Tag: slasher movies

Really Awful Movies: Ep 276 – Psycho IV: The Beginning

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Is this a necessary sequel? No. Is it particularly gripping? Not especially. But what it does have is the one and only Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates…so really, what else is required? On this week’s episode of the podcast, Psycho IV: The Beginning, director Mick Garris’ exploration into the myth, the man, the matricidal legend himself, Norman “Is that you, Norman?” Bates.

Installments two and three of the series, birthed by Alfred Hitchcock, are films we look upon fondly and favourably. They’re better than they had any right to be, especially when those entries had to live up to such an indelible classic (cue those screeching violins, everyone).

In Psycho VI, much of the story is flashbacks that distill the essence of what made Norman the man, and that of course, was the relationship with his mother.

There’s a lot of backstory filling in, so in a way this entry is a bit like Rob Zombie’s largely unbearable and overwrought Halloween entry…however, there is enough here to warrant an evening’s viewing.

Join us on this episode of the Really Awful Movies Podcast.

In this episode, we delve into Stephen King adaptations, the work of Mick Garris, the influence of Ed Gein, similarities between the familial horror of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Psycho, Freudian psycho-dramas, the life and times of Anthony Perkins, and much, much more.

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Really Awful Movies: Ep 271 – Hatchet for the Honeymoon

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We are not in flavor country, we are in Bava Country. And on this episode of the Really Awful Movies Podcast, Mario Bava’s fun giallo, Hatchet for the Honeymoon.

The film was lusciously shot in Barcelona and Rome with the working title Un’accetta per la luna di miele. And Bava completed shooting in October 1969. The setting is wonderful: a sprawling villa with immaculately kept grounds.

It follows the misadventures of John Harrington (Stephen Forsyth), who, with the assistance of his estranged wife, runs a boutique wedding fashion house. He tends to a small hot house flower garden as well.

John though, has a wandering eye…and also an eye for killing models.

As models start to go missing, Inspector Russell begins poking his nose around.

Hatchet for the Honeymoon is not a true giallo (there’s no black glove killer, for example, and the killer’s identity is revealed right off the bat). However, there are little touches of yellow flavoring throughout.

Fans of Mario Bava will get a kick out of this, and fans of genre film as well.

Tune in, and don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast (and tell all your friends). And also, help support the show by picking up a copy of our acclaimed book, Death by Umbrella! The 100 Weirdest Horror Movie Weapons.

 

Really Awful Movies: Ep 268 – April Fool’s Day

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It’s coming up on April Fool’s Day folks. And to celebrate the auspicious occasion, we delve into this 1986 slasher that is an under-the-radar near-classic.

The plot couldn’t be more deceptively simple: a group of college coeds getting together to blow off some steam. That’s the premise of about 1000 horrors during the slasher boom. But April Fool’s Day gives us plenty of detours along the way.

The disparate group of friends gathers on a dock. They’re about to be shepherded over to a remote island, the family home of the wonderfully (and WASP-y) named Muffy St. John. And the group is treated to a bunch of April Fool’s pranks along the way – you know the ones, your trick doorknobs and dribble cups.

Suddenly, one of them vanishes. And this sets the ball rolling.

Too smart by half, April Fool’s Day easily stands apart from its date-themed horrors (apart from the grand daddy and acknowledged supreme effort that is John Carpenter’s Halloween, but that’s a given).

It’s a wonderfully inviting and subtle work, directed by Fred Walton, the man who gave us When a Stranger Calls. The characters are well-written, well-rounded, and well-developed. The scene-setting (gorgeous BC) works in its favor.

Horror fans will love seeing the ever-competent Amy Steel (Friday the 13th Part 2 and Part III).

Join us on the Really Awful Movies Podcast. We do deep-dives into genre flicks of all stripes, predominantly horror.