Welcome back to the Evolution of Horror. My name is Mike Munser, and as ever, I am your host. In this podcast, we explore and dissect the history and the evolution of the horror genre, one subgenre at a time. And this week... We are at the end. We have reached the final chapter of our 10th season exploring the evolution of nature biting back in horror. It's officially been with, I think, 38 episodes altogether, including our bonus Gremlins episode.
the biggest season of this podcast I've ever done. It's been quite a journey and I've loved every second of it. What a fun. Ride, and a fun selection of movies this week. has been. So this week for the final chapter, it's going to work as a little conclusion. We're going to be looking back at what we've learned over the last 38 episodes in this season. I'm going to be joined by Mary Wilde as well for a little wrap up chat.
And then we're going to finish this week by reading and responding to some audience questions and feedback and counting down the listeners' top 10 Nature Bites back films. Thank you to everybody for writing in and voting. Hundreds of you got in touch with your feedback and with your top tens. So I have collated all of that information and I'll be counting down your top tens later.
And as ever, I will be finishing this week's episode and this season with a little look forward to season 11. So stay tuned for the end of this episode. in which I will be revealing what subgenre we cover next season, and I'll be talking a little bit about what kind of films we'll be exploring, which is...
Very exciting. Now, don't forget, while we are off air and we will now be off air, the weekly episodes will stop from next week onwards for a few months. We are probably not going to be back until the summer of this year. But if you want to continue listening to EOH content every single week, you can. Just sign up to our Patreon. It's only going to cost you a few quid per month.
And for that, it'll be like we never went away. You can continue listening to mini seasons and bonus episodes and discussions with amazing guests. every single week. We've got a found footage mini season. I'm also really excited actually to launch another mini season soon, a kind of discomfort. movie season. So think movies like Todd Salon's Happiness and Larry Clark's Kids.
And that's going to give you a fair idea of what kind of movies we're going to be covering as part of that season. So that's all to come on Patreon. So if you want to continue hearing EOH content, just head on over to patreon.com slash evolution of horror. All right, let's head into this week's episode and we're going to kick things off as we always do with a little look back as we conclude our 10th season on the evolution of nature in horror.
Did you say you're quite an outdoorsy person, Axel? Are you good at being out there at one with the elements? No. No. I definitely wouldn't say that again. Hell no. I am not at all an outdoorsy girl. I'm very much a city.
Are you very much like at one with nature, would you say? Well, I think that's a bit funny. I'm a little more at one with my television kind of a girl. I'm not a massively outdoorsy person. If I could go... of my life without ever sleeping in a tent again i would be very very happy i would not even set foot in that ocean above like you know ankle height i had mice in this flat and that terrified me like to swim in the ocean absolutely
I think it's safe to say that many of us horror fans have a healthy fear of nature. And the nature bites back subgenre has been a fascinating way to examine this. There are forces beyond imagination. and every living creature every blade of grass will turn against you when we think of monsters in movies we might think of creatures with multiple legs tentacles things with hundreds of eyes
razor-sharp teeth, things that are big enough to eat us, or things that are tiny enough to burrow under our skin and use us as hosts. Often horror filmmakers and storytellers create these kinds of monsters as works fiction but of course in actual fact many of these creatures i just described actually exist and perhaps that's why so many of us horror fans are so unnerved by nature and the out doors any shark or croc or piranha or bear movie
just terrified me to the point of never wanting to travel. To know these creatures were real was incomprehensible, you know. Films about nature biting back, I suppose, are always about man coming into contact with the forces of nature in some way, and I suppose there are always...
these different subcategories within that wider umbrella of nature biting back i think you have got such a broad range haven't you it's both ends of the spectrum you know from hitchcock's the birds through jaws through you know velocipasta or bear yeah it really does this there's something for all tastes in that suppose nature gave a war and everybody came the snakes the birds the lizards and frogs
And suppose that the polluters, the species on Earth called man, were the enemy in that war. Arguably, the Animal Attack movie didn't become a fully-fledged subgenre until the 1970s. but its roots were established in other types of horror films long before this. Look at the films of the 20s and 30s about mysterious islands filled with exotic and dangerous creatures, whether it's The Lost World or King.
It's a film in which every conceivable trick is pulled to convince us of what's going on. And beyond that, just to thrill us out of our tiny minds as to what we are experiencing. Then you've got the kaiju movies of the 1940s, films like Godzilla, in many ways the ultimate story of man messing with nature and suffering the consequences. The whole point of Godzilla is that Godzilla is a real animal.
real creature that over the course of this whole series functions as like I said is a white blood cell for when humans start meddling too much or when outside forces of any kind maybe those are monsters start meddling too much, Godzilla's the one that's on the job. While neither Godzilla or Kong are realistic creatures that exist on this earth, obviously, they are still, between them, emblematic of the might and the power of nature.
