Andrew Watches Movies Podcast

On today's episode, we are experimenting with a little bit of Double Anthology. We will be watching and reacting to ten different short horror films today contained in 2 anthology films, perfect for a Sunday double feature.  1982's Creepshow is considered the benchmark for Anthology horror films. Many have come after it, but only a few measures up. This collaboration between Stephen King and George Romero is a must-see for every Halloween season. A lesser-known anthology film that we wish were seen and talked about more is 2015's Southbound. The film is streaming on Amazon and Shudder right now. The five stories of terror contained within are the perfect companion piece to Creepshow. 

Day 20 of our 31 Film journey brings us to one of our favorites of all time. John Carpenter's They Live is unfortunately relevant and horrific today, but that's just because it was such a good predictor of things to come. We haven't found any sort of glasses that show us who is good and who is bad, but we do still govern our lives through self-interest. The speeches and sentiments in this film are as fresh, and the action is pretty amazing. The fight between Kieth David and Rowdy Roddy Piper is a forever legendary one.  We also cover Dario Argento's second installment in the Masters of Horror series. Pelts is one that is sometimes hard to watch but is also beautifully filmed. Meatloaf Aday stars in this story about what happens when a cursed animal is turned into a coat. Hint: it doesn't go well for anyone involved. 

On today's episode, Jess and Andrew have the pleasure of discussing Halloween (1978) and Halloween (2018). We saw both in the theaters on back to back nights and had vastly different experiences at both. Be warned, the start of the podcast is a discussion/rant about how certain audiences disrespect older films in the theater. Not everything is Rocky Horror Picture Show. It's a shame because the theater we went to is known for distraction-free viewing. You win some; you lose some. The experience of the 2018 version went much smoother.  Andrew also delves deeper into Masters of Horror with the episode Pro-Life from John Carpenter. It wasn't even planned to make this an all Carpenter day, the schedule just naturally happened from taking a 1-day break in between seasons of Masters. We keep telling everyone, the world is nothing more than a simulation. 

Day 18 of our 31 Films of Halloween journey brings us to a new film streaming on Shudder. Ruin Me is one that we have covered before, but it is one we wanted to add to our Halloween list. With the popularity of escape rooms and hauntings, this story of a Horror Sleepover gone wrong is perfect for the season. Stick around after Masters of Horror for a bit of a spoiler on it.  Andrew also continues his journey through the Masters of Horror catalog with Sounds Like. This episode plays like a lost episode of The X Files in all the right ways. 

Today is George Romero day on our 31 Films of Halloween journey. Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead usually receive all the accolades from the series, so we decided to watch the third part of the trilogy. Day of the Dead perfectly capped off the original films and deserved a rewatch this Halloween season. Bub the Zombie demanded it. Andrew also continues his journey through Masters of Horror with their spin on the Vampire mythos. The V Word has a great performance from Michael Ironside as a perfectly sleazy creature of the night. 

Today is an exciting day over here at Andrew Watches Movies. We are celebrating the horror career of the great George Wendt in this double feature. Better known as Norm, George hails from a place where "everybody knows your name", but we are far from the set of Cheers in these tales.  House from 1986 was an amazing collaboration between the Director, Producer, and Composer of many Friday the 13th films. Keeping some of the horror, they dial up the camp for this classic. Wendt plays the neighbor who gets in way over his head when he discovers his next door neighbor's house is haunted. This underseen film is streaming now on Screambox.  Also on Screambox is the second chapter of Masters of Horror from legend John Landis. Wendt plays the neighbor you do not want to be living next to in this installment of the series. 

Join Jess and Andrew on their 31 Films of Halloween adventure. Today's installment is from one of our all-time favorite directors, Dario Argento. His masterpiece Suspiria is getting a remake later this month, and we do not want people to forget about his other masterworks. Tenebre was a film that we had honestly missed, which is the reason for its inclusion over Deep Red this season. The mistake of ignoring this film is now corrected.  Everyone should join in watching it today on Shudder.com. Andrew also continues his journey through the "Masters of Horror" series. The only episode that wasn't enjoyed was the first installment from Tobe Hooper. Could the legendary director come back strong with "The Damned Thing?". You'll have to tune in to find out. 

