Castle of Horror Podcast

This week we have a look at the horror film Late Night with the Devil. This is Episode #433! Late Night with the Devil is a 2023 supernatural horror film written, directed, and edited by Colin and Cameron Cairnes. It stars David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, Ian Bliss, Fayssal Bazzi, Ingrid Torelli, Rhys Auteri, Georgina Haig, and Josh Quong Tart. Incorporating elements of documentary filmmaking and found footage, the film follows the events of a late-night talk show episode aired on the night of Halloween 1977, during which the host attempts to boost ratings by inviting an allegedly possessed girl onto the show.

Tonight we’re chatting with Stefon Bristol, director of BREATHE which opens in theaters and on digital April 26, 2024. Breathe is a heart pounding thriller set in the future featuring Jennifer Hudson, Milla Jovovich, Quvenzhané Wallis, Raúl Castillo with Common and Sam Worthington. After Earth is left uninhabitable due to lack of oxygen, a mother Maya (Hudson) and her daughter Zora (Wallis) are forced to live underground, with short trips to the surface only made possible by a coveted state of the art oxygen suit made by Maya’s husband, Darius, whom she presumes to be dead. When a mysterious couple arrives claiming to know Darius and his fate, Maya tentatively agrees to let them into their bunker but these visitors are not who they claim to be ensuing in mother and daughter fighting for survival.

This week we have a look at the 2024 horror film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. This is Episode #432!Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a 2024 American monster film directed by Adam Wingard, produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is the sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) and the fifth film in the MonsterVerse franchise, also serving as the 38th film of the Godzilla franchise and 13th in the King Kong franchise. The film stars Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Kaylee Hottle, Alex Ferns, and Fala Chen. Hall, Henry, and Hottle reprise their roles from the previous film. In the film, Kong encounters more of his species in the Hollow Earth and must unite again with Godzilla to stop their tyrannical leader and his powerful, frost-breathing Titan from destroying the surface.The film received mixed reviews from critics, with many comparing it unfavorably to Godzilla Minus One, and has grossed $436 million worldwide on a $135−150 million budget, making it the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2024.

This week we have a look at the 2022 horror film Satanic Hispanics. This is Episode #431! This episode we're joined by special guest author David Bowles. Satanic Hispanics is a 2022 American horror anthology film written by Alejandro Méndez, Demián Rugna, Lino K. Villa and Pete Barnstrom, directed by Mike Mendez, Demián Rugna, Eduardo Sánchez, Gigi Saul Guerrero and Alejandro Brugués and starring Efren Ramirez, Greg Grunberg, Jacob Vargas, Hemky Madera, Patricia Velásquez and Jonah Ray.

This week we have a look at the 2021 horror film Jakob’s Wife. This is Episode #430! Jakob's Wife is a 2021 American vampire horror film directed and produced by Travis Stevens from a screenplay by Stevens, Kathy Charles, and Mark Steensland. The film stars Barbara Crampton, Larry Fessenden, and Bonnie Aarons.

Tonight we’re chatting with USA Today bestselling thriller author Carter Wilson about his new book releasing April 2: THE FATHER SHE WENT TO FIND from Poisoned Pen Press. Carter Wilson is the USA Today bestselling author of eight critically acclaimed, standalone psychological thrillers. He is an ITW Thriller Award finalist, a five-time winner of the Colorado Book Award, and his works have been optioned for television and film. Carter lives outside of Boulder, Colorado. Dynamic and compelling, he now hosts his own podcast, Making It Up, interviewing authors like S.A. Cosby, Daniel Handler, Stuart Turton, Xio Axelrod, and Julie Clark to talk shop and riff an original story live. The result is a charming, authentic peek into the writing process.ABOUT THE BOOKA road trip to find closure… or a reckless chase that could turn deadly? Penny has never met anyone smarter than her. That's par for the course when you're a savant—one of less than one hundred in the world. But despite her photographic memory and super-powered intellect, there's one mystery Penny's never been able to solve: why did her father leave when she was in a coma at age seven, and where is he now? On Penny's twenty-first birthday, she receives a card in the mail from him, just as she has every year since he left. But this birthday card is different. For the first time ever, there's a return address. And a goodbye. Penny doesn't know the world beyond her mother's house and the special school she's attended since her unusual abilities revealed themselves, but the mystery of her father's disappearance becomes her new obsession. For the first time ever she decides to leave home, to break free of everything that has kept her safe, and use her gifts to answer the questions that have always eluded her. What Penny doesn't realize is she might not be able to outsmart a world far more complicated and dangerous than she'd ever imagined...

