Editorials
“Masters of Horror”: 5 Must-See Episodes to Stream on Screambox Now!
Almost every horror anthology, be it a movie or a TV series, has a gimmick. Some are attached to certain authors for their source material (Roald Dahl’s Tales of the Unexpected, The Ray Bradbury Theater) while others are holiday-themed (Trick ‘r Treat, Into the Dark). The motifs are numerous. An anthology concept that stands out to this day is the one that defines Showtime’s Masters of Horror. This two-season collection of self-contained stories still haunts fans’ memories.
Masters of Horror, a Mick Garris passion project inspired by a dinner for him and his fellow horror auteurs, had a simple design; every episode was directed by a notable name in the horror genre: Dario Argento, John Carpenter, Joe Dante, Stuart Gordon, and Tobe Hooper to name a few.
With Masters of Horror now streaming in high-definition on Screambox, now is the perfect time to revisit the series. And these five memorable episodes are a good place to start.
Imprint
Thanks to the J-horror wave of the 2000s, Takashi Miike was getting recognized more and more outside of Japan. The filmmaker was invited to Masters of Horror after notable acclaim for his existing output, including The Happiness of the Katakuris, Ichi the Killer, and One Missed Call. Although his contribution, “Imprint“, was set to close out the first season, Showtime ended up not airing it due to concerns over its content. Mind you, Masters was already taking full advantage of its license for gore and sex. So the fact that “Imprint” was singled out as too disturbing says something.
In Miike’s episode, set during the 19th century, an American (Billy Drago) visits Japan in search of his lost love, Komomo (Michié). After learning of her passing, another woman recounts a story about the harsh fate that befell Komomo.
After having seen “Imprint”, it’s not hard to understand why Showtime was so wary in the first place; this is the most graphic episode of the entire series. What it lacks in Miike’s typical dark intellect it makes up for in utter shock value and gruesome delights.
Jenifer
Dario Argento needs little introduction, and it was certainly a no-brainer to cast him as a director. Argento, however, didn’t write either of his two entries because the directors didn’t usually have a hand in the scripts. There were of course exceptions to the rule, but handling “Jenifer” on paper was the episode’s very own star, Steven Weber. The story itself is from the mind of Bruce Jones.
In “Jenifer”, a disaffected cop (Weber) happens upon a man trying to kill the episode’s namesake (Carrie Anne Fleming). He saves her only to then discover she isn’t like any other woman he’s ever met. The cop soon falls under Jenifer’s spell and starts to craves her touch. Unfortunately for him and those who come in contact, Jenifer also has her own unique cravings.
Even though Argento didn’t write this, he injects as much of his directorial style as possible. “Jenifer” still ends up being a compelling if not mysterious tale of obsession. It’s a depraved story with a lot of bite.
Sick Girl
At the time, Lucky McKee wasn’t so recognizable. He had previously helmed the exceptional movie May, but other than that, McKee came to Masters with little horror under his belt. Knowing that, “Sick Girl” wound up being a favorite for many of the series’ fans.
In “Sick Girl”, an awkward entomologist (Angela Bettis) starts dating an eccentric artist (Erin Brown). At first Bettis’ character fears her career in bugs will scare her date away, but the revelation only causes the opposite reaction. At the same time, someone has directly delivered a rare — and very dangerous — specimen that will put the women’s new relationship to the test.
Queer horror was not very common to see back when “Sick Girl” first aired, but this episode was a breath of fresh air. Of all the stories, this one has plenty of room for critical analysis. For example, homophobia pops up in the form of a curmudgeonly neighbor whose evident dislike of the lesbian protagonists is filtered through an intense aversion to insects. Suffice it to say, there’s a lot to dissect here.
Cigarette Burns
John Carpenter‘s first episode is deemed one of the series’ absolute best. The story touches on a favorable subject in horror; cursed objects. In this case, the ill-fated item is a film.
According to lore, the sought after movie in “Cigarette Burns” was screened only once because it drove audiences to fits of violence. Norman Reedus‘ character is then hired by a cinephile, played by Udo Kier, to track down the missing film. His doing so only leads him down a path of no return.
As with Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness, “Cigarette Burns” imagines what might happen if someone’s work of art is so dangerously influential. There are caveats to consider when assessing this episode, but the minds at work have tapped into something both unsettling and insightful about why film matters so much to us.
