245 - Gremlins 2 (1990) & The Final Girls (2015) →

CW: Suicide, Sexual Assault, Sexual Harassment, Homophobia

It’s Meta Week on Pod Sematary! Chris & Kelsey are self-referential and silly. Don't think too hard about it.

Read our afterthoughts for this episode HERE!

The Classic Film: Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
"The Gremlins are back, and this time, they've taken control of a New York City media mogul's high-tech skyscraper” (IMDb.com). Gremlins 2 was a too-late sequel to a pop culture phenomenon that didn't feel like the original at all. But if you can get over that, it sure is a lot of stupid fun.

The Modern Film: The Final Girls (2015)
"A young woman grieving the loss of her mother, a famous scream queen from the 1980s, finds herself pulled into the world of her mom's most famous movie. Reunited, the women must fight off the film's maniacal killer” (IMDb.com). The Final Girls is a love letter to—not a takedown of—slasher films from the 80s. The logic may not work, but who cares, really?

Audio Sources:
"Bette Davis Eyes" written by Donna Weiss & Jackie DeShannon and performed by Kim Carnes
"Cherry Pie" written by Jani Lane and performed by Warrant
"The Final Girls" (2015) produced by Groundswell Productions
"Gremlins" produced by Warner Bros. & Amblin Entertainment
"Gremlins 2: The New Batch" produced by Warner Bros. & Amblin Entertainment
"Hollywood Sequel Doctor" (Key and Peele S05E08) produced by Monkeypaw Productions, et al.
"Joker" (2019) produced by Warner Bros., et al.
"Looper" (2012) produced by TriStar Pictures, et al.
"My Name is Bruce" produced by Dark Horse Entertainment & Image Entertainment
"Spaceballs" produced by Brooksfilms & Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

174 - Cut (2000) & Fear, Inc. (2016) →

The Worst of 2021 - #8 Cut

It’s Meta Comedy Week on Pod Sematary! Chris & Kelsey hire a service to show these movies to us, but will we regret it in the end? It's also a recommendation week, so a big thank you to Chickapedia & Peter!

Read our afterthoughts for this episode here!

The Classic Film: Cut (2000)
"A group of film students attempt to finish a horror movie that stopped production years earlier when the director was killed. [Aware] that every attempt to complete the pic coincided with the murders of those involved, the students return to the original location in an isolated part of the country. When filming begins, so do the killings” (IMDb.com). In the beginning, Cut feels like a tolerable if not terribly exciting indie horror, but we gradually became less and less enamored with its few charms.

The Modern Film: Fear, Inc. (2016)
"Fear, Inc. follows a company of degenerates who can be hired for a premium to bring your greatest fears to life. But when horror junkie Joe Foster's customized scare seemingly begins, he and his friends must decide if this company is there to scare them or make them pawns in their own sick game” (IMDb.com). Fear, Inc. is sharp and humorous but is the end result a death by a thousand cuts?

Audio Sources:
"American Idol" (Unknown Episode) produced by Fremantle, et al.
"Cobra" produced by Cannon Group, et al.
"Cut" (2000) produced by Mushroom Pictures, et al.
"Fear, Inc." produced by Lone Suspect, et al.
"Office Space" produced by Twentieth Century Fox, et al.
"Pet Sematary" written by Dee Dee Ramone & Daniel Rey and performed by The Ramones
"The Rains of Castamere" written by Ramin Djawadi & George R. R. Martin and performed by Sigur Rós

054 - Scream (1996) & The Cabin In The Woods (2012) →

Best of 2017/18 - #4 (Tied) The Cabin in the Woods

It's Horror Tropes Week on Pod Sematary! Chris and Kelsey get meta talking about some of the best examples of self-aware horror films that exist! (To be sure, there are more...)

First up is one we've been talking about since our first episode: 1996's Scream! Wes Craven got a bit meta with 1994's New Nightmare, but that movie only covered the one franchise: Freddy. Then along came Kevin Williamson and the two really got rolling with a film the transformed the whole genre for Generation X (for good or ill). Is this clever classic worth all of the not-so-great imposters?

Then it's on to the film that doesn't just want to observe the tropes but tear the whole genre down and start over: 2012's The Cabin in the Woods! Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard bring their experience and wit to address the big questions. Why do characters act like idiots in horror movies? Why only use that great weapon once? And what happens when the audience doesn't get what they expect?

Plus:
--a trip to Knott's Scary Farm!
--the new Pet Sematary trailer!

Get more at podsematary.com! Read our afterthoughts for this episode at https://twitter.com/PodSematary/status/1051648875990118400

Audio Sources:
"The Cabin in the Woods" produced by Lionsgate, et al.
"Ice" (The X-Files S01E08) produced by Ten Thirteen Productions in association with 20th Century Fox Television
"Jamie Kennedy Ruins E3 - Activision Press Conference 2007" via gamesradararchive @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IifE-EAuSAI
"Like Father, Like Son" produced by Partnership for a Drug-Free America
"Pet Sematary" written by Dee Dee Ramone & Daniel Rey and performed by The Ramones
"Pet Sematary" (2019) produced by Alphaville Films & Paramount Pictures
"Red Dawn" produced by United Artists & Valkyrie Films
"Red Right Hand" written by Mick Harvey, Nick Cave, and Thomas Wydler and performed by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
"Roll with the Changes" written by Kevin Cronin and performed by REO Speedwagon
"Scream" produced by Dimension Films & Woods Entertainment