Podcasts
The Empathetic Creature of James Whale’s ‘Frankenstein’ [Horror Queers Podcast]
It’s alive! It’s alive! It’s aliiiiiiiiiive!
After wrapping up October with a look at the queer-leaning throuple in Killer Klowns From Outer Space (listen), the shifting genres of J.A. Bayona’s The Orphanage (listen), and the feminist(ish) antics of George Miller’s The Witches of Eastwick (listen), we’re kicking off November with a celebration of the Netflix release of Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein (review) with a discussion of James Whale‘s Frankenstein (1931)!
Frankenstein follows obsessed scientist Dr. Victor Henry Frankenstein (Colin Clive) as he attempts to create life, with the help of his assistant Fritz (Dwight Frye) by assembling a creature from body parts of the deceased. Frankenstein succeeds in animating his monster (Boris Karloff), but it escapes into the countryside and begins to wreak havoc on the nearby village. When word gets to his fiancée Elizabeth (Mae Clarke), Frankenstein must find his creation and face him down before he causes any more damage (or death!).
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Episode 359: Frankenstein (1931)
Toss that girl in the pond and break out the good champagne because we’re discussing James Whale’s seminal horror film Frankenstein (1931) to celebrate the release of Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein (2025)!
Join us as we discuss how Frankenstein‘s success (along with that same year’s Dracula), helped kickstart a series of Universal monster films. We also discuss what made this film so terrifying for audiences in 1931, despite the fact that the creature itself is one of the most sympathetic characters in horror history.
Plus: another lesson in German Expressionism, lamenting the uselessness of Elizabeth (Mae Clarke), heaping all the praise on that dummy shot, and recounting a funny anecdote about….hard-boiled eggs???
Cross out Frankenstein!
Coming Up Next: We’re headed to the bayous of Louisiana with an oft-requested film from our listeners: the Kate Hudson-starring The Skeleton Key (2005).
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 435 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Tina Romero’s Queens of the Dead, Hulu’s remake of The Hand that Rocks the Cradle, new Oz Perkins joint Keeper, Predator: Badlands and, to celebrate American Thanksgiving, an audio commentary on the 1987 cult classic Blood Rage!
Podcasts
Freddy’s Back, So Is Jason, ‘Hellraiser’ Goes to Horror Nights, and ‘The Odyssey’ [Halloweenies Podcast]
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 week, Michael Roffman and McKenzie Gerber hit up Elm Street, Haddonfield, and Crystal Lake before braving the high seas to discuss the horrors within Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey. They also review this year’s Exit 8 and Forbidden Fruits before dusting off old classics for the first time in 2020’s Caveat and 1985’s The Mean Season.
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.