The Horror Double Bill – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Welcome to episode 31 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something for greater than the sum of their parts

This week we are discussing two movies that are both very dark comedies and are both set on Christmas Eve, First up is Dead End from 2003 written and directed by Jean Baptiste Andrea and Fabrice Canepa. This stars Alexandra Holden, Ray Wise, Lynn Shea, and Mick Cain. Then we head over to Spain for The Day of the Beast  from 1995  and director Alex De La Iglesia; starring Santiago Segura, Armando de Razza, Alex Angulo, and Terele Pavez. T

Along the way will be discussing the careers of Lynn Shea and Ray Wise, Alex de la Iglesia's views on Christmas, the story of Don Quixote and much much more

The Spectral Lines Zine: 

https://thespectrallines.bigcartel.com/

The Occultaria of Albion

https://www.occultariaofalbion.co.uk/

Recommendations mentioned in this episode

Alone in the Dark (1982)

Resources and Research

Dead End

Making of featurette available on the Pathe DVD release

https://morbidlybeautiful.com/lin-shaye-interview-one/

https://www.joblo.com/interview-ray-wise/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lin_Shaye

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/3277/andrea-jean-baptiste-dead-end/

http://www.reviewgraveyard.com/Interview/04-04-01_Jean-BaptisteAndrea.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Wise

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0936403/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Andrea

Day of the Beast

Interview with Alex de la Iglesia and “Heirs of the Beast” documentary feature, available on the Severin Films blu ray release

https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/3339/de-la-iglesia-alex-day-of-the-beast-etc/

https://filmint.nu/round-table-discussion-with-alex-de-la-iglesia/

https://www.xataka.com/entrevistas/alex-iglesia-dia-bestia-partida-rol-cura-personaje-chtulhu

Spanish Horror Film by Antonio Lazaro Reboll, 

The Spanish Fantastic Contemporary Filmmaking In Horror Fantasy And Sci-Fi by Shelagh Rowan Legg

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email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 30 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week both films are directed by Robert Wise, a multiple Oscar-winning American director whose works have included The Body Snatcher, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Andromeda Strain, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, West Side Story, and The Sound of Music, as well as this week’s two movies.

So first up, for our Christmas movie we have The Curse of the Cat People from 1944, starring Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Elizabeth Russell, and Ann Carter. Another film in the series from RKO Studios and producer Val Lewton, this marked Wise’s feature directing debut, although he did in fact share the directing credits with Gunther von Fritsch.

Then we jump forward to 1963 and one of the most famous haunted house movies of all time, The Haunting. This was based on The Haunting of Hill House, written by Shirley Jackson, and stars Julie Harris, Richard Johnson, Russ Tamblyn, and Claire Bloom.

Along the way we’ll be discussing in detail the career of Robert Wise, the career and writing of Shirley Jackson, and much, much more.

Recommendations:

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

The Summer People by Shirley Jackson

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) Directed by Robert Wise

The Return (TV Ghost Story) : 

https://youtu.be/MkPCslMN-ps?si=SEZ6IQTN6v72Vxwo

Sources and References

Val Lewton: The Reality of Terror by Joel E. Siegel 

Icons of Grief: Val Lewton’s Home Front Pictures by Alexander Nemerov.

Little Shop of Horrors, (issue 49) - The Roads to Hill House: The Making of Robert Wise’s The Haunting”  by Anthony McKay. 

https://www.the-haunting.com/index.html

Dance Macabre by Stephen King

The Masterpieces of Shirley Jackson with an introduction by Donna Tartt

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Episode 21: Cat People (1942) & The Company of Wolves (1984)

Welcome to episode 21 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.

This week – after a very short break - we are back with the shapeshifters with two films that use metamorphosis as metaphor for sexuality, albeit with very different interpretations.

First up we have Cat People from 1943 and legendary producer Val Lewon. Directed by Jacques Tourneur it stars Simone Simon, Tom Cowway, Kent Smith and Jane Randolph. Then we follow this with The Company of Wolves from 1984, directed by Neil Jordan and staring Angela Lansbury, Sarah Patterson, David Warner and – in a blink and you’ll miss it cameo, the late great Terrence Stamp.