Kong, the story of a giant, majestic, deadly creature taken from its natural habitat and exploited for profit, represents humanity's greed and their disregard and ultimate underestimation of the natural world. world ladies and gentlemen Look at Kong, the eighth wonder of the world. It's really, in many ways, the most astonishing special effect in this film laden with that final catharsis where we do feel...
sympathy for King Kong. Godzilla, a prehistoric creature woken up by nuclear testing, is a warning against the dangers of war and man-made destruction. But the main point is always have respect for Because the minute we stop respecting the monster, the minute we stop respecting Earth, the Earth can get rid of us in a minute.
bites back movies one a warning against capitalism and greed the other a warning against war and the destruction of the natural world both forces of punishment and retribution teaching us humanity the errors of our ways. And as cinema icons, Godzilla and Kong remain as popular today as they ever were. You can see why they're both beloved characters that have lived on for as long as they have because they were just loved at the time. This is not a case of these things becoming a cult hit. Yes.
These were an immediate hit. Yes. Yes, the Earth, the skies above and the seas below, infested by swarms of nightmare creatures. And of course, in the 1950s, there was a huge boom in monster movies, from giant bugs to Martians from... to space and while many of these films dealt more with science fiction than the horrors of the natural world they were clearly hugely influential for what was about to come they're coming they're coming in 1963
Alfred Hitchcock made The Birds, a film that was clearly playing on tropes of the monster movies of the 50s, but making it feel like something that could really happen, dealing with real creatures that exist in the real world.
unlocking an entirely new fear that we didn't even know we had one spider is is enough you know like a giant spider in a movie is enough to terrify you a giant killer shark is enough to terrify your bear is enough to terrify you one bird is pretty soft you know like the individual one or two birds you know the lovebirds like a couple of birds is fine it's this critical mass
And we get that really played out quite explicitly with that amazing scene. You know, the perfect scene in a perfect film is that incredible scene at the schoolhouse where Melanie's sitting outside quietly and one or two birds is fine, but we see more birds join and you can see Melanie kind of hang on.
And then more and more and more arrive, and the tension increases as the number of birds increases. These stepping stones all led to the 1970s, the first real boom of animal attack movies. What a... own terror. Just like some of these movies, some specific scenes in some of these movies, and I'm saying this without a shred of irony, like they just make me happy to be alive. And like getting to watch.
some of these things that happen is just gives me such unbridled joy. It was a day like any other. The air hung heavy with the heat. Then it happened. Frogs, Night of the Lepers, Bug, Phase 4, The Giant Spider Invasion, Grizzly, Squirm, Food of the Gods, Ants, Empire of the Ants, Kingdom of the Spiders, Day of the Animals, The Swarm, Orca. Suddenly, through the 1970s... animal attack movies, and natural disaster movies were everywhere.
Yeah, I think it was kind of the first time we were really becoming aware of the effects that mankind has on the environment. It's like the 70s are when the EPA was born.
been talking about climate change and all of these things for half a century now oh my god so the idea that people are still denying it completely and all this just boggles my mind because this has been the conversation and we movies like day of the animals to tell you all about it exactly that so as we arrive at the 1970s and it becomes solidified as a bona fide subgenre of horror how do we define it let's break down some of the
of the classic animal attack movie or creature feature. This motion picture does not cater to fantasy. You will see nature's most savage man-eating animal. Most animal attack movies are ensemble stories. more location specific rather than character specific often the focus is on a whole town or area that comes under attack bodega bay in the birds amity island in jaws perfection nevada in
or Claridge, Maryland in the Bay. Good morning, Marilyn. I am in Claridge, the host of our annual July 4th party. You know, the lead hero, who's the last one standing and, you know, a couple... of characters who when put under stress basically just look out for themselves will usually be introduced to a wide range of characters generally they're sort of stock characters quirky townsfolk often played by well-known
character actors and so a lot of these actors are storied character actors or big actors who were a little bit past what could be considered their prime somebody like ray moland this man won an Oscar yes and then in Frogs He has a completely undignified death where he's like face down and there's frogs crawling all over his ass. It's like, yeah, that's Hollywood, baby. So you establish your location and you introduce your big ensemble cast of.