Sounds Like
Brad Anderson might not be the first name to come to mind when recalling masters of horror, but his movie Session 9 has a large following. That achievement in suspense alone is likely why he was enlisted for the second season. And “Sounds Like” feels like an anomaly when put up against the other episodes.
In “Sounds Like”, a father and husband (Chris Bauer) drowns himself in work to avoid thinking about his grief. He also has an uncanny ability after losing his son; he has a heightened sense of hearing. In time, though, the racket in his head becomes too much and he must find a way to quell the noise.
Upon its original release, “Sounds Like” was dismissed as not scary. The truth is, Anderson’s episode really feels like something from The Twilight Zone. The horror climate has changed a lot since the series was on the air, so audiences today might better appreciate this unusual and rather sad story about grief.
If you like these episodes, check out the rest of Masters of Horror on Streambox.
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Horror was permanently changed in 1984 when Wes Craven’s A Nightmare on Elm Street unleashed Freddy Krueger on the world. This brutal boogeyman pushed horror to exciting new places, but so much of the character’s impact is the result of Robert Englund’s quintessential performance.
Englund has a long and storied career as a performer that’s covered far more than horror alone. However, there’s such a sublime, sinister synergy between Englund and this heightened genre that’s made him one of horror’s most revered names.
Englund is set to scare audiences again as a malevolent reimagining of Jiminy Cricket in Pinocchio Unstrung, but he’s also been responsible for many more macabre monsters.
The Cricket (Pinocchio Unstrung)
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey has somehow spun a morbid experiment in public domain exploitation into its own cinematic universe, the Twisted Childhood Universe. There’s been increasing promise in the TCU’s various films, which has also led to a growing list of capable horror guest stars, such as Roger L. Jackson, Richard Brake, and now Robert Englund. Englund is by far the most impressive name to attach himself to one of these movies, and Pinocchio Unstrung certainly doesn’t squander the opportunity to have him on board as its terrifying take on Jiminy Cricket. Englund’s performance as “The Cricket” in Pinocchio Unstrung becomes a sinister subversion of the classic character who is meant to function as Pinocchio’s conscience and moral compass.
Englund’s Cricket is instead the ultimate instigator who perpetually pushes Pinocchio into greater violence that condemns humanity and its many misgivings, rather than idolizing all the “real boys” in the world. Pinocchio Unstrung is a love letter to practical effects and old-fashioned animatronics and puppetry. This means that Englund just provides the voice for Cricket, but it’s still a deeply sinister performance and one of the most unnerving characters to appear in the Twisted Childhood Universe. Once again, Englund is careful not to just repurpose his Freddy Krueger persona, and he instead develops an original voice that plays into past renditions of the character. There’s a palpable rage and disdain in Englund’s Cricket that turns him into a threatening loose cannon and makes the audience forget that he’s only a few inches tall.
The Phantom of the Opera (The Phantom of the Opera)
The Phantom of the Opera is a foundational horror story that’s still being explored over a century later. 1989’s cinematic adaptation of Gaston Leroux’s 1910 classic doesn’t always get the respect that it deserves, despite it containing one of Englund’s most nuanced horror performances. Directed by Dwight H. Little, who previously helmed the underrated Halloween 4, The Phantom of the Opera operates as a gorier take on Leroux’s source material that feels like a lost Hammer Film picture. The titular Phantom is the perfect role for Englund following A Nightmare on Elm Street, and his participation in the picture was initiated by Englund promising his agent that he’d do another horror project after Elm Street’s success.
Englund was excited to tackle an iconic character who had previously been portrayed by formative horror legends like Herbert Lom, Claude Rains, and Lon Chaney. Englund beautifully fits the mold and is sublime casting for this ‘80s take on the character. Englund taps into a powerful dichotomy between the Phantom’s brutal and tragically sympathetic nature. It’s a role that’s significantly deeper than Freddy Krueger and better explores Englund’s range as an actor, which helps get him away from cheesy one-liners. It also doesn’t hurt that Little concocts a uniquely twisted take on the Phantom’s disfigurement, which was achieved by sewing human skin onto Englund’s face. The modern-day sequences that bookend the film were meant to tie into a planned sequel, The Phantom of the Opera 2: Terror in Manhattan, which unfortunately never came to fruition.
