Podcasts
[Horror Queers Podcast] Evil Esther is a Threat to the Nuclear Family in ‘Orphan’
After making a brief detour into the world of television with In the Flesh last week, we return to Hollywood with Jaume Collet-Serra’s Orphan (just in time for its 10th anniversary!). In the film, a couple (Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard) adopt a mysterious 9-year-old girl named Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) after the death of their unborn child. That’s really under-selling the movie, though, because it contains one of the most ridiculous (and amazing) twists in horror history. Joining us for the discussion is Sade Sellers, one of the co-hosts of the Afro Horror Podcast.
And in case you missed it: we spent the first half of the summer covering entries from popular horror franchises! Here’s a quick recap: we got a little too deep into a discussion of bodily fluids when we watched Ginger Snaps, drooled over Billy Zane’s gay Collector in Tales From the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight and lamented how poorly 1999’s killer crocodile horror comedy Lake Placid has aged.
Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Libsyn, Google Play, and RSS.
Episode 31 – Orphan (2009)
Joe and Trace are traversing the spooky halls of Dark Castle Entertainment to discuss Jaume Collet-Serra’s (The Shallows, House of Wax) creepy-kid movie Orphan! Joining them on their tour is Sade Sellers, one of the co-hosts of the Afro Horror Podcast! Her expertise on black horror cinema will prove crucial when the boys analyze Sister Abigail’s (C.C.H. Pounder) brutal death by hammer!
Other topics on the table are the film’s obscenely long 123-minute runtime, Trace’s thoughts on Taissa Farmiga’s acting abilities (or lack thereof) and Joe’s fight for deaf actors’ rights.
Also: Why is Peter Sarsgaard’s character the absolute worst? Why doesn’t Character Actress Margo Martindale believe anything Vera Farmiga says? And what is Asia Argento’s secret connection to the film?
Cross out Orphan!
Coming up Wednesday: We cover our first family film as we travel to Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts to raise the dead with ParaNorman and its shocking gay character reveal in its final moments!
– 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 a full-length bonus episode on Alexandre Aja’s insanely fun killer alligator movie Crawl!
Maybe you haven’t thought about your good friend Sweeney Todd in a while, or maybe you have. The 2007 movie is a bit of a memory, though a fond one – it has a healthy 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, for what it’s worth. But 2023’s Broadway revival starring Josh Groban, who your mom thinks is “so talented” (she’s right!), was enough of a hit that its run was extended.
It appears we’re in a bit of a Sweeneyssaince.
For the uninitiated, Sweeney Todd is the story of a barber who kills his customers and disposes of the bodies by passing them off to pie shop owner Mrs. Lovett, who uses them as a special ingredient. But there’s more below the trap door.
Sweeney Todd isn’t just a late 70s musical that turned into a movie; it started as a penny dreadful called The String of Pearls: A Domestic Romance (author unknown), told week-to-week in the 1840s. Penny dreadfuls were essentially fiction zines featuring serialized stories that were usually horror-based and cost a penny, leading to the very literal nickname.
The String of Pearls differs from the more well-known Sweeney Todd plot in that it follows the investigation of a missing persons case that leads to the reveal of Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett’s arrangement, as opposed to the more modern iteration which treats audiences to the duo hatching their homicidal plan and then giving the worst haircuts ever. What a delightfully wild reveal that must have been if you were a reader in Victorian London after weeks of wondering what had become of the missing sailor carrying a string of pearls to deliver to a lovely girl.
Kristen and Will discuss the history and future of Sweeney Todd and works inspired by it this week on Guide to the Unknown. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to get a new episode every Friday.
Looking for New Episodes of “Chucky” on Peacock? Here’s What Changed
‘Mountain Man’ – Joe Manganiello Will Battle Zombies in Upcoming Horror Movie
‘The Blair Witch Project’ – Original Stars Release a Statement Asking Lionsgate for Residuals & Recognition
‘Trap’ – Official Trailer Previews a Wild New Horror Experience from M. Night Shyamalan
‘Halloween: Illustrated’ Review: Original Novelization of John Carpenter’s Classic Gets an Upgrade