This week we have a look at the 2024 film Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. This is Episode #429! Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is a 2024 American supernatural comedy film directed by Gil Kenan from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jason Reitman. It is the sequel to Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) and the fifth film in the Ghostbusters franchise. The film stars Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Celeste O'Connor, and Logan Kim reprising their roles from Afterlife, alongside Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and William Atherton reprising their characters from the earlier films. Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, Emily Alyn Lind, and James Acaster also join the cast. Set two years after the events of Afterlife, the veteran Ghostbusters must join forces with their new recruits to save the world in New York City from a death-chilling god who seeks to build a spectral army.

This week we have a look at the 1983 film Cujo. This is Episode #428! Cujo is a 1983 American horror film based on Stephen King's 1981 novel of the same name and directed by Lewis Teague. It was written by Don Carlos Dunaway and Barbara Turner (using the pen name Lauren Currier), and starring Dee Wallace, Daniel Hugh Kelly and Danny Pintauro.The film follows a mother and her son who are trapped inside their car, while protecting themselves from a rabid St. Bernard.

Jason chats with Parker Adams, author of the new book The Lock Box, on-sale March 19 from Crooked Lane, about an army vet-turned-safecracker who is forcibly recruited to be part of a dangerous heist.The son of a navy helicopter pilot, Parker Adams chased great white sharks as a marine biologist before becoming a patent lawyer who litigates multimillion-dollar cases for high-tech clients. In his spare time, he writes high-stakes thrillers that feature travel and technology, including the best-selling Seth Walker series under the name Joseph Reid. A graduate of Duke University and the University of Notre Dame, he lives in San Diego with his wife and children.

This week we have a look at the 1981 film Wolfen. This is Episode #427! Wolfen is a 1981 American crime horror film directed by Michael Wadleigh in his only directional feature film, based on Whitley Strieber's 1978 novel The Wolfen. It stars Albert Finney, Diane Venora, Gregory Hines and Edward James Olmos. The film follows a city cop who has been assigned to uncover what is behind a series of vicious murders. Originally, it is believed the murders are animal attacks until the cop discovers an indigenous legend about wolf spirits.

This week we have a look at the 1980 film Alligator. This is Episode #426! Alligator is a 1980 American independent horror film directed by Lewis Teague and written by John Sayles. It stars Robert Forster, Robin Riker and Michael V. Gazzo. It also includes an appearance by actress Sue Lyon in her last screen role. Set in Chicago, the film follows a police officer and a reptile expert who track an enormous, ravenous man-eating alligator flushed down the toilet years earlier, that is attacking residents after escaping from the city's sewers.

Tonight we’re chatting wih L. R. Jones, author of the new book THE WEDDING PARTY. (https://www.amazon.com/Wedding-Party-Thriller-L-Jones/dp/1662508891/) ABOUT THE AUTHOR: L. R. Jones is a pseudonym for New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones. Her dark, edgy fiction includes the novels You Look Beautiful Tonight, The Poet, A Perfect Lie, and the Lilah Love series. Prior to publishing, Lisa owned a multistate staffing agency recognized by the Austin Business Journal and was #7 in Entrepreneur magazine’s list of growing women-owned businesses. Lisa lives in Colorado with her husband, a cat who always has something to say, and a golden retriever who’s afraid of her own bark. ABOUT THE BOOK: For a bride-to-be and her fiancé, secrets and lies make this a killer celebration in this psychological suspense thriller. Carrie and Oliver. A couple completely in love and the hosts of a wedding to remember at Colorado’s legendary Stanley Hotel. This is Carrie’s fairy tale come true. Her fiancé, Oliver, is Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome; successful; and utterly devoted to her. Now family and friends have gathered to celebrate. It’s sure to be a wild night as the drinks flow freely and the fun begins. But the morning after is murder. FBI agent Andi Castle was just supposed to be a plus-one. This should have been a calming weekend getaway from what she does best: catch killers. Instead, Andi’s on the hunt again. The hotel is on lockdown. Secrets are being unearthed. And no one is above Andi’s suspicions. But which secrets are worth killing for? Andi’s forced to find the answers fast…before someone else dies.

