The Scariest Things

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For much of the Scariest Things crew, we are discussing horror movies from our backyard. This is our home turf. The Pacific Northwest is a suitable backdrop for horror, with its often gloomy weather, quirky urban cities, and history of cryptids. Famously, we keep it weird in the PNW, and the movies reflect these tastes.

Jump Scares are the foundation of so many horror movies. This blast of adrenaline keeps horror fans coming back to the cineplex. Great horror movies, awful horror movies—they all use them. The Scariest Things team discusses our favorite use of the easiest and perhaps most essential trope in the genre.

Overlook, the great New Orleans Horror Film Festival, has delivered its goods. Long-time Patreon supporter of The Scariest Things, Robyn Marcotte, joined us to share her experiences with Eric and Liz on the festival. More than ever, I found that I didn't have enough time to see nearly enough of the movies. Still, I was able to catch eight feature films and 23 short films. You have to pick and choose, as it is physically impossible to see all the movies. So, it became a bit of a guessing game as to what was going to be the best watch. In this episode, we share our thoughts on everything we did at the Festival.

Horror Shorts are often the heartbeat of horror film festivals. They are frequently overlooked by audiences, but not at this year's Overlook Film Festival. Each session was full of horror fans, which was great. Listen in to these emerging directors and writers for insight into how to make festival-worthy films.

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Looking forward to the horror offerings of 2025, The Scariest Things anticipates what will be our favorite horror films this year. The festivals are rolling out the best indie films, and the sequel slates have been set. Let's get scary!

Happy New Year! It's a little late, but the Lunar New Year celebrations go on for weeks, so we're still in celebration mode, even as the calendar turns from February to March. 2025 marks the year of the snake, and one of our fans, John Foley, suggested that we do a snake-themed horror movie podcast. We'll do that one better—we're going to find representatives for all the critters of the Lunar Zodiac Horrorscope!

Who needs your fancy schmancy elevated horror?!? Turn the page back to when real horror villains had no feelings or emotional depth other than deep blood lust. Join us, won't you, as we tour the sordid world of exploitation, lesbian vampires, biker gangs, and grimy savagery. It's Grindhouse time at The Scariest Things Podcast!

Sigh. Here are our Worst Horror Movies of 2024. It's an annual obligation. You can't win them all, and it is time to reveal the losers from 2024.

Well, that was fun! 2024, though it started slow, managed to pack in quite a few worthy films. The six critics of The Scariest Things debated who deserved a spot in the top 10, and there was a wide spread of picks. There were a few standouts most of us agreed to, but to find out, you'll have to listen to the podcast!

Horror Musicals: When they work they are next-level works of art. It's some of the worst material ever created when they don't work. Eric cajoled/dragged Liz and Mike to participate in evaluating one of his favorite sub-genres, the Horror Musical. A spotify soundtrack list is included in this post for you to hear the songs from the films we discuss in Ep 191.

Once upon a time, the major broadcast television networks used to produce feature films for their movies of the week. Many of the great made-for-tv horror movies have found new audiences with restored Blu-Ray issuances and streaming options, giving some long-lost classics a new lease on viewing life.

Cinephiles and physical media collectors, this episode is for you! The Criterion Collection has been the premiere distributor of cinematic excellence for decades. Did they find room for horror? Yes, they did! It is a very select group of films, but you might be surprised at some of the inclusions. Here are our picks from their horror library.

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Aaron Moorhead is one half of the prolific writing/acting/directing duo of Moorhead and Benson. The acclaimed duo produced some of the past decade's most mind-bending cosmic horror movies. It was only appropriate that he would serve as the keynote speaker at this year's H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, and he took some time out of his busy festival schedule to talk with Eric Li about his Cosmic theories and theses.

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Let's turn back the clock to revisit an underrated year in horror movies: 1999. It's certainly a good time to put 1999 in perspective for its silver anniversary. In hindsight, this was a hinge year. Many old horror themes were getting swept away as new genre tropes emerged.

It has become a Summer tradition: The Scariest Things joins forces with our Podcasting sisters from the East Coast, The Jersey Ghouls, to do some summer school homework. This year's assignment from Liz was to spin the Wheel of Misfortune and receive a Horror Movie Studio. We then were to report back on their history and legacy, along with some recommendations. It was an education for us, and we're passing it along to you!

When considering foreign language horror, do not sleep on Spanish productions. It's not usually the first stop in horror, with French Extremism, Italian Giallo, and J-Horror often getting the most notoriety. There are some legendary titles from Latin America that you should consider. In Episode 186, the Scariest Things gives you nine titles worthy of a watch.

Oddity is the scariest horror movie of 2024. It crushed the film festival circuit, drawing acclaim at SXSW, Overlook, BiFan, and Fantasia Fest. The director, Damian McCarthy, took some time to talk with The Scariest Things to tell us about how he crafted the surprise horror hit of the year.

The 2024 Thingy Awards! It is time for the Mid-Year Scariest Things grand celebration: Once again, we surveyed and received votes from our favorite fans and industry contacts to determine the best horror movies of last year. If there were a couple of themes from last year: Possession and Australia. We got a lot of both in 2023, and it was GOOD. It was one of the best years for horror in the past ten years!

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It was a dark and stormy night! Prepare to enter the foggy moor with The Scariest Things as we discuss the genre's roots in Gothic Horror, the ornate and narratively complex origins of horror film.

It has become something of a Hollywood crutch. The cynical amongst us consider prequels, sequels, and reboots to be lazy storytelling. Franchise horror comes in all forms. When obvious profits are predicted, big-budget studio films and straight-to-streaming B-movies fall into the same formula. Rinse, repeat, and rinse again. We think we can do this a little better.

