‘The podcast with guts…’
They say you grow more conservative as you get older. While that has yet to transpire for me in a political sense, it is true of horror films. As a teenager, I was obsessed with seeking out and devouring the most depraved and disgusting films that cinema had to offer. I walked a well trodden path from Romero zombie films to Cannibal Holocaust to New French Extremity flicks like Martyrs and Inside. Over time, I have grown less tolerant of splatter films. This is partly due to being desensitised. For a generation raised on Ogrish and rotten.com, splatter films can feel old hat. I enjoy the Terrifer franchise as much as the next freak, but many of the gore sequences leave me cold…
Gore Things is the brainchild of Brad Hanson and Ygraine Hackett-Cantabrana. The former I have covered before on his other podcasts The Evolution of Horror and Ex-Rental, but the latter was new to me. Together, they attempt to traverse the murky world of splatter cinema by taking in genre classics (The Evil Dead), some films of historical significance (Blood Feast) and some that should never be spoken of again (Human Centipede 2). The fact that they clearly adore each other’s company and share a similar sensibility makes for an entertaining and compelling listen, and it is clear that they know their stuff. The selection of films they have chosen so far (they are currently releasing episodes from their second season) is both eclectic and weirdly educational and I often come away from them feeling like I have learned something. Even if that thing is that the world is a terrible disgusting place and humanity is doomed.
So, has this podcast reawakened my long dormant love for splatter cinema? Not quite. But it has broadened my horror horizons by introducing me to several films I hadn’t heard of before, and in a world that is bursting at the seams with horror podcasts all covering the same old films, Gore Things is a breath of fresh air. Or rather a breath of fetid, putrid air…