10.06.2021 HORROR OBSCURA VOL. 3!!!

Written By Stephanie Morgan

ONCE AGAIN, MONSTER PARTY EXPLORES THE NOOKS AND CRANNIES OF TERROR!

JAMES GONIS, SHAWN SHERIDAN, LARRY STROTHE, and MATT WEINHOLD, dig deep into the film reference library that is their brains, to come up with another selection of infrequently found fright films! Grab yourself a pen and paper, or one of those new-fangled computin' machines, and prepare to make yet another "must watch" list, as we present... HORROR OBSCURA VOL. 3!!! 

For this episode, the MONSTER PARTY gang decided to make this a strictly in-house affair. But, that doesn't mean you won't be getting the same avalanche of obscure titles you've come to expect from past episodes. We've got spine-tingling chicken horror, pervy haunted bath houses, monster and son pep talks, infernal fish dinners, and something that'll finally make you get off your damn phone! 

IF THIS ONE DOESN'T BREAK YOUTUBE, TRY USING A HAMMER!

Key Topics Discussed

  • This episode is "Horror Obscura, Volume Three," a topic where the hosts recommend films that might make listeners say, "nope, never heard of that one".

  • The hosts go round-robin, each presenting their obscure film choices. Larry gives nicknames to his co-hosts, calling Shawn the "Silver Screen Sorcerer," James the "Moving Picture Philosopher," and Matt the "Celluloid Savant," while referring to himself as the "all American regular bubblegum Joe viewer".

  • The recommendations span several decades and international subgenres, including an '80s satanic slasher (Midnight) , a 1960s Japanese film (Hell) , an Iranian-based djinn movie (Under the Shadow) , a Canadian thriller about exploding telephones (Murder by Phone) , and an animated prequel to Train to Busan (Seoul Station).

  • Larry makes a recurring case for animated shorts as horror films, bringing up the "twisted" 1930 Fleischer cartoon Swing You Sinners and the 1943 Disney propaganda short Chicken Little. This leads to a running gag about films involving chickens.

  • After everyone shares their main picks, the group finishes with a "lightning round" of even more titles, including the 1980s zombie movie Flesh Eater , the 1970s "horror hag" film Hollywood Horror House , and the 1966 Hammer horror parody Carry On Screaming.

Timestamps

  • 00:00:19 Introduction to Horror Obscura, Vol. 3 The hosts (Matt, Shawn, Larry, and James) kick off the episode, explaining that this installment of "Horror Obscura" will be a special edition featuring only the main hosts, with no guest.

  • 00:04:39 Main Film Recommendations The hosts begin their main round-robin discussion. Each member takes a turn presenting an obscure horror film, with the group discussing the picks, which span many decades, subgenres, and countries.

  • 01:40:44 Start of Lightning Round After concluding their main picks, the hosts move to a rapid-fire "lightning round," where each host quickly lists several additional obscure titles.

  • 02:09:28 Listener Shout Outs & Promotions The hosts give shout-outs to listeners, including one who sent fan art. They also discuss their Blu-ray commentaries, merchandise, and the show's Patreon page.

  • 02:17:35 Post-Episode Banter After the official sign-off, the hosts continue their conversation, discussing 1970s superhero TV shows , an infamous Robert Blake talk show appearance , and their plans for future episodes.

Resources/Links Mentioned

Films

  • Killer Condom (1996): Mentioned in the opening banter after a "condom" analogy, with the hosts wondering if such a movie exists.

  • Midnight (1982): Shawn's first main recommendation. He describes it as a "backwoods slash satanic slasher" written by John Russo.

  • Night of the Living Dead (1968): Mentioned as the film John Russo, the writer/director of Midnight, is famous for. It is later mentioned again as the film Bill Hinzman (director/star of Flesh Eater) was the first zombie in.

  • The Naked Prey (1965): Larry's first main recommendation. He argues it's an action-thriller that he considers a horror film because of its "horrifying" torture sequences.

  • Effects (1980): James's first main recommendation (also known as The Manipulator ). It's a low-budget film about a crew shooting a slasher movie and features several George Romero alumni.