Victor Creel (Stranger Things)
Love it or hate it, Stranger Things assembled some impressive guest stars that took advantage of their respective legacies as ‘80s genre legends, such as Linda Hamilton, Matthew Modine, Cary Elwes, and Robert Englund. Englund’s turn as Victor Creel in the streaming hit’s fourth season is one of the series’ best performances and a role that rises above the mediocrity around it. Victor Creel is an opportunity for Englund to actually subvert expectations and play against type. It’s brilliant casting that initially conditions the audience to be wary of Creel and view him as a frightening threat. This perception is reinforced when Creel is encountered in a psychiatric ward and horrifically blinded.
Creel’s disturbing eye-gouged appearance is revealed to actually be a symptom of his tragic life and the psychological torment he received from Vecna. Creel is hard to look at, but there’s nothing to fear about him. He’s led a sad life that’s filled with inescapable guilt. He’s more like one of Freddy Krueger’s victims than Freddy himself. Englund goes above and beyond as Victor Creel, and the emotional monologues that he delivers are among some of the actor’s best work and proof that Englund’s still got it.
Marquis de Sade (Night Terrors)
Tobe Hooper’s Night Terrors is a particularly forgettable ’90s horror film that faced a litany of production problems and changes that certainly didn’t do it any favors. The story is a mess, even for a Cannon Video production, but it provides the novelty of Englund pulling double duty as the cruel Marquis de Sade and his modern day descendant, Paul Chevalier. Night Terrors banked on the novelty of Hooper directing Englund as one of history’s greatest monsters, and his performance is easily the best thing about this movie.
There’s an unabashed glee to Englund’s work as the Marquis de Sade that’s reminiscent of Freddy Krueger’s twisted jubilation over his creative murders, yet it doesn’t just feel like a carbon copy of Englund’s iconic role. There’s an appreciated degree of restraint going on before the film goes off the rails and incorporates supernatural elements and abstract dream sequences. Chevalier and his modern cult worship the Marquis de Sade as a deity of torture and liberation. The nightmare sequences that involve the Marquis de Sade are the most chilling and make this figure look as frightening on the outside as he is on the inside. There’s enough to latch onto here, even if the film as a whole is a mess, and Englund doesn’t squander the opportunity to play two sides of the same creepy coin.
Scarecrow (Injustice 2)
Robert Englund is no stranger to voiceover work, and he’s voiced his share of macabre and memorable characters over the years. That being said, one of his most inspired roles is the work that he did in NetherRealm’s dark DC Comics-based fighter, Injustice 2, where he plays Jonathan Crane, better known as the Scarecrow. There’s a certain tongue-in-cheek brilliance to having Englund voicing the Batman rogue who is the self-appointed “Master of Fear.” There’s certainly a meta quality to Englund’s casting here, right down to how some of his dialogue explicitly references Freddy Krueger one-liners like “Welcome to your nightmare” and “Now I’m playing with power.”
Englund doesn’t just phone in this performance or replicate his work as Freddy. The actor cultivates a unique voice for Scarecrow that cuts to the core of this character in a menacing manner. Englund’s Scarecrow is raspy, erratic, and honestly one of the better takes on Dr. Crane. It makes one wonder what he’d be able to accomplish if he were playing the part in live-action. He takes a simple role and breathes fresh life into it. Curiously, it’s not his first time playing a Batman villain. He does comparably interesting work as The Riddler in The Batman and the more obscure sorcerer, Felix Faust, in Justice League.
Evil Bloodthirsty Brian (The Hughleys)
There’s a surprising relationship between horror icons and sitcoms, with Robert Englund being no stranger to adding a devious dose of terror to a farcical comedy. Englund shows up as a playful take on Lucifer in Married…with Children, but he also provides a genuinely chilling performance in the first season of The Hughleys. Season one’s “Storm O’ the Century” is centered around the Hughleys and Rogerses getting stranded at a seemingly haunted hotel during an intense blizzard.
“Storm O’ the Century” functions as a proper love letter to horror fans, with genre guest stars that include The Addams Family’s John Astin, The Shining’s Shelley Duvall, and Robert Englund as the comically-named Evil Bloodthirsty Brian. The episode certainly prioritizes its comedy, but it manages to also be legitimately creepy thanks to a locked-in performance by Englund. He’s used sparingly, but always to punctuate a particular scene and function as a jump scare. Evil Bloodthirsty Brian sports a ghastly scar and has a look that’s just frightening enough to be included on a ’90s sitcom. Anyone who is curious about Englund’s performance can check it out for free on Tubi.
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