Podcasts
[Horror Queers Podcast] Is ‘Fatal Frame’ the Best Video Game Movie Adaptation Ever Made?
A picture is worth a thousand ghost girls (who also happen to be lesbians).
The last few weeks on the Horror Queers Podcast have resulted in plenty of great discussions and hilarious shenanigans. We’ve looked at the underrated brilliance of Psycho II, the kooky philosophical subtext of the zombie comedy Cemetery Man and suffered through the misogyny and bees in Neil LaBute’s 2006 remake of The Wicker Man.
In the newest episode, Joe and I are joined by Jenny Nulf, film critic for the Austin Chronicle and director of programming for the Austin Asian American Film Festival, to discuss the 2014 film adaptation of the beloved video game franchise Fatal Frame (yes, that Fatal Frame). Is it the best video game movie adaptation ever made? Depending on how you felt about Pokémon: Detective Pikachu, maybe!
In the film, a student in a conservative all-girls school must resolve the mysterious disappearances and deaths of her fellow classmates after they find an intriguing but haunting photo of Aya, the best singer of class. A death curse is placed on anyone who sees Aya’s photo, which seems to be taken with a “Camera Obscura.”
Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Libsyn, Google Play, and RSS.
Episode 18 – Fatal Frame (2014)
The Horror Queers are playing their way into the world of video game adaptations with the 2014 film Fatal Frame. “What? They made a movie out of Fatal Frame????”, you ask? They most certainly did! Unfortunately, it never saw a North American release. Lucky for us (and you), it’s streaming for free on YouTube! Sure, it is more of an adaptation of the video game franchise’s themes than its plot, but the Camera Obscura does make a cameo!
Joining the boys to discuss this atmospheric tale of Japanese lesbians, ghosts and cursed photograph (the “fatal frame,” if you will) is Jenny Nulf, the Director of Programming for the Austin Asian American Film Festival! Her knowledge of Japanese culture and creepy ghost girls brings a necessary outside perspective to the episode.
Laugh along as Joe butchers every single name (seriously, he gets them wrong even after he’s been corrected), takes a pot shot Madonna(!) and does some sort of ga(y)mer impersonation (discussing video games isn’t a good look for Joe). Plus, Trace commandeers the weekly game (invoking Joe’s wrath), the group discusses the film’s murky stance on lesbianism and also try to figure out why it has 17(ish) endings.
Cross out Fatal Frame!
Coming up Wednesday: We’re making our first foray into the New French Extremity movement with a viewing of Fabrice Du Welz’s 2004 film Calvaire (known as The Ordeal in the United States) to discuss one of cinema’s few instances of male-on-male rape.
– Joe & Trace
P.S. Be sure to check out all of our online articles right here.
P.P.S. As an added bonus, if you subscribe to our Patreon you can listen to full-length bonus episodes on the next chapter in The Conjuring universe The Curse of La Llorona and Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile (aka the Zac Efron/Ted Bundy movie).
Here at Halloweenies, we love practical effects—there’s a reason why one of our categories is called “Great Graphics.” Well, consider this a full-length “Great Graphics” episode, where we talk to the effects team behind the titular puppet of Pinocchio Unstrung, in theaters this Friday. As the latest installment in the Twisted Childhood Universe, Pinocchio ups the franchise’s game by featuring a villain that’s entirely practical, created with a stunning mix of animatronics and, of course, puppetry.
So, take a seat at the workbench for a spirited interview between Halloweenie co-host Dan Caffrey and MASTERS FX President and Founder (and special effects legend in his own right) Todd Masters, Pinnochio Lead artist and Designer Kiana Larson, and Lead Animatronics Joshua Raymond. Learn how they pulled off such a dazzling and terrifying puppet, where they think the effects industry is headed, the movies that made them want to be FX artists, a few tidbits of Nightmare On Elm Street history, and more.
Pinocchio himself might even pop by for an appearance.
Stream the episode below and get tickets now for Pinocchio Unstrung. New to the Halloweenies? Catch up with the gang by revisiting their essential episodes on past franchises such as Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Scream, The Evil Dead, Chucky, Alien, and Universal Monsters. This year? Hellraiser AND The Omen.
You can also become a member of their Patreon, The Rewind, for hilariously irreverent commentaries (e.g. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Gremlins, Child’s Play) and one-off deep dives on your favorite rentals (e.g. Saw, 28 Days Later, Manhunter, Near Dark). Each month promises something new and unexpected from the wildest corners of the genre.
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