  • F/X2 (1991): The sequel to F/X, also mentioned by Matt.

  • Snuff (1976): Mentioned by Matt as another film in this subgenre.

  • Under the Shadow (2016): Matt's first main recommendation. A Persian-language film about a mother and daughter in Tehran during the Iran-Iraq War who are haunted by a djinn.

  • Wishmaster (1997): Mentioned by Matt as the "last good one" he remembers in the djinn subgenre.

  • Howl of the Devil (1988): Shawn's second main recommendation. A "lost Paul Naschy movie" where Naschy plays about 10 different roles , including a Frankenstein monster, a Phantom of the Opera type, and a hunchback.

  • A Haunted Turkish Bathhouse (1975): James's second main recommendation. A Japanese ghost story from Toei Studios that follows the trope of a wronged woman who comes back for revenge.

  • The House in Marsh Road (1960): Matt's second main recommendation (also known as Invisible Creature ). A low-budget British film with a "film noir plot" about a woman who inherits a house haunted by a protective poltergeist named Patrick.

  • Murder by Phone (1982): Shawn's third main recommendation (also known as Bells ). A Canadian thriller starring Richard Chamberlain about a "disgruntled phone company employee" who makes telephones "melt and explode".

  • Scanners (1981): Used as a comparison for the deaths in Murder by Phone: "It's kind of like scanners, but with a phone".

  • The Vanishing (1988): Larry's third main recommendation. He specifies the "Dutch film" (Spoorloos), calling it a "great, chilling film".

  • The Vanishing (1993): The American remake is mentioned by Larry, who warns everyone not to see it because "they fucked up the ending".

  • Double Date (2017): Matt's third main recommendation. A British horror-comedy about two sisters who try to find a "virgin sacrifice to bring back their dead dad".

  • They Live (1988): Matt compares an "excellent" and long fight scene in Double Date to the famous one in this film.

  • Chicken Little (1943): Larry's fourth main recommendation. He specifies the Disney animated short film , arguing it's a "horror animated film" and propaganda piece about "the evils of mass hysteria" that has a "very un-Disney-like ending".

  • Chicken Little (2005): Mentioned as the later feature film that people might confuse with the 1943 short.

  • American Graffiti (1973): Mentioned because the writers/directors of Messiah of Evil also wrote this film. It's also compared to Messiah of Evil because both take place over one night.

  • Train to Busan (2016): Mentioned as one of Matt's "favorite zombie movies" and the film that his next pick is a prequel to.

  • Seoul Station (2016): Matt's fourth main recommendation. An "animated zombie film" that is a prequel to Train to Busan.

  • Peninsula (2020): Mentioned as the live-action sequel "in the same universe" as Train to Busan , which Matt says Seoul Station is "a million times better than".

  • Akira (1988): Used as a comparison for the animation style of Seoul Station.

  • Identity (2003): Shawn's fifth main recommendation. A "very twisty and tricky" thriller with a large ensemble cast about 10 people stranded at a motel who are killed off in descending room-number order.

  • The Woman in Black (1989): Larry's fifth main recommendation. He specifies the "British made for TV version" , which he saw after seeing the "so scary" play in London.

  • The Woman in Black (2012): The remake starring Daniel Radcliffe , which Larry suggests skipping in favor of the 1989 version.

  • Death Wish 4: Also mentioned as a film directed by J. Lee Thompson.

  • Audrey Rose (1977): James's second pick for his "reincarnation double feature". A "bigger budget" film directed by Robert Wise starring Anthony Hopkins as a man who believes a young girl is the reincarnation of his daughter.

  • His House (2020): Matt's fifth main recommendation. A British film about a refugee couple from South Sudan who are granted asylum and placed in a "fucked up" house. They discover it's haunted by a "night witch" but cannot complain to their caseworker (Matt Smith) for fear of being deported.

  • Flesh Eater (1988): Shawn's second "lightning round" pick. A "shameless" film written, directed, and starring Bill Hinzman, the first zombie in Night of the Living Dead. He describes it as Hinzman's "own gory, nudity filled version of Night of the Living Dead".

