"Oh yes... they float, Georgie. They float. And when you're down here with me... YOU'LL FLOAT TOO!" Pennywise (Tim Curry) - also known as It - sums up his MO as he kills young Georgie. This interdimensional being is out to prey on the local children of Derry, Maine. So naturally, the only people to stop It are a group of children. Who are all connected by... fate? And defeat this being through... belief? But not until It comes back 23 years later when they're all less interesting characters. There's a lot to talk about here. Literally over 3 hours worth. Luckily, Decades of Horror 1990s will only take an hour to float on through your eardrums!
Decades of Horror 1990s
Episode 23 – Stephen King's It (1990)
Following 1979's Salem's Lot, It was the mini-series that kicked off a major trend for the era. In the fall out of this two part story, we got Tommyknockers and The Langoliers. There was nothing hotter to do back in the day then trying to cram thousands of pages into a few hours worth of time. The results are... mixed to say the least. The children being terrorized are pretty compelling, including young turns from Ginger Snaps' Emily Perkins and Robot Chicken's Seth Green. Then their adult versions come about - played by familiar TV actors - who... aren't as compelling. To say the least. You may be dreading any of the moments where a kid or Pennywise aren't on the screen.
To dissect all three hours of It, Thomas brings aboard Christopher G. Moore, Dave Dreher and Adam Thomas. The four praise Tim Curry's iconic performance as Pennywise and are desperate to find something else that would be considered worth watching. There's plenty to dig at, from the Stephen King cliches to the infamous ending. Of course, the optimism comes in where the upcoming It film can diverge from this adaptation. Hopefully, there'll be less questions of whether Prince Albert is in a can and if he can be let out. WAH HA! WAH HA! WAH HA!
We want to hear from you – the coolest, most gruesome fans: leave us a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1990s podcast hosts at thomasmariani@decadesofhorror.com or tweet Thomas @NotTheWhosTommy. Also, make sure to give us some love via iTunes reviews and ratings. Helps us get more notice along the way.
The intro and outro is “Suck City” by Black Math. Look for more of their music via Free Music Archive.
The Sixth Sense (1999)
“Suzy, do you know anything about … witches?” Suzy Bannion doesn’t know much, but she’s about to find out a lot more, ... the hard way! As of the recording of this podcast, it’s just 12 days past the 40th anniversary of the U.S. release of Dario Argento’s Suspiria, a giallo masterpiece. Doc Rotten is still on hiatus, diligently working on the next issues of the Gruesome Magazine quarterly print and electronic editions. (Issue #2 is now available. Don’t miss out!) In the interim, your regular hosts, The Black Saint and Jeff Mohr, are joined by the capable and knowledgeable Bill Mulligan, film director, and Chad Hunt, comic book artist/writer and co-host of Decades of Horror: The Classic Era podcast. Join them as they are completely entranced by the magic of Argento’s audio and visual feast.
Decades of Horror 1970s
Episode 58 – Suspiria (1977)
Suspiria is the story of an elite dance school in Germany that is a front for some supernatural shenanigans. The school is run by Madame Blanc (Joan Bennett), and its head instructor is the disciplinary Miss Tanner (Alida Valli). Suzy (Jessica Harper) is a young American who has recently arrived at the school. Life at the school is a dreamlike, nightmarish experience. Suzy’s life there is soon rocked by the brutal murders of two fellow students, Pat (Eva Axén) and Sara (Stefania Casini), and the school’s blind piano player, Daniel (Flavio Bucci).
Co-written (with Daria Nicolodi) and directed by Dario Argento, the film’s plot is a train wreck. Luciano Tovoli’s cinematography and the Goblin’s score, however, are so masterful, no one seems to care that exactly what happens or why it happens is never made clear.
The Black Saint and Bill Mulligan extol the effect the trailer had on them when they first saw it. Think involuntary bodily evacuation. The crew all think Suspiria is Jessica Harper’s film more than any other member of the cast. When they learn she got the part after Argento saw her performance in Brian de Palma’s Phantom of the Paradise, they throw some smack toward award-winning director and fellow Decades of Horror co-host, Christopher G. Moore (See Decades of Horror 1970s - Episode 40 - Phantom of the Paradise (1974)). Suspiria is filled with effective and memorable scenes that our fearless Grue Crew discuss in detail, especially the sequences that detailing the first murder, the razor wire girl, and the return of razor wire girl (more bodily evacuation). They also remark on the film’s omnipresent vivid and often inappropriate-to-life colors.
Find out that what Disney film The Black Saint has never seen. (What?!) Or hear The Black Saint’s story about meeting Dario Argento. Or find out why much of the time, the dancers’ behaviors seem juvenile.
We want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans: leave us a message or leave a comment on the site or email the Decades of Horror 1970s podcast hosts at theblacksaint@decadesofhorror.com or docrotten@decadesofhorror.com.