Caliber 9 From Outer Space

Happy Halloween! It's the end of Creepy Spooky Month - AND it's our 150th episode! - so we figured it was time to line up a big one. Dr Ethan Lyon is back on the pod (not in the pod, and there's definitely no flies on him) to discuss The Fly (1986), directed by David Cronenberg. And we close the month out with another Ed Wood joint, Bride of the Monster (1955). That's right, it's wall to wall mad science this week - from the sublime to the ridiculous, perhaps, but the delights of horror cinema were ever thus.

We don't think these films are really spoilable so we don't bother with Spoiler Territory this week, although we do go into detail concerning the plots so, as always, if you're concerned about spoilers, do watch the films beforehand.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here. Continuing the Cronenberg theme, we've added an audiocommentary for Scanners this month, along with all the other bonus content available to our Allstars tier!

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Meet Ze Monsta" by PJ Harvey

Graham Humphreys programs a sacrilicious double feature for our latest Creepy Spooky Month episode! First up, Hammer horror goes all Satanic Panic and espionage thriller at the same time with The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973), directed by Alan Gibson. Following this, we explore the deeply weird and also weirdly seminal The Devil's Rain (1975), directed by Robert Fuest. This month is scary enough without the eerie parallels between the apocalyptic imaginings of these two films and today's sociopolitical climate. Plus we find out where John Carpenter got the iconic Michael Myers mask from, and why John Travolta joined the Church of Scientology.

We don't think these films are really spoilable so we don't bother with Spoiler Territory this week, although we do go into detail concerning the plots so, as always, if you're concerned about spoilers, do watch the films beforehand.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Tangled Up in Plaid" by Queens of the Stone Age

Creepy Spooky Month continues as we revisit that most terrifying of horror subgenres: the airborne threat of malevolent birds! OK, maybe it's not THE most terrifying horror trope, but that won't stop us watching films promising such dubious delights. Ted Bennett is in the house to check out the relatively yet-to-be-discovered Shaw Brothers gem that is Bloody Parrot (1981), directed by Hua Shan, and the epically derided made-for-TV sequel to Hitchcock's classic (and recently covered by us) work of avian existentialism, The Birds II: Land's End (1994), directed by Alan Smithee (otherwise known as, in this case at least, Rick Rosenthal) - that's right, a film so hated that even the director of Halloween: Resurrection saw fit to remove his name from it.

We don't think these films are really spoilable so we don't bother with Spoiler Territory this week!

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Colouring of Pigeons" by The Knife

Hell is other people. Apartment living means being close to your neighbours - way too close, in some instances - leading to all sorts of psychological horrors and possible silliness. This week, Dallas Norvell stops by to discuss a couple of apartment horror stories like only the 1970's could turn out. First up: The Tenant (1976), directed by Roman Polanski, followed by The Sentinel (1977), directed by Michael Winner.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for The Tenant by skipping ahead to the 1:31:32 mark, and for The Sentinel by skipping ahead to 2:20:57.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"In This Room" by Ride

The days are cooling down, the leaves are changing colour, and the nights are drawing in. It must be Creepy Spooky Month! Bryan Davidson joins us for the first of a series of episodes all devoted to horror this October - and we start with ZOMBIES. Or at least, zombie adjacency. First up, we discuss Stewart Gordon's absolute cult classic, Re-Animator (1985), and follow that up with a jaunt into some woozy, Italian weirdness: Zeder (1982), directed by Pupi Avati.

If you haven't seen Re-Animator yet, you need to get your head checked thoroughly (possibly after removing it), so we haven't called out spoilers (although they're there!) , but we have called out Spoiler Territory for Zeder. Skip ahead to 2:30:49 to avoid spoilers for that one.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"K Hole" by Ali Love

The fabulous Samm Deighan is back with us this week to delve into a couple of great, underseen French films - and also to tell us all about her new book on the work of that great master of cinema insanity, Andrzej Żuławski. Exciting! We kick off our double feature with Żuławski's frantic ode to mad French mobsters, L'Amour Braque (1985) and we follow that up with La Cérémonie (1995), directed by Claude Chabrol - a domestic thriller about class, shame and sociopathy that comes on like a television procedural but hits you like a gut punch when you least expect it. Oof!!!

