For Episode 002 of Horror Movie Weekly, the mysterious one, Lady Phantom, chose to review “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” (2019) by Norwegian filmmaker André Øvredal, who also directed “Trollhunter” (2010) and “The Autopsy of Jane Doe” (2016). We would also note that “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” was co-written and produced by Guillermo del Toro. During this episode, you’ll hear the Triad of Terror — Jay of the Dead, BillChete and Lady Phantom — debate about the merits of a PG-13 Horror film that’s adapted from a short story series aimed at middle school-aged kids. We also discuss whether the characters in this film are audience surrogates for marginalized Horror fans at large (or not). Be sure to weigh in with your thoughts in the comments for this episode.
On Horror Movie Weekly, your late-night Horror hosts Jay of the Dead, BillChete and Lady Phantom bring you one recent Horror movie review every Sunday. (We’re defining “recent” as any Horror movie released within the last five years.) And we always reveal next week’s pick at the end of every show, so you can watch along with us and be prepared for the following episode. Join us, and thanks for listening!
SHOW NOTES:
Introduction
– Jay of the Dead’s original theme music for Horror Movie Weekly
– Listener feedback tweet from Shane the Maniac about Episode 001
– Lady Phantom’s pick for this week’s review:
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019) — Genre Classification: Horror: Supernatural | Haunted House | Ghost | Anthology
Premise: It’s Halloween in 1968 in the small town of Mill Valley, Pennsylvania. A group of teens visit what is rumored locally to be a haunted house, where they find a book of “scary stories” that belonged to the infamous child murderer, Sarah Bellows — the girl who was locked away by her family and accused of telling tales that killed the locals, especially children.
Directed by André Øvredal. Written by Dan Hageman, Kevin Hageman, Guillermo del Toro. Starring Zoe Margaret Colletti, Michael Garza, et al. Rated PG-13 for terror / violence, disturbing images, thematic elements, language including racial epithets and brief sexual references. Runtime: 1 hour, 48 minutes.
Ratings and Recommendations: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)
Jay of the Dead = 7.5 ( Theater / Buy it! )
BillChete = 2 ( Avoid )
Lady Phantom = 6.5 ( Theater / Rental )
Next on Episode 003: Alien: Covenant (2017) — Jay of the Dead’s pick
Podcast artwork: Lady Phantom
Original podcast theme music: Jay of the Dead
Links for this episode:
Follow us on Twitter: @horror_weekly
Website: Horror Movie Weekly.com
Jay of the Dead’s film blog / solocast: ConsideringTheCinema.com
Jay’s HORROR-only content: ConsideringHorrorCinema.com
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