Tonight we’re chatting with Bobby Lugosi– whose real name is Bobby Zier and whose TikTok channel “Lugosi Theater” (LucyDogYellow2024) has gotten over 2 million likes. He’s won a special recognition Rondo award for introducing classic horror to a new generation. His TikTok also encourages others to embrace what they love. Bobby Lugosi plays Dracula at haunted houses and horror conventions and has been shown on Svengoolie three times– we talk about Lugosi, Dracula, and the power of intense interests.

Tonight we’re chatting with Matt Vesely, director of the new film Monolith which releases in theaters and on digital February 16. About MONOLITH: While trying to salvage her career, a disgraced journalist begins investigating a strange conspiracy theory. But as the trail leads uncomfortably close to home, she is left to grapple with the lies at the heart of her own story.

This week we have a look at the 1977 film Day of the Animals. This is Episode #425! Day of the Animals (re-released as Something Is Out There) is a 1977 American natural horror film directed by William Girdler, based on a story by producer Edward L. Montoro. The film reunited Girdler and Montoro with stars Christopher George and Richard Jaeckel from the previous year's Grizzly. It co-stars Lynda Day George and Leslie Nielsen.Day of the Animals tells the story of a psychosis brought on by depletion of the Earth's ozone layer, affecting all animals at high altitudes. A group of hapless hikers must survive the animal onslaught and make their way to safety, even as the psychosis turns them against each other.

Tonight we’re chatting with Director Andrew Cumming and cast members Safia Oakley-Green and Kit Young of Out of Darkness, which releases in Theaters on February 9, 2024. Per Hollywood Reporter, The film received multiple nominations at the British Independent Film Awards, including best debut director for Cumming, best breakthrough for Oakley-Green, best music for Adam Janota Bzowski, best hair and make up for Niamh Morrison, and best debut screenplay for Ruth Greenberg. Oakley-Green won the British Independent Film Award for Breakthrough Performance on the night.

This week we have a look at the 1976 film Grizzly. This is Episode #424! Grizzly (also known as Killer Grizzly on U.S. television) is a 1976 American horror thriller film directed by William Girdler, about a park ranger's attempts to halt the wild rampage of an 18 ft (5.5 m) tall, 2,000 lb (910 kg) Man-eating grizzly bear that terrorizes a National Forest, having developed a taste for human flesh. However, a drunken hunting party complicates matters. It stars Christopher George, Andrew Prine and Richard Jaeckel. Widely considered a Jaws rip-off, Grizzly used many of the same plot devices as its shark predecessor, which had been a huge box office success during the previous year. The giant grizzly bear in the film was portrayed by a Kodiak bear named Teddy, who was 11 ft (3.4 m) tall.

Tonight we’re chatting with with producers Trevor Doyle and Alexa Khan of the film Aberrance by director/co-writer Baatar Batsukh, which is now having its digital release–Aberrance is the first Mongolian horror film to play US theaters. SYNOPSIS: When city dwellers Erkhmee and Selenge arrive at an old cabin deep in the Mongolian wilds, a foreboding settles over the couple. Erkhmee's seemingly keen desire to provide a safe and nurturing space for his artistic wife is at odds with the violent actions and mannerisms their quizzical neighbor observes. As the neighbor digs deeper for the reason behind this aberrant behavior, only more questions and trouble arise. We talk the film and current work on a prequel in the same bizarre world.

This week we have a look at the 1977 film Orca. This is Episode #423! Orca (also known as Orca: The Killer Whale) is a 1977 American thriller film directed by Michael Anderson and produced by Dino De Laurentiis, starring Richard Harris, Charlotte Rampling and Will Sampson. The film follows a male orca tracking down and getting revenge on a fishing boat and its captain for killing the whale's pregnant mate and their unborn calf. Upon release, the film was a minor box office success, but received mostly unfavorable reception from critics and audiences alike due to its similarities to the film Jaws, released two years prior.

Tonight we’re chatting with Rami Ungar, author of the new collection HANNAH and Other Stories from BSC Publishing. The seven stories in the collection delve into ghosts, revenge, creepypasta legends, dissection, manipulation, deceit, carnivorous horses, extragalactic beings, occult summoning, and pandemics. Additionally, some characters represent the Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities. It's a genuinely shudder-inducing collection and a fun conversation.