 Along the way, we will be discussing the history of RKO Studios, director Jacques Tourneur, actor Simone Simon, author Angela Carter and much much more. 

Sources

RKO Pictures:

https://www.britannica.com/art/history-of-film/Post-World-War-I-American-cinema

https://www.britannica.com/money/RKO-Radio-Pictures-Inc

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_Booking_Offices_of_America

https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark%3A%2F13030%2Fkt267nd72c

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RKO_Pictures

Cat People

https://youtu.be/rYLQTFUN7yI?si=LEACT0CJNyBvtoaD

Cat People by Kim Newman (BFI classics) 

Val Lewton the reality of terror by Joel E Siegel

Jacques Tourneur The Cinema of Nightfall by Chris Fujiwara 

The Company of Wolves

The Company of Wolves by James Gracie (Devils Advocates)

 https://youtu.be/7GMb_VPoLr4?si=K52Do2OwxvB48Ndm

https://youtu.be/uzro7hXvp4c?si=TCk44HyEB2rBlPQr

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 20 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the horrors of ageing and identity with two movies that take the viewer on a disorienting journey into the price of reinvention and rejuvenation

First up we have Seconds from 1966 and director John Frankenheimer, featuring a career best performance from former matinee idol Rock Hudson alongside Salome Jen and Will Geer. Then we bring ourselves bang up to date – nearly - with the Substance from 2024 and director Coralie Fargeat, featuring a career best performance from Demi Moore alongside Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid.

References

Seconds

Seconds by Jez Conolly and Emma Westwood

The directors commentary on the Masters of Cinema blu ray release

https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/22848?

https://theasc.com/magazine/nov97/seconds/pg1.htm

https://theasc.com/articles/aces-of-the-camera-james-wong-howe-asc?

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/08/a-second-life-for-em-seconds-em-the-1966-cult-classic-that-made-audiences-sick/278930/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Frankenheimer

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Hudson

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seconds_(1966_film)

https://youtu.be/FV2LuK8wVsg?si=z-IZcYN5eF6ZB0h4

https://youtu.be/UjT-db11ZwM?si=W9L12SzTFjBuSDrZ

The Substance

https://www.hammertonail.com/interviews/coralie-fargeat/

https://www.screendaily.com/features/coralie-fargeat-on-making-the-substance-her-own-way-everything-had-to-be-in-excess/5199519.article

https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/coralie-fargeat-feminist-body-horror-the-substance-1235048769/

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/sep/14/we-can-be-violent-to-ourselves-brutal-demi-moore-on-body-image-reinvention-and-her-most-shocking-role-yet

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/demi-moore-on-the-substance-and-resisting-a-toxic-beauty-culture/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Substance

https://youtu.be/8H64HNvXrqU?si=tJyXTPL6niEzfnZM

https://youtu.be/UMicrbtjFKU?si=vAM0EnUtOI-qMsSR

https://youtu.be/BKcMm5RG2M4?si=fn0a134K_Vz5lCBi

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/the-substance-shot-list-coralie-fargeat-awards-insider

https://www.elle.com/culture/movies-tv/a62297701/the-substance-coralie-fargeat-interview/

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

This week we are exploring the horrors of Artificial intelligence and tech noir with two films from very different eras but similar fears and concerns. 

First up is Colossus: The Forbin Project from 1970, directed by Joseph Sargent and starring Eric Braden, Susan Clark, Gordon Pinsett, and William Schallert. Then we jump forward nearly half a century to 2018 with Upgrade, written and directed by Leigh Whannell, and featuring Logan Marshall-Green, Betty Gabriel, Harrison Gilbertson, and Benedict Hardy. 

Both of these films imagine worlds where technology outpaces human intelligence and in which something designed as a helpful tool quickly mutates into something far more sinister. Between them, the two address themes including autonomy, privacy, the arrogance of sciences, and the fallibility and future of our species. 