occasionally Oscar-winning character actors. Then you need the premise. I wanna make a toast. so much for bringing me on vacation cheers the initial setup might include some soapy storylines involving these characters a breakup a divorce a secret affair somebody going out of business Think Home and Away meets Jaws. With unresolved relationship tension simmering, plus a great white shark circling beneath them,
They're stranded in open water with no coast in sight. A lot of the characters that make up the ensemble won't be particularly sympathetic. Ultimately, we're not going to care too much if many of them live or die. And the people in power are definitely... definitely not to be trusted
If we're introduced to a mayor or a congressman or a local eccentric millionaire, they're probably a wrong-un. For Christ's sake, tomorrow's the 4th of July and we will be open for business. It's going to be one of the best summers we've ever had. Now, if you fellas are concerned about the beaches, you do whatever you have to to make them safe. But those beaches will be open for this weekend. He's just capitalist political hubris, just like sort of boiled down into one.
fantastically clad man soon enough this location will come under attack from some sort of creature or creatures although the effect on living organisms is not yet known people are being advised to remain indoors whenever possible generally this monster that attacks will be linked to some kind of sin or transgression committed within this town it could be directly linked, like pollution or environmental damage which has caused a problem with the ecosystem, aka the Godzilla Effect.
A lot of these films are a response to the ways that humankind was fucking up the environment. Right. You know, and they say they state it right in the movies that, oh, this is all the animals are flipping out. we're all using too much hairspray. Or it could be more of a thematic link. This place is under attack because of greed and capitalism, aka the King Kong effect. He is the mayor of this town. They make their money through tourism.
you know he is sort of having to balance this like well I've you know I've got pressure from the townspeople I'll have pressure from I don't know I don't really know how towns work the shareholders for argument's sake and at the same time he's like he's got being eaten all around him and i think there is that thing where he's like how far can i push it will the shark just go away either way we're usually pretty happy to see these characters punished by amoral yet deadly
creatures and iris who goes off looking for butterflies and ends up running a swampland death gauntlet she runs afoul of some spanish moss you know next thing you know she's falling and she has leeches all over her and then she sees a snake and she screams it just keeps going this woman really goes through it and it's it's again you're just happy to be alive
and watching it there's an element of fun to these movies it's not like we're watching a dark sadistic home invasion film where we want nothing more than for the characters to be okay this isn't quite the case with animal attack films we're very happy to
along for the ride and watch the carnage play out so it's a it's kind of like we deserve it they're like a response to manifest destiny or something where you know man is the top of the food chain etc And nature says, hold on, let's pump the brakes for a second, okay?
Eventually, the story will conclude with one or two or maybe three characters coming head to head with the creature or creatures. Usually, these characters are somewhat more likeable and know to respect and fear the creature rather than... underestimate it. I'll come and rip you to pieces. Animal Attack movies, generally speaking, rely on spectacle. We buy our ticket to see the monster. That's part of the fun.
showing us birds attacking children, showing us slugs crawling out of people's eye sockets, showing us the rabid St Bernard dog attacking a mother and child. The kind of practical effects and like the dog work in that film is... astonishing I think it stands out
100% today. For me, there's not a moment in that film where I'm like, oof, that looks a bit naff. It's really, really well done. But that's also part of what makes the Animal Attack movie pretty difficult to pull off. How do you portray a realistic deadly animal without using or harming real life animals the terrifying tale of man fighting for his life against an ecology gone berserk there's a rat attack and it alternates between like a man in an
actual car with a giant rat puppet head coming through the windshield. It alternates between that and then like a regular sized rat on a scale model car.
Oh my god, amazing. So it's just amazing. And then, unfortunately, the movie takes the man-is-gonna-fight-back turn. And there is a lot of, like, just... oh no like actual violence against actual rats like just slaughtering rats shooting them with paint guns shooting them with guns guns like it's just it's too much to watch like I just I can't do it
the biggest obstacle to overcome when making an animal attack film? Do you work with real animals but risk harming them? Do you use puppets, practical effects, computer graphics, visual effects, optical effects? What's going to look the most convincing in a horror film? Of course, the one great giant glaring exception to the show us the monster motif is Steven Spielberg's Jaws.
After being riddled with production issues and unable to pull off a convincing looking shark, young filmmaker Steven Spielberg used camera trickery and that iconic John Williams score to let us know. when the shark was around The feed of sharks for me.
is you don't know when you're in the water what's underneath you yeah don't know what it is and what jaws does so superbly is the shark pov shot the helplessness that first part of jaws when the the woman is being pulled along in the water is utterly terrifying it's one of those it's probably the quintessential example of like filmmakers having to be inventive because they are
up against these sort of trials and tribulations of what they kind of like maybe initially envisioned or like wanted to do yeah and so like you say it is so reliant on suggestion and obviously john williams score you know that That music builds and builds as she is.
