Mind Over Splatter

Introducing "The Devil You Don't" - a new, four-part history series about the Jersey Devil, and the birth of the modern world, from Dylan Ferguson. Soon, you can subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and you can listen on Spotify right now: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3jlLAJsvLunXBwcgIWOwot

Sneak peak at a new limited history podcast from Dylan Ferguson, featuring Sean O'Rourke, with music by Rob What. What is the Jersey Devil, and why has it left its grubby little claw-marks across 300 years of American history? Learn surprising stories about dueling almanacs, Ben Franklin, eugenics, the birth of science, independent filmmakers, and cryptozoology. Look for it starting August 18th!

The final chapter. We begin by digging into Wes Craven's complex, thoughtful meta-sequel New Nightmare (1994), discussing how it reassesses the themes of the first film. Then, it's time to argue over the contentious Freddy vs. Jason (2003) - is it an Iraq War allegory? - before wrapping things up with the 2010 remake. And yes, we can finally unveil our full-franchise rankings.

These ones get real weird. It's time for an increasingly drunk Dylan, Sheldon, Will - and special guest Scott Crompton - to delve into the zany, unhinged worlds of Nightmare 4: The Dream Master (1988), Nightmare 5: The Dream Child (1989), and Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991). The production history and reception of the films we're dissecting are set against a backdrop of Freddy Krueger's runaway pop-culture celebrity in an MTV-generation world.

The second part of our exploration of the Nightmare on Elm Street films probes the notorious gay themes in Freddy's Revenge (1985), and the contentious ways that the AIDS crisis, and the homophobia of the period, are incorporated into the movie. Dylan, Sheldon, Will, and Scott then move on to dissecting and debating the wild, influential A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), and we finally get to start ranking these things.

In late-70's and early-80's America, Laotian men began suddenly dying from their dreams. Newspaper coverage of the medical mystery would inspire one of the richest and most enduring classics of horror cinema. We begin with the true story of that tragedy, and how it challenges our assumptions about the distinction between dreams and reality, before connecting it to the seminal 1984 film. Scott Crompton, a professor of English and film - and a Nightmare super-fan - joins Dylan, Sheldon, and Will, to discuss, in detail, how the first Freddy Krueger film was made, how it works, and what it means. This is the first installment in a special 4-part series about the Nightmare on Elm Street movies.

For the full experience, go to our YouTube page! Dylan, Sheldon, and Will got together in the same room, for the first time, to record a special video episode for the second season finale. The topic? Nineties horror. We each picked our favourite scary movie for every year of the decade, from 1990 - 1999, but have kept the picks a secret from one another, until now. And of course, we make it a drinking game, and you can play along. Join us as we have some fun dissecting beloved classics and unearthing little-known gems from horror cinema's most misunderstood decade.

An exploration of the ideas, people, and films behind the found-footage horror boom - including Paranormal Activity and Lake Mungo - with Dylan, Sheldon, and Sean O'Rourke. Featuring a deep-dive into the origins of The Blair Witch Project, with detours into "mysterious phenomena" TV shows, Sundance and the American indie movie renaissance, the rise of the multiplex, the birth of viral marketing, and what made 1999 possibly the greatest year ever for American film. Plus, an interview with Professor Margarida Medeiros about Victorian ghost photography, and how our relationship with cameras has long influenced debates about fact and fiction. And, of course, we argue over the different movies under discussion, and rank them all at the end of our shaky, nausea-inducing journey through the deep woods of this unsettling sub-genre.

Dylan, William, and special guest David Annandale break down eccentric British horror movies dealing with paganism and the rural occult, like The Wicker Man and Witchfinder General. Featuring an interview with Gary Parsons, a filmmaker and film historian specializing in English witchcraft documentaries, who tells us about lesser-known witch flicks from the sixties and seventies, and explains the British counterculture's fascination with occultism at that time. We compare and contrast some surprisingly varied titles – involving skin-pilfering demons and undead bikers – while telling stories about the filmmakers, the time period, and generally exploring everything about these folking weird movies.

A comprehensive discussion of Clive Barker’s 1987 classic Hellraiser – then all nine sequels – featuring Dylan, Sheldon, and Will, plus an interview with Peter Tupper, a cultural historian of BDSM, who provides some fascinating insight into the traditions and aesthetics channeled by the movies. The boys talk about Barker, the series' tortured production history, and the themes of the films, exploring the relationship between pain and pleasure, desire and disgust, and why uncomfortable activities – like watching scary movies – can feel so good. After analyzing and comparing every last entry, we eventually get three separate ranked lists reflecting three different perspectives on one of horror’s most beguiling and unclassifiable franchises.

