Podcasts
Tackling International True Crime in Enfield and the Galápagos [Murder Made Fiction Podcast]
It’s been a whirlwind August on Murder Made Fiction. We’ve spent most of the month on a deep dive into Ed and Lorraine Warren, starting with an introductory primer on their less than honorable intentions (listen) as well as an analysis of the first The Conjuring film (listen).
In the lead-up to our discussion on James Wan’s sequel, once again starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, we stopped over in Enfield, UK to investigate the purported “most documented” poltergeist of all time. That’s how Apple TV’s four part docuseries The Enfield Poltergeist (2023) opens each episode, which explores how the Hodgson family was threatened in their home by the spirit of Bill Wilkinson. Thanks to actors lip-synching to excerpts of more than 200 hours of tape by SPR member Maurice Grosse, we can see how furniture moved of its own accord and how 11 year old Janet Hodgson was possessed.
Oh yes, and the Warrens briefly appear…but only for around four hours before they were asked to return back to America.
Elsewhere, Jenn and I ventured to the Galápagos islands with Ron Howard‘s latest film, Eden (2025). The movie stars Jude Law and Vanessa Kirby as Dr. Friedrich Ritter and Dore Strauch, who fled Germany in the late 1920s to start afresh on the deserted island of Floreana.
Tensions rise, however, when Dr. Ritter’s well-publicized “live off the land” lifestyle attracts first the hard working Wittmer family (Sydney Sweeney, Daniel Brühl) and then entitled Baroness Eloise (Ana de Armas) and her harem of men. In no time at all, the neighbors are stealing, lying and backstabbing in an attempt to control the island.
It’s pretty dark and funny…until things get murderous! Here’s our spoiler-free review, which heaps praise on Ana de Armas as the secret MVP of the film.
Want even more Murder Made Fiction? Be sure to check out the pod’s Patreon feed, where Jenn and I have 130 episodes and 85 hours of exclusive content including episode by episode coverage of shows like Monster, Ryan Murphy’s anthology series about Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menendez Brothers, as well as Hulu’s The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox.
Coming Soon & Now Showing is a monthly series on Halloweenies that catches up on the latest horror headlines and round robins capsule reviews of new and old horrors.
This month, Michael Roffman and Justin Gerber discuss the blockbuster weekend involving Backrooms and Obsession. They also brush on some franchise news and dust off oldies for the first time: 1987’s Dead of Winter and 1977’s False Face.
Stream the episode below. Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, 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, The Evil Dead, Chucky, Alien, and the Universal Monsters.This year? Hellraiser!
You can also become a member of their Patreon, The Rewind, for hilariously irreverent commentaries (e.g. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Re-Animator, Darkman), one-off deep dives on your favorite rentals (e.g. Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Manhunter, ), and even spinoffs like their recent run Fortune & Glory: An Indiana Jones Podcast.