References used:

https://www.wired.com/2017/03/ridley-scott-video/

https://www.bfi.org.uk/features/jean-luc-godards-dystopian-sci-fi-classic-alphaville-turns-50

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Terminal_Man_(film)

https://www.bangor.ac.uk/news/2024-10-09-the-terminator-at-40-james-camerons-dark-vision-is-more-relevant-than-ever

Colossus The Forbin Project

https://catalog.afi.com/Film/23505-THE-FORBIN-PROJECT?cxt=filmography

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Braeden

https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/colossus-the-forbin-projects-eric-braeden-retrospective-interview

The directors commentary on the blu ray release of the movie from Spirit Entertainment

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossus:_The_Forbin_Project

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Whitlock

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colossus_(novel)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._F._Jones

Upgrade

An interview with Leigh Whannell titled "Man.Machine.More" that appears on the Second Sight blu ray release

https://www.avclub.com/saw-creators-leigh-whannell-and-james-wan-1798222299

https://www.starburstmagazine.com/features/leigh-whannell-upgrade/

https://thenerdstemplar.com/2018/05/29/interview-leigh-whannell-upgrade/

https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/01/leigh-wannell-upgrade-interview/

https://punchdrunkcritics.com/2018/06/interview-upgrade-director-leig/

https://rue-morgue.com/exclusive-upgrade-interview-pt-1-leigh-whannell-and-logan-marshall-green-on-practical-effects-and-who-almost-directed/

https://dailydead.com/sxsw-2018-interview-leigh-whannell-logan-marshall-green-and-betty-gabriel-talk-upgrade/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEqZipI7eyc

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Episode 18: The Uninvited (1944) & The Changeling (1980)

Welcome to episode 18 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the horrors of the haunted house which strangely enough is very different to the trope of the old dark house that we discussed back in episode 12.

First up we have The Uninvited from 1944, directed by Lewis Allen and starring Ray Milland, Gail Russell, Ruth Hussey, and Donald Crisp then we jump forward in time to 1980 with the changeling directed by Peter Medak, and starring George C Scott Trish Vandeveer and Melvin Douglas

Along the way we will be discussing Hollywood’s rather strange early reluctance to depict ghosts in the horror genre, The career of Ray Milland, the tragedy of GAIL Russell, the somewhat dubious true story behind the movie The changeling, the career and controversies surrounding George C Scott and much more.

Sources & References

The Uninvited (1944)

Extras and commentary on the Criterion Collection Blu Ray release of the film and an interview with Lewis Allen that was included in the Criterion Collection accompanying booklet

Danse Macabre by Stephen King

https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2934-the-uninvited-spirits-by-starlight

https://ladailymirror.com/2007/07/05/gail-russell/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural_(film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Uninvited_(1944_film)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gail_Russell

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Milland

The Changeling (1980)

Extras and the directors commentary on the second sight pictures blu ray release of the film

https://history.denverlibrary.org/news/denver-house-inspired-horror-film

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_C._Scott

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melvyn_Douglas

https://montecristomagazine.com/arts/horror-classic-changeling#gsc.tab=0

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Changeling_(film)

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

email: thehorrordoublebill@gmail.com

youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Episode 17: Let's Scare Jessica to Death (1971) & Symptoms (1974). Fall into madness. 

Welcome to episode 17 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the horrors of autumn, with a double bill of movies that use the tuning of the seasons as metaphors for the increasingly fragmented psyches of their protagonists. 

 First up we have Lets Scare Jessica to Death from 1971, then we follow this with Symptoms from 1974

Both movies use the beauty of their respective autumnal landscapes as a serene backdrops for their increasingly nightmarish scenarios. The crisp leaves muted colours and early morning mists of Connecticut in the US and Hillingdon in Great Britain gradually morphing from a place of sanctuary, escape and tranquillity one of slow stultifying death and decay. Released at the start of the 1970s, and with an emphasis on alternative and creative lifestyles, both also can be said to represent the demise of the love generation, as the hope and optimism of flower power gave way to Vietnam, civil unrest and the winter of discontent. 

