Podcasts
Dissecting Two Very Different Films With ‘Escape Room: Tournament of Champions’ [Horror Queers Podcast]
Physical Media 4Eva
After tackling a contemporary sequel last week with Insidious: Chapter Two, Trace and I figured we should do it again. This week we’re dissecting the sequel to queer director Adam Robitel‘s immensely popular Escape Room, which was released in 2021 as Escape Room: Tournament of Champions.
In the film, survivors Zoey (Taylor Russell) and Ben (Logan Miller) return to New York in an attempt to discover the secrets behind the mysterious Minos Corporation. Instead, they’re lured back into the game with a fresh batch of survivors, including “pain freak” Rachel (Holland Roden), influencer Brianna (Indya Moore), and alcoholic priest Nathan (Thomas Cocquerel).
What Zoey and Ben don’t know is that someone is pulling their strings by creating a very unique new killer escape room experience. Depending on which version of the film you watch, the secret game master is either <spoilers> Amanda (Deborah Ann Woll) who survived the first film OR Claire (Isabelle Fuhrman), whose presence in the Extended Cut suggests a whole new direction for the franchise.
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 238: Escape Room: Tournament of Champions (2021) feat. Reyna Cervantes
Be on the lookout for clues because we’re headed back to Escape Room with Adam Robitel’s sequel, Tournament of Champions (2021). With the help of returning guest Reyna Cervantes, we’re discussing both the Theatrical, as well as the Extended Cut of the film (jump ahead to the ~1hr 10min mark to hear about the new beginning and end!)
Expect Minos-levels of conspiracy as we try to figure out the timeline and rationale for the two cuts.
Plus: our fave new characters and traps, retconning the original film’s end, needing more Isabelle Fuhrman and James Frain, and what we want in a possible third entry (and why it definitely *won’t* be rated R).
Cross out Escape Room: Tournament of Champions!
Coming up on Wednesday: We’re tackling an iconic queer horror text: the Alfred Hitchcock classic, Psycho (1960).
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for more than 252 hours of additional content! This month we’re going all in on the Insidious franchise with a episode discussing our thoughts on each entry, as well as delivering a full-length episode on the new film Insidious: The Red Door. We’ll also have episodes on the Netflix sequel Bird Box: Barcelona and the Set Rogen-produced horror film Cobweb. Plus: our audio commentary for the month is on the original Bird Box!
Podcasts
Ableism, Representation, and Perverse Sexuality in ‘Wait Until Dark’ [Horror Queers Podcast]
After concluding April with discussions of Ciarán Foy’s Eli (listen) and David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ (listen), we kicked off May with a revisit of Stephen Sommers’ delightful 1999 film, The Mummy (listen).
Now we’re headed into the past with Terence Young‘s adaptation of Frederick Knott‘s “disabled woman in danger” play, Wait Until Dark (1967).
In the film, recently blind Susy (Audrey Hepburn) is menaced by a trio of strange men, including sexually perverse ring leader Roat (Alan Arkin), “nice guy” Talman (Richard Crenna) and portly Carlino (Jack Weston). The men are looking for a doll full of heroin, which is located somewhere in her apartment, but she doesn’t know where!
Can Susy figure out the scam with the help of upstairs neighbor girl Gloria (Julie Herrod) or will she wind up hanging in the closet like Roat’s poor accomplice Lisa (Samantha Jones)?
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 281: Wait Until Dark (1967) feat. Ariel Baska
Smash all the lights and strike a match because we’re talking about disability horror, Audrey Hepburn and Wait Until Dark (1967).
Joining us for the conversation is disability documentary filmmaker Ariel Baska, who has a love/hate relationship with the film and its contribution to “cripping up.”
Plus: that famous jump scare, accusations of misogyny and ableism, the gross history of “Ugly Laws,” and the return of Trace’s recurring joke about Charade.
Cross out Wait Until Dark!
Coming up on Wednesday: We’re going into genre-adjacent territory with a look at Gregg Araki’s horrifying adaptation of Scott Heim’s novel, Mysterious Skin.
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 308 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Hannibal Season 1 Episode 5, a double feature of Sting and Infested, Tarot and The Strangers: Chapter One. And our audio commentary for the month will be on Sam Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell, just in time for its 15th anniversary!
6 Other Experimental Slashers to Watch Before ‘In a Violent Nature’
‘Army of Darkness’ – Life-Size Wearable Prop Replica of Ash’s Chainsaw Releasing Soon!
‘Round the Decay’ – Exclusive Images Preview Creature Feature’s Practical Monster
“Crystal Lake” Update: A24 Going a “Different Way” with the ‘Friday the 13th’ TV Series
First Official ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ Makeup Line Open for Pre-Orders
