Essential Scares

As Hillbilly Horror month continues it seemed fitting to breakdown The Hills Have Eyes (1977) .  This movie, admittedly inspired by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) , is one that is fairly well known in the horror zeitgeist, but just HOW well known is it?  Does this movie offer a gripping tense experience that keeps you engaged? Alternatively, is this movie one that has its moments bu...

 This week on the chopping block we have Wrong Turn (2003) !  We started the month with the undeniable classic, so naturally this week we decided to break down a movie that might be a classic?  We go into it much more in detail during the show, but this movie does make the answer more complicated than we expected.  Do the moments of brilliance outshine the malaise of the rest o...

Kicking off our hillbilly horror month, there was none other we could begin with besides for The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) .  This movie is well known to horror and non-horror fans alike as an absolute classic. This macabre movie is simultaneously beautiful in its own grotesque way.  However, does this movie live up to its own hype?  Does it leave too much up to your imaginati...

Rounding out the Scream Rip off month we had to talk about none other than the latest in the franchise, Scream (2022).  Right out the gate we are all massive fans of the Scream franchise as a whole, and that shines through in our discussion.  However, is this addition to the franchise just a cash grab meta nonsensical film?  Is this movie the BEST elevated horror ever?  Most im...

Rounding out our Scream rip offs before we get to Scream (2022), we have our thoughts on I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997).  While this film tries, and fails, to tell a whodunit type of story, there are some fairly iconic scenes in this film that we have some thoughts on.  Largely, I Know What You Did Last Summer is not scary, but it does have some moments worthy of gushing over. &n...

This week we have stepped up the ante with our Scream rip offs and have brought you our thoughts on Final Destination!  Have you ever seen this movie in its R rated form? It was a first time for two members of the show!  All in all, does Final Destination hold its own in the landscape of other movies from its time?  Why are there ZERO airplanes in future movies?  Most important...

Kicking off 2022 the crew sits down with our first themed month of Scream rip offs.  Kicking that trend off we start with Urban Legend, a movie that is largely a product of its time which feels VERY late 90's MTV.  Does Urban Legend ever live up to its inspiration?  Would you be on Goth4Goths.com in the late 90's like Bobby would be?  Most importantly though, is it essential? *...

To celebrate the new year Essential Scares would love to present our thoughts on Terror Train!  One of the few New Years movies we could find!  Does Terror Train do much, if anything, with the holiday?  Would this movie be remember if not for the Scream Queen herself starring in it?  Does Mountain Dew and Cream go together?  Most importantly, is it essential? *************...

NAUGHTY! PUNISH! Today the boys get together to break down Silent Night, Deadly Night!  For the long time listeners, we have already spoken about this episode in the before times of Essential Scares.  Two of us enjoyed the movie EVEN MORE this time around, and the other is objectively wrong.  I'll let you decide which member that is.  Does Silent Night, Deadly Night do enough t...

This week we explored the early beginnings of cinema legend Peter Jackson with one of his first films - DEAD ALIVE.  Is it a horror comedy that everyone loves?  Do we ever reconcile that this is the same Peter Jackson that almost immediately after went on to begin production on Lord of the Rings?  Most importantly...is it essential? **************************************************...

This week the crew all got collectively more scared than we anticipated while watching Hell House LLC.  Found footage is one of our favorite subgenres in all of horror, but at the end of the day we are the arbiters of what is and is not essential.  Does found footage work within the context of a horror movie based inside of a haunted house? Most importantly though, is it essential? *****...

The crew sits down today to talk about the newly released Ghostbusters Afterlife!  We had a fun time getting together on this episode and we all learned some new information about our levels of fandom for the Ghostbusters franchise as a whole.... Among other things.  Does this movie serve as a good send off to Harold Ramis?  Does this episode contain Bobby's single greatest spoiler...

Today we bring you the most recent attempt at a live action Resident Evil movie!  All three of us came into this movie mostly expecting it to be awful, one of the three came out pleasantly surprised at what he saw.  Which cast member enjoyed the movie the most?  Is this movie effectively cinematic constipation? Most importantly...is it essential? ************************************...