Sources:

House of Psychotic Women by Kier La Janisse

 https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/death-of-the-60s-dream-1969/

https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/discussion/did-the-sixties-dream-die-in-1969?utm_source=chatgpt.com 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altamont_Free_Concert

https://sfist.com/2017/03/02/what_was_the_summer_of_love_an_expl/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_of_Love

Hancock on Hancock by John Hancock

Imprint blu ray special edition of lets Scare Jessica to Death (special features)

https://screenanarchy.com/2006/10/interview-with-director-john-hancock.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let%27s_Scare_Jessica_to_Death

BFI blu ray special edition of Symptoms (special features)

English Gothic by Jonathan Rigby

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youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Welcome to episode 16 of the horror double bill the podcast where each week we pair 2 movies to create something far greater than the sum of their parts

This week we are exploring the terrors of ballet school with two European horror films that are connected through more than just the depiction of dance. 

First up we Head to France and 2011 for Livide from the directing duo of Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, starring Chloe Colloud, Marie-Claude Pietragalla, Chloe Marcq, and Felix Moati

Then we head across to Italy – or should that be Germany – and 1977 for Suspiria from Dario Argento, starring Jessican Harper, Stefania Cassini, Alida Valli and Joan Bennet

Both films can be said to be the horror movie as fairy tale, and if we are honest neither is going to appeal to viewers who prefer naturalistic and realistic narratives. Livid moves the directors of 2007’s Inside away from the extreme violence of their debut and into the realms of fantasy, while Suspiria is a full-blown assault on the senses that was inspired by Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, to name just one of its very diverse influences. 

Along the way we will be discussing the careers of Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, Baroque approaches to lighting design, the creative and relationship drama behind Suspiria, fairy tale approaches to horror and much more

References:

Livid

https://archive.ph/20121211050709/http://asberman.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/from-the-vault-livide-interview-with-julien-maury/

https://collider.com/alexandre-bustillo-julien-maury-livid-hellraiser-remake-interview/

https://medium.com/keeping-it-spooky/french-frights-livide-6936d081a623

https://monstrousindustry.wordpress.com/2011/09/04/interview-with-livid-directors-alexandre-bustillo-and-julien-maury/#:~:text=AB%2BJM%3A%20For%20both%2C%20our%20relationship,on%20our%20first%202%20movies 

https://newhorror.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/from-the-vault-livide-interview-with-julien-maury/#:~:text=you%20are%20again%20taking%20a,for%20the%20look%20of%20Livide

https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/153462/

https://www.ghoulsmagazine.com/articles/interview-director-julien-maury-talks-kandisha?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Films of the New French Extremity by Alexandra West. 

Suspiria

Broken Mirrors/Broken Minds The Dark Dreams of Dario Argento by Maitland McDonagh

Fear The Autobiography of Dario Argento

Dario Argento: The Man, The Myths and The Magic by Alan Jones

Spaghetti Nightmares edited by Luca M Palmerini and Geatano Mistretta. 

Dario Argento An Eye for Horror Directed by Leon Ferguson

Dario Argento Panico directed by Simone Scaffidi.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Bennett

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alida_Valli

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_De_Quincey

Instagram: @thehorrordoublebill

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youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Episode 15: Sleep Tight (2011) & Them (2006): There's no place like home.....

Welcome to episode 15 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

This week we are exploring the horrors that lurk in the home, with two movies that depict our safest spaces as places of threat, terror and murder. First up with have Jaume Ballaguero’s Spanish psychological thriller Sleep Tight from 2011, a highly disturbing character study of a malignant building custodian and the lengths to which he will go to achieve true happiness. Then we head over to Romania for Them from directing duo David Moureau and Xavier Palud, a French co-production from 2006 that pre-dates The Strangers in its depiction of a young couple terrorised by a home invasion. 

Both films are nightmarish slices of Euro horror that crank up the tension and dismantle the notion of home being a sanctuary, exploiting the helplessness of their central characters. And despite being made 15 to 20 years ago, both also feed into modern anxieties about isolation, class, power imbalance and the fragility of what we call society. They also quite literally present very different perspectives – one through the lens of the perpetrator and the other through the eyes of the victims.

