Podcasts
25 Years Later, ‘Bride of Chucky’ Remains a High Bar for the Horror Comedy [Halloweenies Podcast]
In October of 1998, it wasn’t only Chucky who got lucky, it was Universal. Thanks to foresight of writer Don Mancini and producer David Kirschner, the studio capitalized on the still-thriving post-Scream wave by resurrecting their Child’s Play franchise. At the time, the series had been gathering dust for most of the decade after the less-than returns of 1991’s Child’s Play 3.
Enter Bride of Chucky.
Directed by Ronny Yu, the stylish horror comedy doubled down on the dolls, pairing Brad Dourif‘s foul-mouthed friend ’til the end with Jennifer Tilly, who would become the Chuckster’s bride Tiffany. What’s more, Mancini opted to sideline the humans, giving not only fans what they wanted, but what the franchise ultimately needed in that moment.
Now, nearly 25 years later, the Halloweenies hit the road and head towards Hackensack, New Jersey, where they’ll spend two episodes revisiting the 1998 blockbuster. Together, Justin Gerber, Michael Roffman, Dan Caffrey, and new Halloweenie Rachel Reeves chart the history of the film, the influence of Scream, Ronny Yu’s direction, and much, much more.
Stream both episodes below or subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, RadioPublic, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS. 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, and The Evil Dead.
You can also become a member of their Patreon, The Rewind, for hilariously irreverent commentaries (e.g. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Gremlins, The Blob), one-off deep dives on your favorite rentals (e.g. Saw, The Conjuring, The Changeling), and even topical spinoffs like their ensuing Fortune & Glory: An Indiana Jones Podcast.
Game Loop.
Trace and I inadvertently bookended our April discussions of John Landis’ An American Werewolf in London (listen) and Ciarán Foy’s Eli (listen) with Jude Law films. At the start of the month, we tackled Matt Damon’s Italian grifter in The Talented Mr. Ripley (listen) and now we’re closing out April with David Cronenberg‘s eXistenZ (1999).
The unofficial sequel to Videodrome (listen) and precursor to Crimes of the Future, eXistenZ takes place in the world of virtual reality and simulation. Game goddess Allegra Gellar (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is forced to go on the run with PR nerd Ted Pikul (Jude Law) through the Canadian backwoods when ‘Realist’ terrorists declare open season on her life.
Featuring no shortage of strange encounters and oddball characters, including Willem Dafoe‘s queer-coded Gas and Canadian film royalty like Don McKellar and Sarah Polley, Allegra and Ted must travel between the real world and the game world, all the while keeping track of who is friendly…and who is foe.
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, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, and RSS.
Episode 279: eXistenZ (1999) feat Vannah Taylor
Lube up your industry standard bio-port because we’re playing David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ (1999) with someone friendly: Vannah Taylor!
David Cronenberg’s meditation on the dangers of gaming and simulation is the middle entry of an unofficial trilogy. It’s also a film that gets real confusing, real fast, so good luck figuring out if we’re still in the game!
Plus: criticisms of a “bland” game world, praise for Jennifer Jason Leigh, Canadian royalty, comparisons to Serenity, disgusting gristle guns, and Pikul getting his back blown out (several times!)
Cross out eXistenZ!
Coming up on Wednesday: We’re continuing our celebration of 1999 films with a look at Stephen Sommers’ bisexual awakening, action adventure film, The Mummy (1999).
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 306 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Hannibal S01E04, Late Night with the Devil, The First Omen, Femme, Abigail and a brand new audio commentary on the original The Omen (1976).
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