screaming and going under the water, screaming for help. And the music is just like, it's this huge signpost to what we will later come on to learn is the shark. Jaws became not just one of the most successful horror films, of the biggest movies of all time and it then became the film to which all other animal attack movies would be compared
This opened the door to a new method of creating creature features. Maybe we don't need to show the deadly animal at all. Filmmakers like Joe Dante could now make low-budget creature features like Piranha, but use innovative camera techniques to suggest the violence and viciousness of the animal attacks who could have imagined they were there who could have predicted they would attack and now who would survive
The fish POV stuff is the thing that you get from this that then comes back again and again. And, you know, Giordante originates it and I think probably does it the best. Piranha was described as Jaws with Piranha.
fish and it wasn't the only one razorback was jaws with a wild boar alligator was jaws with you guessed it an alligator everything wanted to be jaws but with dot dot dot insert random animal here it's one of those films that quite often um kind of exploitation movies from around this era you're kind of just waiting for the kills you're waiting for the monster but actually i think this film is as fun when the monster's not on screen as when it is but throughout the
In the 1980s, these Jaws ripoffs and low-budget creature features began to decline in popularity, but it wasn't long before we would experience another new boom in Nature Bites Back horror films.
You think water's fast? You should see ice. The 1990s saw the dawn of CGI and a whole new world of possibilities when it came to spectacle. And we saw a new way big-budget disaster movies and creature features that mirrored the films of the 1970s, often featuring well-known film stars and character actors battling the elements or CGI sharks, crocodiles and giant squid monsters.
the advent of cgi and better technology we could realistically make better quote-unquote versions of these kinds of films but people realize okay we can still make money off of these like we did with jaws and be an appetite for it but if we want to do it well if we want to do it like jurassic park did then we need to throw some extra money so that we can get some better quality cgi and it wasn't just animal attacks natural disaster movies also became a huge phenomenon
in the 1990s, with filmmakers like Jan de Bont and Roland Emmerich turning natural weather phenomena like tornadoes, hurricanes and floods into, essentially, monster movies. Twister was pitched as a kaiju monster movie where the Twister itself was the kaiju, swooping down and eating people, destroying everything in its path. I mean, I think that's the thing with them is the spectacle of it all.
disaster movies are made for the theatrical experience and it's like there's something again about like going to see something and experience something that you typically wouldn't but is still real like somebody that isn't from the midwest that has not experienced
tornadoes might not necessarily know what being in one is like but you can watch the movie and kind of simulate that experience for you so i think uh disaster movies being so uh focused on the spectacle and these than life set pieces on a very big screen I think was a big draw for these movies.
And that's the thing about nature. If the world, the landscape, the weather is as deadly and scary as this, who needs creature features? Sometimes there doesn't even need to be like a killer on the loose or an animal or creature or, you know, spider. whatever out in nature. It's just the vastness and the awe-inspiring presence of nature. that seems to cast a spell? Yes! And is there a place more beautiful, more sublime and more deadly than Australia?
and what we seem are but a dream. With all this to fear and destruction and misery there's also the undeniable beauty at the same time there's this idea of the sublime it's awe inspiring but terrifying and like in an Australian context there's this whole history kind of pre-colonization and pre-invasion that goes back.
you know so many thousands upon thousands of years and that there was a time where there were peoples and cultures that were able to achieve this balance with nature and the land of respect and honor and like coexistence and that that history and that but it's still there. And so I think with a lot of these horror films, it's that reckoning with...
what kind of Western civilization, colonization is kind of wrought on the land and the critique that maybe we got it wrong or we have got it wrong. Picnic at Hanging Rock is to me, I watched that probably when I was about the same age as girls who are in the film. And I think that is the most disturbing example because you go out for the day and you never come back.
And so, much like in the 70s, the 90s brought back that fear of the natural world with a huge wave of natural disaster movies and creature features made on big budgets. In fact, movies of the 1990s like Deep Blue Sea volcano anaconda deep rising and lake placid proved to be part of what would become the final golden age of high budget r-rated creature features i couldn't see most of these movies when they came out because oddly
We were doing a lot of R-rated creature features in the 90s, which again, like watching some of these, I'm like, I am shocked that a studio gave us this much money because it's just not a surefire hit. I miss that we have, you know, being $60 to $80 million. budgets being thrown at these types of movies it's very like we're still in that era of excess you know we haven't had the stock market crash we haven't had 9-11
We haven't sort of, we're still in a very hopeful time, but we're also in a time of complete and utter excess. Yes. And this feels like we're at the very tail end of that that maybe started in the 80s. Arguably, the peak of this movement was 90s. when a film about a deadly encounter with a giant iceberg just happened to win 11 Oscars and become the biggest grossing film of all time.
in the 21st century the film industry changed with the dawn of the internet youtube cameras and filmmaking equipment becoming more accessible the dawn of dvd and eventually streaming everything would begin to shift and films would get smaller however often in times like this horror thrives and through the 2000s and 2010s the nature bites back sub-genre got smaller more contained but as a result much scarier.