For this special holiday episode, Dylan, Sheldon, and Will have decided to gift one another horror movies that they know (or hope) the giftee has never seen. The six strange, wonderful, lesser-known gems that we've helped each other discover are unveiled and discussed one at a time. Along the way, we learn about some fascinating filmmakers, like Lucio Fulci and Tom McLoughlin, unpack bizarre slashers, unearth a breathtaking early Italian vampire flick, and expose Sheldon to a Mexican luchador oddity that nearly breaks him. It's a seasonal grab-bag of weird horror-cinema wonders!

Dylan, Sheldon, Will, and guest Sean O'Rourke plunge into weird and fascinating big-killer-animal flicks from 1976-1980, including Orca, Grizzly, and Tentacles. We discuss animal intelligence, environmentalism, and America's relationship to wilderness in the 20th century, while debating the films' merits and setting them off against one other in a tournament to determine the greatest post-Jaws eco-horror oddity. We also learn about the artists behind the films, including John Frankenheimer and Tobe Hooper. Plus, marine biologist Steven Ferguson fact-checks Orca, and NY Times reporter Corey Kilgannon tells us the truth about those alligators-in-the-sewers myths.

Dylan and Will are joined by Nick Wolfe to discuss the haunting silent films that emerged from Sweden and Denmark between 1917 and 1922, including Häxan and The Phantom Carriage. Featuring interviews with film professor Anne Bachmann, theologian Patrik Hagman, and Häxan-expert Richard Baxstrom, we also explore the world that produced these movies, discussing Lutheranism, Satan, the history of Sweden's Golden Age of silent film, and the lives of the remarkable filmmakers behind these chilling visions from a lost era.

In the first bonus epiosode, Dylan, Sheldon, and Will bring up a few recent films, before discussing pinball machines based on horror movies. Plus, we ask one another which pics we've changed our minds on since we first covered them, then cap off the season premiere debate by handing out merits and demerits to various Friday the 13th entries. The full bonus episode is available only on our Patreon.

The second half of a two-part season premiere investigating the Friday the 13th movies. Dr. Stella Castelli of the University of Zurich drops by to explain why Freddy vs. Jason is really a vaudeville double-act, while Dylan, Sheldon, and Will dissect and debate all the Jason movies from Part VI: Jason Lives right up until the 2009 remake. Discussion ranges from horror franchises that went into space, to the distinction between horror and terror movies, and how New York's 1980's Crime City days were represented on film, before we finally unveil our final rankings for the complete franchise.

The first half of our epic deep-dive into the entire Friday the 13th franchise. Featuring an interview with Dr. Michael Smith, an expert on the history of American summer camps, the Season 2 premiere sees Dylan, Sheldon, and Will analyzing, debating, and ranking Fridays 1 through 5 while also investigating the Siskel-and-Ebert-led backlash against the movies, the history of 3D films, Jacques Plante, and The Greatest Movie Summer Ever. Part 2 is available early on our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mindoversplatterpodcast

Dylan, Sheldon, and Will delve deep into 1973's The Exorcist, and argue about the various sequels they love and hate. To help provide some fascinating context for the original classic film, theologian Dr. Bernard Doherty drops by to explain how it fits into the backlash against the Vatican II reforms in the Catholic Church, while cultural scientist Dr. Johanna Braun describes how it can be viewed as a depiction of hysteria, drawing from a long and surprising history in both psychiatry and art. Plus, of course, we each rank the films, while getting into discussions about how they work, the ideas, and the directors and writers behind this weird and fascinating franchise.

For the tenth installment of Mind Over Splatter, we decided to do our first video episode (currently available on YouTube!) and play a drinking game involving some of our favourite movies to celebrate. Dylan, Sheldon, and Will unveil their number-one horror film of every decade, while trying to guess one another's secrets picks, and debating the many controversial selections along the way. It was a ton of fun, plenty of surprising and brilliant films are under discussion, and you can even play along at home (if you have enough beer). For the full experience, visit Mind Over Splatter's YouTube page!

Dylan, Sheldon, and Will chat bugs, with a special guest appearance by renowned bee expert and author Mark L. Winston. We break down strange and unique creepy-crawly flicks from 1974-1978, including Phase IV, Squirm, and The Swarm, while also discussing their cultural contexts, taking you into some entertaining corners of film history. Plus, with a little help from Dr. Winston, we learn about the 1970's killer-bee hysteria, discover neat insect facts, and look at the origins of the environmental movement that inspired these horror movies.

Dylan, Sheldon, and guest Sean O'Rourke dig deep into the mythology of The Purge. We break down each of the four movies, scrutinizing their themes for how they reflect and interpret the current events dominating American discourse in the years of their releases. Plus, of course, we judge and rank them. An episode rich in politics, contemporary issues, and slow-motion masked dancing.