Along the way we’ll be discussing the origins of home invasion horror, silent movie director Lois Weber, the career of director Jaume Ballageuro, new French extremity cinema and much much more. 

References:

Sleep Tight 

Spanish Horror Film by Antonio Lazzaro Reboll

The Spanish Fantastic by Shelagh Rowan Legg.

 https://diariodevenusville.com/festival-de-sitges-2011-mientras-duermes-rueda-jaume-balaguero-luis-tosar/

https://diariodevenusville.com/festival-de-sitges-2011-mientras-duermes-entrevista-jaume-balaguero/

https://diariodevenusville.com/festival-de-sitges-2011-mientras-duermes-entrevista-luis-tosar/

https://diariodevenusville.com/festival-de-sitges-2011-mientras-duermes-entrevista-marta-etura/

https://www.moviemuser.co.uk/2013/02/28/luis-tosar-interview-chatting-with-the-star-of-sleep-tight/

https://www.milanacine.es/alberto-marini-10-anos-mientras-duermes/

https://www.20minutos.es/noticia/1184755/0/jaume-balaguero/mientras-duermes/sitges-2011/

Them

Behind the Scenes of Them: available on the blu ray special edition form Umbrella Entertainment. 

Films of the New French Extremity by Alexandra West

https://www.ecranlarge.com/films/interview/901002-david-moreau-xavier-palud-ils

https://www.ecranlarge.com/films/interview/901003-olivia-bonamy-michael-cohen-ils

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980s%E2%80%931990s_Romanian_orphans_phenomenon?utm_source=chatgpt.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children_Underground?utm_source=chatgpt.com

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youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)

Episode 14: Messiah of Evil (1973) & The Fog (1980): "Oh I do like to be beside the seaside....."

Welcome To episode 14 of the horror double bill the podcast where each week we pair two movies to create something far greater than the sum of their parts

This week we are exploring coastal horrors and the terrors that lurk in the liminal space between the land and the sea. First up we have Messiah of Evil from 1973 a surreal almost Lovecraftian indie horror from the writers of American Graffiti Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and, somewhat bizarrely, Howard the Duck. Then we jump forward to 1980 for the fog, John carpenter's follow up to Halloween, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Atkins, Adrienne Barbeau and Janet Leigh

Both of this week’s movies depict terrors from the past returning to menace supposedly idyllic seaside California towns, but behind the scenes both have their roots in  the rise of American independent cinema in the 1970s and also share some very interesting and rather troubled post production stories. Along the way we'll also be exploring the nature of coastal horror, including just a few of my favourites of the genre, the death of the Hollywood studio system, the rise of independent film making in the 1960s and 1970s, and much more. 

William Hope Hodgson Readings

The Derelict - https://youtu.be/x44h5oeVoM0?si=V4mLlwl2DIfcWH6k

The Voice in the Night: https://youtu.be/ASIfPcyTAH0?si=VNJDiwQoJfa5Lb0s

References - Introduction

The Birds by Daphne DuMaurier

Cornish Tales of Terror ed. R. Chetwynd Haynes

https://nmmc.co.uk/2023/07/maritime-superstitions/

https://www.sailingeurope.com/blog/sailors-superstitions

References - Messiah of Evil

"Nightmare USA -  the untold story of exploitation independents" by Stephen Thrower

The mini documentary "Remembering Messiah of Evil" form the Code Red DVD Release of the movie

https://creepycatalog.com/messiah-of-evil-movie/#:~:text=released%20the%20movie%20under%20the,%E2%80%9D

https://www.dreadcentral.com/editorials/336575/messiah-of-evil-a-criminally-overlooked-piece-of-1970s-strangeness/

References - The Fog

Extras from the Studio Canal Blu-ray restoration release including the documentary "Retribution - Uncovering John Carpenter's The Fog" and the audio commentary from John Carpenter and writer producer Deborah Hill.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1980/01/28/people-start-running

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youtube: @thehorrordoublebill

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