At the Overlook Film Festival, The Scariest Things caught up with up-and-coming director John Rosman, who was on hand to present his debut feature film New Life. This thriller was a sleeper surprise at the festival. A political thriller that morphs into a toe-curling body horror show halfway through. The film is in limited theatrical release and can be streamed online now!

April means going to New Orleans for one of the best genre film festivals in the world and one of our favorites: The Overlook Film Festival. This year was a challenge for the festival as the 2023 SGA and WGA strikes had a diminishing effect on studio releases, the fest managed to pull in some terrific foreign films, and the short films shined too.

Spooky Time Episode 27: The Wheel of Misfortune is back, and so are The Jersey Ghouls!

Here, there be dragons! The deep ocean conjures up deep-seated fears. They call that Thalassophobia. It's real, and it translates to the movies. The Scariest Things enters the life raft and examines ocean-born horror in Episode 182!

As we've said before, pulling off a horror comedy is one of the most precarious feats a director can attempt. The feat is made all the more difficult when it's done on a micro-budget with limited to no resources. Easter Bloody Easter manages to walk this tight rope with aplomb, while pulling in one of the coolest Black Sabbath horror references since the semi-eponymous Black Sabbath in 1963. Easter Bloody Easter is the new horror film from first time director, Diane Foster.

Oh God, please don't let the world end like this! The Scariest Things looks to the future of a dystopian world of the few surviving humans facing grim realities. Whether it's our fault, or the zombie's fault, or an alien incursion, or perhaps the Earth is just tired of us, this existential dread is the stuff that will keep you up at night.

You have our apologies in advance. Liz challenged us to record a podcast where we discuss movies with "Haunting" or "Haunted" in the title. If you search "Haunting" in IMdB, there are well over 4000 films with that word in the title. Sadly, only a few of them are any good. Or, at least from what we've been able to determine so far. There are only so many "Haunting of" movies that a critic can stomach in a month.

True Detective Season 4: Night Country has just completed its run on MAX, and it is totally worth stealing your neighbor's MAX... I mean, BUYING a month of MAX... to binge the series. As satisfying as it can be to binge a series, having this as a weekly water cooler show was a great way to build anticipation and chatter. Chatter like our Spooky Time 26!

The Scariest Things eagerly awaits the slate of films for 2024. We are thrilled to cast our eyes forward to the scary films to come. Sadly, if years prior are any indicator, our ability to spot the best of what is to come is unfortunately spotty. That isn't to say that we won't make the attempt to predict horror movies that we think we will enjoy!

The Worst Horror Movies of 2023. It's an unfortunate but needed exposure of what was awful in 2023. What is more unfortunate is that we had to watch these movies last year. You may consider this a warning. A red flag. But admit it, many of you like to kick a bad movie when it's down. Our advice? Kick away! You love this. We know you do.

The Scariest Things writing team didn't have a consensus #1 film, but all four of the films that reached the top spot are likely to become instant classics, remembered for decades to come. If you want a sampler platter of tasty tasty horror, then listen to the FIVE top ten lists in our roundtable discussion in Podcast Episode 177: The Best Horror Movies of 2023.

Just How did a bunch of reprobates like the hosts of The Scariest Things become horror junkies? For Episode 176, we gathered to discuss our experiences watching movies to determine why we got into scary films. Gateway horror movies a plenty!

Hey Y'all! Fire up the barbeque and grab some sweet tea. It's time to take a trip down to SEC country to partake in some Southern Fried Horror!

The wheel gives, and sometimes it gives you something kinda lame! Our joint session with Jacki and Marissa, The Jersey Ghouls, back on Spooky Time Episode 18, continues with the second half of our epic discussion.

There is still some life in found footage horror. Anthony Cousins has delivered one of the best shaky cam offerings in many years. It helps to have an underappreciated new cryptid, the Frogman of Loveland Ohio. It's a genuinely frightening film, in glorious low-res high-8 film. Anthony spent some time sharing his process with The Scariest Things.

It's our Wheel of Misfortune Franchise Extravaganza (part 1)!

Just in time for Halloween, Liz sat down and chatted with film and television editor, Jeremy Cohen to talk about his most recent project Totally Killer!

Dr. Rebekah McKendry is a Renaissance Woman in Horror Cinema. She carries the unique position of not only being a director, but also is a professor of film at USC (Just the best film school in the world, right?) Dr. McKendry was the keynote speaker at the HP Lovecraft Film Festival, and we got an opportunity to talk with her backstage to talk all things Cosmic, including her terrific film Glorious.

Cosmic Horror screenwriting legend Dennis Paoli joined Eric Li to discuss his collaborations with Stuart Gordon, Barbara Crampton, and the new film Suitable Flesh. The master storyteller is not surprisingly a real fun interview. Enjoy this special Podcast Extra!

We've got a full house, and are fully loaded with reviews, previews, and news of festivals, books, and upcoming genre films! Check out Episode 25!

Cosmic fishiness, served up multiple ways, and one of the freakiest museum anywhere await in the latest Spooky Time. Liz and Eric literally travel the Earth (and the internet) to share the best in spooky in Spooky Time 24.

Do you have the self control and common sense to survive a horror movie event? Georgina Black is here to present a tactical means to beat all those horror tropes that will allow you to be a Final Girl (Guy). Trust me, there are some tips and tricks that would have saved many a horror movie character if they had her knowledge. Find out in this TST Podcast Extra, live from the Cabin in the Woods Film Festival!