the entire concept with their sequel heavy Universal monster movies in the 50’s and 60’s.
Universal has been the working man’s studio. Founded by Carl Laemmle, a turn of the century German immigrant, his studio quickly became a leader in horror films and science fiction when people were still “embarrassed” about such B films.
They were a leader in movie serials. People talk about the old days of movie serials and always bring up Republic, but what movie serial is the one most people know? Flash Gordon. That was a Universal serial…and it innovated the upwards crawl that George Lucas would adapt to open each of the Star Wars films in the “Skywalker Saga.”
Universal thrived with films other studios turned their nose up at. They “invented” the summer blockbuster with a little movie I like to mention from time to time (Jaws). Universal brought Back to the Future to the movieplexes in the mid-80’s and let everyone ride along with Michael J. Fox in that wonderful DeLorean.
Instead of chasing awards, Universal seemed to always embrace the audience directly. While a lot of their product could be called junk food compared to the art house gourmet dishes by the indies, they have been the studio willing to take chances, particularly in the realm of horror, that have led to remarkable success. The Blumhouse model seems to fit beautifully with Universal’s strategy over the years, so it is not a surprise that they have often found themselves partners including the release of the recent Halloween sequel with Jamie Lee Curtis and the new, smash hit Invisible Man film this year.
Universal’s Harry Potter additions to their theme parks are possibly the most immersive theme park experiences ever derived and caused a raising of expectations for all in the industry after it’s premiere. Simply put, without Harry Potter attractions, Avatar and Star Wars would not be as incredible as they are…the competition here has benefited every theme park in the world.
This column will be celebrating their successes. There will be film reviews. There will be news commentary. There will be theme park observations.
Heck, we might even discuss NBC from time to time. Peacock is coming this summer for all to enjoy.
Hope you will join me here with all the films that I know are UNIVERSALLY LOVED.
UnEarthed is finally here! Otherworldly Culture has gone back in time and will be releasing never before seen celebrity Q&A panels and panels from our past. This will give a chance to check out unseen panels, and ones you might have forgotten about!
JD Dhein tells us how to keep your young ones safe when Trick ‘r Treating. The key: CHECK FIRST!
Remember this Halloween to send in your great photos of your incredible costumes. Send them into submit@pageantcast.com! We’ll send them out to our friends here on the PageantCast!
On Facebook, you can just tag us on the picture and give us permission to use it in our video.
Get the photos in the week after Halloween to insure they are included in our post-Halloween video!