Suddenly, we were seeing a wave of what became known as survival horror movies. Very small budget movies, often featuring one, maybe two characters that were still in a certain single location having to survive. Again, very much using the elements and the natural world as the main threat. Films like Open Water, in which two characters are stuck treading water in the middle of the ocean, being
Or, for my money, an even scarier and more successful version of this, The Reef in 2010. And I actually think... This is quite a big statement but I actually think if I had to kind of... Great shark films. It's high for me. It's high. It's high up there toward the jaw's end. I really do think it's a very, very well-crafted film. There was also The Ruins, Adam Green's Frozen, 47 meters down, buried, 127 hours, all.
incredibly tense, almost excruciating movie-watching experiences. But perhaps the best example of all and one of the nature bites back movies ever made was neil marshall's the descent a film that managed to be so many things in such a beautifully simple way a survival horror film about a bunch of girls battling against the elements that would also have become one of the best creature features ever made.
favorite horror movie it sits around that very number one spot you know you're going down spaces that humans don't like you're getting those tiny spaces your people are already the oppressive nature of caving itself is pressing down upon the entire audience
entire time and then you know neil marshall just hits out with some of the best jump scares i think you know what we'll talk about later but one of the best jump scares potentially in horror cinema is just sitting there in the middle of the descent which is kind of a pivotal turning point for a whole movie the
was such a great and nasty time for horror and as such we got so many great nature bites back horror movies at their best low-budget indie horror films can be creative and interesting and innovative but at their worst they can be unimaginative cynical and contrived and the flip side to these fascinating survival horror films was the wave of low-budget b-movies we got through the 2010s particularly films made by horace
video, The Asylum. Films like Sharknado, Three-Headed Shark Attack and Snakes on a Train relied almost entirely on gimmicks and punnerific titles. When the world is in a dark place, this kind of stuff can be a really nice escape and quite a nice release way to turn off and just... watched some fucking people chainsaw sharks in half okay horror audiences through the 2010s have embraced films like sharknado zombievers slother house cocaine bear because they're fun and in a decade
dominated by what became known as elevated horror films like the witch hereditary and babadook these films provided a nice antidote something silly fun schlocky and fluffy something you could watch with some friends on a friday night while under the influence of several substances. It is bad.
that's undoubtable i don't think i could with any good faith or credibility say that this is a good movie but i didn't hate it there's not a lot where you have to sit down like sit down with a notepad and try and take notes you know it's It's not, you're not deconstructing something that's difficult to digest. It is evil bastard monster versus
Inept people. And it's that for 95% of the films. And they're just easy to engage with and just switch your brain off and have the best time with. In many ways, the nature bites back subgenre ticks all of the boxes. If you want something fun, silly and fluffy, you can...
a great low-budget creature feature something with a provocative title where you get to see a big monster eat people up if you want to watch something bigger and more spectacular you can watch one of the disaster movies or monster movies from the 1990s you want to watch something heart-stoppingly tense and stressful, you could watch a survival movie from the 21st century. But what about something a little bit more profound, thought-provoking?
Melancholy is just gonna pass right in front of us and it's gonna be the most beautiful sight Right now, the world is a scary place for several reasons. Over the last year alone on the news, we've seen footage of tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, destroying their way through modern Western civilization. And some filmmakers like Werner Herzog and Lars von Trier have taken their usual nihilistic style to look at the natural world and examine just how cold and brutal and
So it's got that really desolate sort of ending, and I think that's why it hits so hard, because it's not just, oh, it's the end of the world. It's a very bold ending, but it's also incredibly troubling. Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man use imagery of nature to actually examine more internal psychological states. And while we watch the animals in their joys of being, in their grace and ferociousness, a thought becomes more...
that it is not so much a look at wild nature as it is an insight into ourselves, our nature. Ultimately, the nature bites back subgenre is all of the things that nature is. It's beautiful. It's... It's sublime. It's mysterious. It's terrifying. It's unforgiving. It's brutal. but it's also neutral.
it's like the dinosaurs right they came and they went and the world continued right and the world carried on his merry way exactly yeah if there's one through line between all these nature bites back movies in all of its strands and offshoots and variations It's that nature ultimately has to be admired, respected, and of course, feared. And there we go. That concludes our season on Nature Bites Back. What a fun ride this has been. I've loved every second of it.
