This week the crew finds itself still minus Becca thanks to the crazy world we live in right now. However, good friend of the show and familiar voice to the listeners Issac Cain stepped in to help John, Jerry, and Richard discuss 1986’s horror classic, The Fly.
This week on The Assignment: Horror Podcast the gang is minus Becca so John, Jerry, and Richard make a go of it on their own. Tonight’s pick is one of John’s favorite movies ever, 1978’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers. From a weird dog face thing to a fantastic ending, there is a lot to talk about with this sci-fi/horror thriller.
So, starting with the shameless plug… We did an episode of The Assignment: Horror Podcast focusing on 1977’s The Haunting of Julia. As we were going over the films many attributes, another film came up as we were discussing films that had a very well executed aspect of intentional ambiguity about them. When done right, it’s something I love to see in a film.
Now, I can tell I have you thinking two things here. First, you’re wondering what the Johnstown Monster is and, second, you’re wondering what mystery about it has been solved. A headline like this is the kind of thing you expect from a Nessie or Bigfoot site when writing their latest article about how they’ve solved the mystery of the monster’s identity and determined the Loch Ness Monster is an overweight eel that hasn’t had sex in over fifty years. This would not be that type of mystery solved article.
No, this is about a movie. This is about the identity of a movie I’ve been trying to find the identity of for decades now. The mystery for me was what was the name of the movie I watched many moons ago in my long-forgotten youth. The answer I have finally found is 1971’s The Johnstown Monster.
Where do you even start with a film like this? I’ll start with the man who was the film’s director, co-writer, and co-producer. This was one of a long line of low budget films by infamous schlockmeister Larry Buchanan. Buchanan, perhaps best known for 1967’s Mars Needs Women, made films that transcended bad and entered into a realm almost all their own. This is actually a shame as some of his films would have been pretty damned good if they’d only had better actors, better budgets, better script doctors, better FX, and a better director at the helm. Basically, they would have all benefited greatly by not being Larry Buchanan films. The Loch Ness Horror is a prime example of one of these films.
Things have been a wee bit crazy of late. As such, I’ve been neglecting my writing here as well as keeping up with posting podcasts I’m a part of here. So, one post with a lot of podcast links. They’ll be a few extra podcasts included as well.
Radioactive zombies. People talk a lot about that kind of thing. Well, people I know talk a lot about that kind of thing. They think it would be really cool. It’s not. Do you know what you get with radioactive zombies? You get Nightmare City and being locked into a cycle of terror, carnage, death, and unresolved endings brought about by bad writing and a horrible gimmick twist that should have gotten everyone involved smacked until the stupid came out of them.
What’s that? You don’t know what Nightmare City is? Then let me tell you about it. There will be some huge spoilers coming, but, trust me, you won’t care if this movie gets spoiled for you or not.
This week’s The Assignment: Horror Podcast post features two shows with three guest hosts. Oh, and one of those is none other than Bane’s daddy, Chuck Dixon. The crew tackles two great films and the three guest all contribute a lot in the way of interesting and entertaining discussion.
Listen to the shows HERE.
Find out HERE.
The crew (minus a called into work for emergency duty Jerry but adding talented horror talkers Issac Cain and Sean Burnham) dive into 1954’s Creature from the Black Lagoon.
Find it at the link.
Chandler's Bar & Grill 