L'Amour Braque is so dense and confusing that we'd probably recommend listening to this before you watch it - and spoilers are made up for by being properly prepped for its unique vibe - but Spoiler Territory was ESSENTIAL for La Cérémonie. Skip ahead to 1:58:34 to avoid spoilers for that one.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Buy Samm's new book here: Hysterical Excess and Inhuman Ecstasy: The Cinema of Andrzej Żuławski

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Idiot Heart" by Sunset Rubdown

It's high culture vs low culture this week! Rob St Mary drops in to discuss the great Surrealist Luis Bunuel's final film, That Obscure Object of Desire (1977) before descending into the quasi-giallo, early 80's Canuxploitation slasher jam, Happy Birthday To Me (1981), directed by J. Lee Thompson. We may have planned a female duality theme, or we may have just thrown these two contrasting flicks together just for fun. We'll let you be the judge. Either way, they may be a mouthful but they sure are delicious!

That Obscure Object of Desire is probably obscure enough in its plot to be largely unspoilable at this point, but we do call out Spoiler Territory for Happy Birthday To Me. Skip ahead to 2:31:44 to avoid spoilers for that one.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Desire Lines" by Deerhunter

Birds. Eggs. An unusual basis for a horror-thriller, but it can be done. Marek Turner joins us to discuss a double feature of avian dread starting with what is arguably ground zero for the animal attack horror sub-genre, The Birds (1963), directed by Alfred Hitchcock. We follow that up with bizarre Italian proto-giallo, Death Laid An Egg (1968), directed by Giulio Questi.

The Birds is a classic which probably isn't spoilable at this point, but we will be calling out Spoiler Territory for Death Laid An Egg. Skip ahead to 2:05:19 to avoid spoilers for that one.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Buy Marek Turner's new novel, The Reluctant Gardener!

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Nice Bird" by Custard

The sea was angry that day, my friends. And... a little bit rapey...

Nothing beats aquatic horror - we love movies where nasties from the depths spend 80-90 minutes wreaking havoc among shrieking B-movie actors, so we've lined up a fin-tastic double feature to scratch that itch. Bryce stops by to discuss Humanoids from the Deep (1980), directed by Barbara Peeters, and Killer Fish (1979), directed by Antonio Margheriti.

We don't think these films are really spoilable so we don't bother with Spoiler Territory this week!

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Here Come More Perils From the Sea" by Mark Kozelek and Jimmy LaValle

As devoted fans of Hollywood genre and crime cinema of the 60's and 70's, we have a high appreciation for the copious output of director John Frankenheimer. Our resident Frankenfanatic, Nick Langdon, joins us this week to discuss Frankenheimer's late-career return to form, Ronin (1998), along with French Connection 2 (1975) his largely forgotten and woefully underseen sequel to William Friedkin's masterpiece. From De Niro to Hackman, from high speed car chases to one ex-junkie wheezing his way through the mean streets of Marseille, this is a kinetic and sometimes gruelling excursion for Hollywood into Frankeheimer's adopted home of France. We find much to discuss about these action procedurals, one of which endures as a cult classic while the other is still perhaps waiting for its cult to emerge.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Ronin by skipping ahead to the 1:40:30 mark, and for French Connection 2 by skipping ahead to 2:42:02.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"French Disko" by Stereolab

What do you do when your horror franchise is running out of ideas? Well, you could send your horror villain into space. Or you could team him up with another famous horror villain for an old-fashioned monster mash. But of course, the Friday the 13th franchise would never resort to such desperate measures... would they? Al is back in the house this week as we check out Jason X (2001), directed by James Isaac, and Freddy vs Jason (2003), directed by Ronny Yu.

Let's just say, plot is not really the reason to watch either of these films. so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of them.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"these are not your dreams" by sleepmakeswaves

Actual rabid dogs would be much better behaved than these people. Sammy from the Gentlemen's Guide to Midnite Cinema comes over to our place with a sleazy movie under each arm, as is his wont. This week, we check out Rabid Dogs (1974), directed by Mario Bava and (not a sequel), Like Rabid Dogs (1976), directed by Mario Imperoli. These are two fever dreams of rampant criminality and amorality, of a kind only the Italians of the 1970's could purvey. Hold your nose, we're diving in.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Rabid Dogs by skipping ahead to the 1:45:09 mark, and for Like Rabid Dogs by skipping ahead to 2:39:03.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Dogs" by Motorhead

It's the end of the world as we know it and we feel... well, you can't complain, can you?Author and publisher AM Belsey joins us today to discuss a couple of films about the end of the world... or ARE they??? We check out Danny Boyle's Sunshine (2007), and follow it up with cult New Zealand curio, The Quiet Earth (1985), directed by Geoff Murphy. Sexy scientists, solar edging and a New Zealand with marginally less people than it usually has - this is a week for heady sci-fi concepts indeed.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Sunshine by skipping ahead to the 1:38:24 mark, and for The Quiet Earth by skipping ahead to 2:28:51.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Staring at the Sun" by TV On The Radio

We said James Bond would return... and he did! We continue our series checking out the lesser loved entries from the 007 franchise. This week, it's time to discuss George Lazenby's sole outing as the famous spy, On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), directed by Peter Hunt, and follow it up with one of the most maligned films in the series, Octopussy (1983), directed by John Glen. We discuss the many curious choices that were made surrounding the first non-Connery Bond film (including Lazenby's choice to throw it all away) and make a case for the very specific energy that Roger Moore brings to the role in what is undeniably a very silly Bond film.