And now I want to take a second or actually quite a few seconds to thank all of our incredible guests this season. It is...
quite the list. So a big thank you to Kevin Lyons, James Swanton, Graham Skipper, Axel Carolyn, Graham Saunders, Alexandra Helen Nicholas, Jamie Graham, Lindsay Hallam, Becky Dark, Susan Kalman, Stacey Ponder, Stevie Webb, Anna Bogutskaya, Alexandra West, Alex Ayling, Michael Blythe, Matt and James from Journey Through Sci-Fi, Rihanna Dillon, Alexandra Penelope, Rob Watts, Jenna Handorf, Steph McKenna, Trace Thurman, Joe Lipsitt, Joshua Tonks, Devon Taylor,
Louise Blaine, James Rendle, Ben Travis, Maha Al-Badraoui, Juliette Sugg, Lee Singer, Matt Draper, Brad Hansen, and adam z robinson what a list oh my god what an incredible group of people thank you all so much for your time. Love you all. I'll see you all next season, along with what I'm sure will be very exciting new guests, as I always love throwing in new people every season as well.
And there's one other major person I haven't yet thanked. Somebody who comes with me on this journey every year and delivers her incredible insights. towards different films we're covering throughout the season. And she's dropping in for a little wrap-up chat. So, for the final time this season, a big welcome to Freudian cinephile psychoanalyst all-round legend.
Mary Wilde. Hello, Mary. How are you? Hey, Mike. I'm okay. How are you? Yeah, I'm okay. I'm okay. We were just talking before we started recording. It's been a bit of a weird year so far, hasn't it? Like 2025, you know? It sure has. It sure has. It seems quite like surreal, particularly after David Lynch died.
That was really hard. You know what, Mary? I'm sort of as devastating as that news was. I was sort of grateful that I happened to be with you that night that it happened, right? Like, just coincidentally, me and you...
And our friend Juliet had arranged to go for dinner together, right? And I think it was literally about... six minutes before we met at the restaurant right the news broke literally and juliet is a huge fan as well and so the three of us just we just got to sit there together didn't we all night just kind of
talking about him and mourning him and celebrating him. Yeah, actually, the timing was quite therapeutic because it was actually really nice to be obviously, you know, in your company and Juliet's and knowing that we're all, you know, such devoted fans. It was actually quite, it's kind of nice, you know, but then at the same time, you know, I was really keeping it together and I was kind of still in denial that he'd passed away. And then the next day, like...
you know, that's when the water works, you know, like it was just, the floodgates opened and it was just uncontrollable sobbing the whole day. It was so sad. I know. That was it. It was like we were going through the stages of grief, right? Like that first night. Literally. was almost a bit like we hadn't quite processed it yet yeah period yeah it was hard but like you said it was nice to be in the company of people who truly love and admire him so It's just one of those things.
It is, and a great excuse to just go back and re-watch and really... you know, celebrate all of his work again this year. So I'm turning 2020 for five into the year of Lynch, basically. Amazing. Amazing. Brilliant. So, well, I can't believe this has been a long series for us, this Nature Bites Back series. I think you will. last here in our introduction episode last i think maybe april of 2024 so
It's been a long old journey, Mary. How have you found it? Obviously, as always, you picked kind of 10 or 11, I think, this series films to kind of talk about and explore. How have you found this Nature Bites Back season? I've really... enjoyed it. I felt like it was a good excuse to
get right down into those like primordial instincts. Release your inner beast. Yeah, literally. And actually just kind of almost connect to not just human problems and preoccupations, but like the whole animal kingdom, all of nature, like you can't help but feel genuinely connected to the environment beyond just like human dramas when you're really focusing on a season like this.
you realize, oh, I'm actually like a small piece of a much more complex ecosystem and puzzle i know and a lot of that is like feeding back and forth so it gave me a lot of perspective totally and it's always one of those weird things where i notice more like sort of parallels with the real world and i don't know whether this is just because i'm thinking about it more but also throughout this last year you know
when you think about what's been on the news, whether it's like hurricanes or the fires in California or whatever as well, like... I've just been constantly thinking about that, about the kind of the larger ecosystem, the world, and how small we are in comparison. Absolutely. Yeah, it was quite interesting in a way to see those parallels. And of course, every year we're hit with more and more environmental catastrophes. And obviously, as you said, the LA fires earlier last year with floodings,
around the world. And when that happens, you know, these movies are a really good reminder of human hubris and how, you know, sometimes humans we convince ourselves that we are dominant, that we are, you know, we are all powerful and we are so commanding and able to dictate the terms on the planet that we live in. And that is simply delusional. That is not true. We live in a fragile environment, an ecosystem that depends on responsible action.