There will be two episodes released today. Even though it is October, and we are doing a 31 Films of Halloween adventure, we had to get a few new releases in there. Since it is October, we felt they had to be Horror themed. Never fear, loyal listeners, we will be covering A Star is Born in November.  Join Jess and Andrew today for a conversation about the new Netflix original Apostle. With all the excitement and expectation we built up for the new Gareth Evans film, could it live up to the hype? October is for fun, so we also bought our tickets, and stood in line for Hell Fest. Being fans of 80's slashers, it was a welcome surprise. Shudder.com has been killing it with original content lately, and the new one Terrified continued the trend nicely. This Argentinian film is already one of our new favorites. We finished off the weekend with the new political horror film The Oath. John Cho was up to the task, did everyone else bring their A-game to the dinner? 

Join Jess and Andrew for Day 14 of our 31 Films of Halloween adventure. Today we are watching an independent film that we recommend highly. If you haven't seen Jeremy Saulnier's first film Murder Party, that should be corrected immediately. It is streaming on Netflix and Shudder right now. We start with a conversation on that and spoil it before the end of the episode.  We also take a one day break from Masters of Horror for a journey to Candle Cove. Channel Zero is one of the best surprises to have been added to Shudder recently. This anthology show begins with some nightmare fuel. It's a beautiful binge, as each season is only six episodes long and completely self-contained. From what we've seen, Season 2 goes above and beyond even this. 

Even though the 13th falls on a Saturday this October, Jason couldn't stay away from our 31 Films of Halloween celebration. After slashing his way through 4 installments (fifth was a copycat), Jason is back to terrorize more counselors at the newly rebranded Camp Forest Green. Even though it's a new name, our favorite masked maniac knows he's back at home in Crystal Lake. Part 6 is our favorite installment, and we hope you are kind with your comments regarding that.  Jess and Andrew also are treated to the infamous Takiashi Miike chapter of Masters of Horror: Imprint. I'm not sure what the creators had expected from Miike when they handed him an episode, but he delivered the exact episode we thought he would. Too extreme for Showtime, this installment can be found on Screambox and is probably our favorite of the entire series.  

It's time to join Jess and Andrew in the boiler room for an installment of Franchise Horror in our 31 Films of Halloween adventure. Since it's Friday, we decided to stop by Freddy's for the "meta" chapter of the franchise. This film directly influenced Craven's Scream, which led to the revitalization of the horror genre. If you've never seen this one before, October is the perfect time for a visit. For us, it's an old favorite that never leaves our rotation. We hope you enjoy our talk on Wes Craven's New Nightmare, the 7th installment of the Freddy franchise.  Andrew also watched another episode of Masters of Horror. The chapter Haeckel's Tale is from John McNaughton, who made Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. That film haunted Andrew's entire childhood, so he was extra prepared to be disturbed by this one.  The episode starts with a previously aired segment on New Nightmare Haeckel's Tale Finishing with Spoilers from Jess and Andrew on New Nightmare

Join Jess and Andrew for Day 11 of our 31 Films of Halloween celebration. After getting our guts torn out and twisted around yesterday with "Hereditary", it seemed like a horror film with the emphasis on comedy was in order. "Tucker and Dale Vs Evil" is always a crowd pleaser, and also a nice message about crossing the aisle and getting over differences with fellow humans. This is streaming on Netflix and Shudder, and is an awesome addition to the Halloween viewing list.  "Masters of Horror: Pick Me Up" pairs perfectly with "Tucker and Dale". Larry Cohen's tale of roadway serial killers has that certain Cohen humor to it that made "The Stuff" and "Q: The Winged Serpent" such great films.  Follow along on our journey at AndrewWatchesMovies.com for write ups on every film. 