This week on Essential Scares we go over the cult classic Thanksgiving horror flick THANKSKILLING. Is this movie a power hour of laughs and gore?  Or is it simply better forgotten schlock?  Most importantly...is it essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 1:40 - Spoiler Warning 2:18 - Discussion [HEAVY spoilers] 33:40 - Final Review [No spoiler...

This week on Essential Scares the crew gets closer to God and goes deeper than ever - it's our most serious episode yet...but does that make Midnight Mass essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES  0:00 - Intro  0:55 - Spoiler Warning  1:23 - Discussion [HEAVY spoilers] 57:20 - Final Review [Mild spoilers] 1:02:12 - Is it essential? [Mild spoilers] 1:07...

Our Crew meets in the morning, for the second week in the row, to discuss the newly released Antlers! Does this movie effectively communicate its metaphor?  Is Jesse Plemons an absolute gem?  Most importantly, is it essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 1:07 - Spoiler Warning 2:05 - Discussion 49:41 - Final Review 53:30 - Is it essential? 56...

The Crew sits down today, with guest Ben @Justthebatman, to discuss the absolute classic Scream.  Bobby expertly tries to troll the cast, does he succeed? Scream sits at a special place in all of our hearts, and we absolutely gush about it during this podcast.  Is Scream the apex of the genre?  Is Sidney the best final girl of all time?  Most importantly, is it essential? *****...

The crew talks tonight, the crew talks tonight!  Halloween Kills is up on the chopping block this round and we have some thoughts.  Is this one of the top 3 Halloween movies of all time? Did this movie have enough stakes?  Which is better Metroid Fusion or Metroid Prime? Most importantly though, is it essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Int...

This week's regularly scheduled Essential Scares has been replaced with a throwback episode! If you've been following us since before we were codified as Essential Scares this one will be new to you; if you were around before, this is an oldie (but a goodie!). Scheduling conflicts prevented us from recording our episode on Scream, but we will absolutely be going back to Wes Craven's meta classic b...

The crew sits down to discuss our first John Carpenter film for the show! Prince of Darkness falls right in the middle of the Apocalypses trilogy, is this the forgotten middle child? Does Carpenter do anything wrong? Most importantly, is it essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 1:09 - Spoiler Warning 1:37 - Discussion 43:12 - Final Review 51:48 - Is i...

PSA: Unfortuantely this week we ran into some technical troubles during recording that we did not notice until after we had finished the episode.  In the interest of keeping our original thoughts and to ensure the episode was out on time, we are using the backup audio.  If we sound a little worse this week, sorry!  **************************************************  This week,...

The crew plus reoccurring guest Ben sit down to get into the absolute classic that is Nightmare on Elm Street.  We laugh, we cry, we talk about Oreos for some reason, but all in all we have the arduous task of deciding if this classic is essential.   ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 1:48 - Spoiler Warning 2:07 - Discussion 1:01:58 - Final Review 1...

The crew sits down to discuss the new release Malignant!  Is it really scary, no.  Did we all have fun with it? Maybe, does James Wan lean into it too much? Maybe.  The real question at hand though, is it essential?  ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 0:55 - Spoiler Warning 1:55 - Discussion 40:18 - Final Review 48:27 - Is it essential? 55...

The trio returns this week to discuss psychedelic horror movie Beyond the Black Rainbow - as gamers, we've seen its influence in several titles, and despite it's very niche following, its touch has been felt in horror since release...but is it essential? ************************************************** Rate and subscribe!  Follow us below for more from us and join our Discord for a chat. &n...

The core cast today sits down to discuss the cult hit film Lake Mungo. It fully commits to its found footage/mockumentary style, is that to its benefit or detriment? Is it a ghost movie?  Most importantly...is it essential? ************************************************** TIMECODES 0:00 - Intro 0:55 - Spoiler Warning 1:27 - Discussion 34:50 - Final Review 42:32 - Is it essential? 56:20 - So...