And it's actually very precarious and nefarious to... presume dominance over such a powerful force as nature. And yes, when those fires occur, when the flooding occurs, thousands of lives are lost, homes are destroyed. You know, we ought to be listening to those signals and using them as wake up calls to be more mindful of nature and our place in it. So I actually feel like engaging deeply with horror cinema that focuses on the terrifying dimensions of nature is
It's actually really responsible viewing. Yeah, I think so. Yeah, it's like a public service, you know? It sure is. And again, you know, not to get too gloomy about everything, but I think, you know, given... the political situation right now as well. It seems like we're going backwards in terms of like how we're taking care of this planet as well, you know? And so I think all of that has kind of hit home even more this season for me, you know? Definitely. Yeah.
So how have you, like you, obviously you sort of picked your films before we got into it. Any particular highlights for you? Were there any particular favorites that you enjoyed kind of exploring this season? Yes.
yes definitely uh i think i had the most fun with the birds um oh yeah that was quite early on in the season um but i just i mean i'm a huge hitchcock fan anyway but that one in particular It has a very personal significance for me because it has so much to do with feminine subjectivity and feminine jouissance and aligning natural forces.
with the condition of femininity and I just find it's also poetically illustrated in the film so that has to be my kind of personal favorite that's the closest to my heart but having said that the one that maybe just kind of unnerved me the most, just in terms of pure horror cinema and its effects. Might have just been frozen. Oh, yeah.
Now, this was, I have to admit, sometimes I do this when you pitch, you know, when you share your list of films in the program with me ahead of time, and you say, choose 10 films. Normally, like nine times out of 10, I will go with... But occasionally I like to kind of push boundaries and get out of my comfort zone and blind select. Yeah, absolutely. Just to kind of keep the surprise factor going and see how I, you know, how I.
spontaneously react to something I hadn't seen and produce a segment. Frozen was one of those films for me. And it actually ended up being like quite... uh yeah like quite an effective horror film because it I love these types of films that they start off so innocuous like you think you're in for an easy ride and you think oh what is this this is just like silly you know I'm not gonna be like unnerved by this and then just totally out of nowhere it puts you in this really dark place
And you don't know your bearings because you've been sort of pushed in at the deep end. And this is what this film did for me. I found it so darkly nihilistic. and actually really brutally honest about the arbitrariness of nature and how sometimes it seems so random and senseless and uncaring toward human suffering.
Yeah. And so this for me was like a highlight of the season for sure. But I loved everything. I loved The Descent. You know, I loved Cujo. Cujo! Also, I loved that you picked The Children too, because that's quite a, that's not, that's a sort of lesser known movie.
to talk about The Children that week was Anna Bogatskaya, and she hated it. She just thought it was a terrible movie. So it was actually, it was really lovely to hear your perspective alongside that as well, you know, because again, it seems to be a lot of these movies...
i have found actually have been quite divisive as well which has been interesting yeah for sure the children is an anti-natalist anthem exactly exactly oh god i love it and i think you know like you were saying about frozen the The thing that I've really found is... Initially I kind of designed this season to be...
a kind of fun bomb after the year of home invasion films, when actually I think I found a lot of these even scarier and more stressful than home invasion films. You know what I mean? Like those, particularly those ones you were talking about, those kind of survivalist horror films of like, two people stuck in a you know ski lift or one person stuck in a cave or whatever like those movies i find incredibly stressful and terrifying you know for sure because it is the it's the irony of
having that claustrophobic effect of not being able to escape while you're in the outdoors. It's that paradox. because you think, oh, I'm out on a mountain. I'm in this huge, you know, natural landscape, albeit, yes, a cave, but it is you know, out in the world. I'm not in my home. And yet it produces that same confinement anxiety. it hits double when it's outside it does it does and then of course a kind of
Slight latecomer to the series, like a movie that I added in later on down the line that had to get you back for an 11th bonus segment before was, of course, Lars von Trier's Melancholia, right? Because I think a listener suggested that it kind of fits this brief, and I was like... oh my god, that's amazing, that's genius. And so I had to add it in. And again, like, that movie...
brings something that no other movie on this season brought. It stands out so spectacularly. It really does. It's sublime. It really transcends.
almost every genre that you could maybe classify it. And it is so unique. And, you know, simply like, very fleetingly evoking certain tropes but just doing something spectacular totally original um and and yeah cosmic How did you find, because I mean, that was only the second time I had gone back and watched it, you know, and I know you're a fan of his work, of Lars's work.
How do you find the experience of going back and re-watching these, particularly these really tough movies? Yeah, I mean, I have seen Melancholia, you know, many times. I think actually watching it in the context of like, putting my kind of nature bites back hat on in the context of creating a segment for this podcast. It really made me see the continuation.