  • I, Desire (1982): Shawn's third "lightning round" pick. An ABC TV movie starring David Naughton as a morgue attendant who discovers a female vampire/succubus.

  • Ruka (The Hand) (1965): Larry's first "lightning round" pick. An 18-minute "horrifying" stop-motion animated short by Jurij Trinka about a giant, powerful hand that oppresses a small artist.

  • The Hangman (1964): Larry's second "lightning round" pick. A "creepy, horrific, and very powerful" animated short narrated by Herschel Bernardi and based on a poem about a hangman who hangs the people of a town one by one as the other citizens do nothing.

  • Count Dracula's Great Love (1973): James's second "lightning round" pick (or El Gran Amor de Count Dracula ). A Paul Naschy film where he plays a sympathetic Dracula who legitimately falls in love with one of the women stranded at his castle.

  • Hell (1960): Matt's first "lightning round" pick (also titled The Sinners of Hell). A Japanese horror film where the entire last part of the movie is a "graphic and horrible" depiction of the characters being tortured in hell.

  • Shin Kamen Rider Prologue (1992): Matt's second "lightning round" pick. A standalone entry in the Kamen Rider series that he considers a "full on horror movie" where the hero is an "insect-like super creature" and the violence is "horrific".

  • The Old Dark House (1963): Mentioned as the film the hosts did a commentary for , which led them to discuss actress Fenella Fielding.

  • Carry On Screaming! (1966): Matt's third "lightning round" pick. The 12th film in the British Carry On comedy series , which he calls a "flat out parody of Hammer horror films" and highlights for Fenella Fielding's performance as Valeria..

  • Carry On Spying (1964): Mentioned by Shawn as another one of the "best, strongest ones" in the Carry On series.

  • Reptilicus (1961): Mentioned during the listener shout-outs in reference to a fan's sketch.

  • The Alligator People (1959): Mentioned as the second film the hosts did a Blu-ray commentary for (replaced with a new audio commentary track with the 4K release in 2022, so if you bought the original, it’s a true collector’s item!).

Television

  • The Price is Right: Mentioned as a credit for Anitra Ford, one of the stars of Messiah of Evil, who was a model on the show.

  • Them (2021 TV Series): Matt suggests his pick His House would be a "great companion piece" to this series, which he describes as being about a Black family moving into an all-white neighborhood while also being haunted.

  • Kamen Rider (Series): Matt's pick, Shin Kamen Rider Prologue, is an entry in this long-running Japanese series.

  • Doctor Who: Mentioned because Jon Pertwee, the "Third Doctor Who," has a small part in Carry On Screaming!.

  • Batman (1960s TV Series): Mentioned as being represented on a 1970s superheroes poster in Larry's office, with art of Adam West and Burt Ward.

  • The Incredible Hulk (1977 TV Series): The show is brought up during the post-episode banter while discussing Larry's 70s superhero poster. This leads to a longer discussion where Shawn defends it as "a very well-made show," while Matt jokes about "slow motion Lou Ferrigno".

  • The Fugitive: Shawn compares the plot of The Incredible Hulk to this show, saying, "It's the fugitive over and over and over again with the Hulk".

  • The $6 Million Man: Matt admits during the post-show banter that he "thought that the $6 million man was, for the most part, a huge snore".

  • WandaVision: Mentioned in a discussion about the multiverse, in reference to the show bringing in an actor from a different property to play Wanda's brother.

  • Kids in the Hall: Larry references a sketch from this show about a "hip," "cool" 45-year-old man with long hair.

  • Talk Shows (David Letterman / Johnny Carson): Mentioned in the post-show banter when Larry recalls Robert Mitchum on David Letterman's show and Robert Blake infamously telling the audience not to see his new movie while on Carson.

  • The Flintstones: Larry sings a song ("Aye, aye, aye, Wilma") from an episode and calls himself "the Flintstone guy".

  • Monster High: Discussed in the post-show banter when Larry shows off a Monster High blanket and talks about his daughter's interest in the dolls and series.

Books & Other Media

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Stephanie Morgan
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