The time has come for something we found to be truly terrifying, this year's Hereditary. Earlier this year, this film divided audiences more than anything has since "mother!", and Jess and Andrew loved both of those movies. Toni Collete's performance in this film is startling, but there is more to it bubbling below the surface. If you saw it only once in theaters, a revisit gives a greater look to how all the pieces were put together, and how smoothly writer director Ari Aster was able to assemble it. At first watch, the film seemed to be slow to audiences, and we think that melts away on repeat viewings. The anxiety the film invokes in the viewer is what gives it the illusion of slow pacing. At home, the film remains as haunting as ever. Give it a watch on VOD to celebrate the 10th day of Halloween. Andrew also continues his journey through the "Masters of Horror" series with Lucky McKee's installment, "Sick Girl". This is a humorous piece that helps pick up the pieces from "Hereditary".  Join us tomorrow fo

It's time to watch one of our favorites on the 31 Films of Halloween list, 2017's "Tragedy Girls". The biggest Tragedy is that this one didn't get the wide theatrical release it deserved. Jess and Andrew saw this twice in theaters, and now about 11 more times at home. Join us for a sadistic little High School romp, one of the most fun films on this list. Andrew also continues his journey through the "Masters of Horror" with episode 9 "The Fair Haired Child".  

Jess and Andrew continue their 31 Films of Halloween celebration. Today is "Bride of Re-Animator" day, the best way we could figure out to follow up "Bride of Frankenstein". We also talk about the original "Re-Animator", since that is the far superior entry in the series. Andrew also continues his adventure through the Masters of Horror collection on Screambox.com. Today's episode is an extreme one from horror legend John Carpenter. Cigarette Burns is one that you won't forget after seeing, not a moment of it.

Today is Jess's Birthday, so our 7th day of the 31 Films of Halloween journey is dedicated to one of her favorites, "The Bride of Frankenstein". This is an absolute classic, one that still holds up in a way today, a time capsule to a different age with extraordinarily good special effects for the age.  We also checked out episode 7 of "Masters of Horror: Deer Woman". This chapter from John Landis is an absolute delight. Find it streaming on Screambox.com

Join Jess and Andrew for Day 6 of our 31 Films of Halloween journey. Today, our film is Mario Bava's "Black Sunday" AKA "The Mask of Satan". I actually like the alternative title better, and that is the one the film uses for the version streaming on Shudder. There are a few films that we've picked for this month that are new to us as well. This is one of them, and it was a wonderful surprise.  Joe Dante's (Gremlins) chapter of "Masters of Horror" is an absolute delight. In an era where an unpopular war is being fought, and spun as popular on politically bias television news programs, the dead soldiers return to give their opinion on the situation. George Romero was a supervisor for this comedically horrific gem. Streaming on Screambox.com. 

For Day 25 of our 31 Films of Halloween journey, we land on the scariest film of all time, The Exorcist. Seeing this on the big screen was an amazing experience that we recommend to everyone. For home viewing, it can be found on Filmstruck.com.  Andrew also continues his Master's of Horror journey with Right to Die. 

On day 5 of our 31 Days of Halloween journey, it's time to get down to something frightening. "The Witch" is the film that gets under Jess's skin like no other, and can readily be found right now on Netflix. This is a slow burn, artful type horror film, different than your everyday slasher. It takes patience with the story, and the language, but is very rewarding. We recommend watching it with the subtitles on...as well as the lights.  Andrew also continues on the "Masters of Horror" journey with episode 5 "Chocolate". This one is starring Henry Thomas from "ET", and is directed by creator Mick Garris. This one has a nice comedic charm with a disturbing edge. You'll never see Elliott from "ET" the same ever again. 

New Zealand makes some great horror films, mixing in a dark comedic streak that we just can't seem to replicate with often times outlandish gore. While not as gory as anything Peter Jackson put out, "Housebound" might be my favorite of the horror from the region. This is a great spin on the haunted house genre, combining it with a great family comedy. I wish this were streaming somewhere, but it's worth the rental price, or "liberation" from a site you can find.  We also continue with our "Masters of Horror" adventure with Dario Argento's "Jenifer". Argento is one of my favorite filmmakers, and he does not disappoint in this. Steven Webber (Wings) also gives a great performance. Find it streaming on Screambox.com