Stick around for our Bond Tropewatch segment, where we rate each of these films against the checklist of standard Bond tropes to see which fares best!

Fair warning: we go into the plots of both films in some detail, including the endings, but we feel like James Bond is somewhat unspoilable in general, so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of these films.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"On Her Majesty's Secret Service" by The Propellerheads

Two very different genre exercises today: one an essential masterpiece of its idiom, the other a true exploitation cash-in of a much more polished and successful film. Rich Fox is with us to discuss Tenebrae (1982), directed by Dario Argento and Tentacles (1977), directed by Ovidio G. Assonitis. From the sublime to the ridiculous, perhaps, but both films are fascinating in their own way.

Tentacles is hard to spoil (especially if you've seen Jaws before), so no Spoiler Territory for that one. We do, however, call out Spoiler Territory for Tenebrae so if you want to skip ahead from that point, you can rejoin the conversation at the 1:52:31 mark to avoid spoilers.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Flashing" by Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli and Massimo Morante

Wings Hauser brings out the lunatic in us, so this week we have a suitably chaotic episode to cover a Wings double feature where the sleaze and violence are dialled right up - without skimping on the quality of film-making. Heather Drain and Ted Bennett join us this week to review Vice Squad (1982), directed by Gary Sherman and The Wind (1986), directed by Nico Mastorakis. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll almost certainly make that wincing face... and that's just from listening to our discussion.

Neither film is particularly spoilable, so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of them.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Jeanny" by Falco

Sakana drops in this week to discuss a couple of early films directed by American exploitation legend, Jack Hill. First up: Pit Stop (1969), a film marketed as a demolition derby thrill ride which nevertheless contains surprising character depth and drama. Then we follow it up with cult favourite, Spider Baby (1967) which, despite its weirdo horror comedy approach, has some emotional depth of its own.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Pit Stop by skipping ahead to the 1:27:17 mark, and for Spider Baby by skipping ahead to 2:18:58.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me" by The Smiths

Why do we love movies set on trains so much? Is it morally OK to love sleazy exploitation films? Both of these essential philosophical conundrums come together in a clash of tearing metal and ripping undergarments in this week's double feature. Sammy from the GGTMC joins us to discuss Night Train Murders (1975), directed by Aldo Lado and Terror Express (1980), directed by Ferdinando Baldi.

It's not really possible to spoil Terror Express but we do call out Spoiler Territory for Night Train Murders. If you want to skip ahead from that point, you can rejoin the conversation at the 1:53:01 mark to avoid spoilers.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Nighttrain" by Public Enemy

This week, we're all about seminal indie horror movies - that grindhouse crackle and pop - ah, there's nothing like it. Justin Kerswell is in the house to check out a couple of lo-fi horror gems. We start off with the recently rediscovered indie experimental mind-melter Effects (1979), directed by Dusty Nelson, a film which features a whole bunch of George A. Romero's Pittsburgh indie-horror collective. It's a film that makes you think, and so we follow it up with a film for which thinking is entirely optional: proto-shocker I Drink Your Blood (1971), directed by David Durston.

We don't think you can really spoil I Drink Your Blood, which is just about being as gory and exploitative as it can, but we will call out Spoiler Territory for Effects. If you want to skip ahead from that point, you can rejoin the conversation at the 1:16:38 mark to avoid spoilers.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Destroyed by Hippie Powers" by Car Seat Headrest

When Mr Tech is in town, it's time to dust off some computer game adaptations. Unfortunately, we are fast running out of game adaptations that we're all collectively willing to watch, so this week we're instead exploring a couple of films in which characters are transported into a game. We start off with the film that pioneered this sort of cinema concept, Tron (1982), directed by Steve Lisberger, and follow that up with Mamoru Oshii's non-anime, Eastern European crossover, Avalon (2001).

We don't call out a Spoiler Territory for Tron because it just didn't seem necessary but we do include one for Avalon. If you want to skip ahead from that point, you can rejoin the conversation at the 2:38:12 mark to avoid spoilers.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on caliber9fromouterspace@gmail.com

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Veridis Quo" by Daft Punk