I guess the recurring theme for Lars von Trier of his fixation on nature. Yeah. He really does have like a strong... feeling of dread like we know that he is an agoraphobic
He has a fear of traveling. You know, he prefers to be just like, always in the same place usually on the zentropa production company compound you know in denmark it's his safe space yeah yeah absolutely it's a safe space you know and he's like a homebody and streak of being adventurous out there in the world that provokes anxiety for him so it is extraordinary to see the lengths he goes to in his movies using his movies as vehicles almost for like
you know, in vivo therapy or exposure, you know, this kind of almost like a virtual reality type of exposure therapy of dealing with his issues that he has with nature. He once said, that he finds it quite extraordinary that people hang... pictures and paintings of forests and nature in their home, like above their mantelpiece, above the fireplace, where actually they're depicting a scene of terror.
You know, and it doesn't seem to occur to them. They're just sort of like, you know, it's just out there. And there is that line, of course, in Antichrist where he says, what character says uh nature is satan's church oh yeah right so for me i just see i it really became starkly clear especially with melancholia watching it this time around of you know for your pod that Constantly processing.
fear he has of nature it's so true it's so true that the vast kind of terror that you feel about nature in that movie is perfect isn't it and i love that we go for you know we've got we've got on one extreme we've got melancholia and then on the other extreme what i loved was being able to hear you talk
about movies like Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, right, as well. Like, incredible. And, you know, I'm always pushing back against... criticisms that you know movies like that have no place in a conversation like this you know because i think they really do and so i loved that you chose that as one of your as one of your movies along with arachnophobia too these kind of
quite family-friendly, I guess, animal attack films, you know? Yes. I mean, you know, I totally understand why I included these. With Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, I watched that when I was a little girl and it terrified me. You know, like, it was never billed as a horror, but... the idea of, you know, being shrunk down to insect size and your front yard that you've always taken for granted, it takes you like 1.2 seconds to cross, suddenly is this
you know, days long natural expedition of, you know, and you're having to deal with all these obstacles and you don't know whether you'll survive. I mean, that that is very fear-provoking for children you know absolutely absolutely yeah exactly and and again this is what i love about doing this because Having watched movies like disaster movies from the 70s or sort of kaiju monster movies from the 1940s like Godzilla...
Then I saw all of that and honey, I shrunk the kids, you know, I was like, oh, you know, they turn a lawnmower into like an earthquake style natural disaster set piece. You know, they turn like the giant monsters into like almost kaiju and everything. So it's really fun to watch. with these movies side by side and see that connective thread as well you know definitely yeah for sure i love that you included it It's huge nostalgia vibes from me. And it was just...
It's really fun to revisit. Oh, well, incredible. Well, Mary, thank you. As always, it's been such a pleasure. And of course, you know, we would love to have you back next season. And I've just literally, you know, last night as we were recording this,
I shared with you the list. I haven't shared it yet with listeners, the full list, but without spoiling too much, are you looking forward to diving into next season? Oh, I so am. I'm so excited. When I saw this list, I just it was like I mean it's an embarrassment of riches in terms of you know what this election brings there's so much going on it's such an interesting diverse
list as well. And the idea of, you know, I guess without spoiling anything, it's very much the idea of humanity engaging with science. to me this is kind of like um it's a breeding ground for a lot of horrific things that can happen well totally i mean like it's interesting you know
In some ways, I was thinking about, again, not to get too gloomy, but the two biggest existential threats to us are probably nature, the planet, and also AI, right? And tech, you know? Like, these are the two things that pose the biggest threat to us as humans, right? now you know so kind of feels apt as well absolutely yeah it's very yeah it's very
compelling and impactful to also position these seasons side by side. Because it's like, nature is you know our dna it's our it's you know it's our source material it's the building block of organisms and you know the natural world and animals and where we fit into that kingdom And then the science and particularly tech and AI, especially like now we're kind of, you know, rushing towards like singularity, I guess. All of these kind of scientific. preoccupations.
They're very different qualitatively, you know? Yeah. But there is... My belief is that whatever we invent scientifically bears our... spiritual or psychic DNA. So it's really just an attempt at elongating the human condition and the human experience. with these technologies and devices, with these like modern paraphernalia. And so what we're really doing is we're kind of like reflecting back and imagining ourselves, projecting ourselves.
out there in the world. And this extension is manifested in technology. And of course, humanity is complex. There's good and bad. And when that tech becomes the black mirror that reflects us back to ourselves. it's really scary it's really really scary so i am so excited i can't wait to like get my yeah just get stuck into this season yes oh it's gonna be so much fun mary well i can't wait i can't wait and thank you so much again like as always you're
Your insights have been such a highlight for me throughout this whole season. So I'm very excited to jump straight back into it next season. Absolutely. Yeah, my pleasure. It's always wonderful to be here. Love it. Well, Mary, thank you. So we'll be back hopefully probably later this year.
for the next season until then just let people know where they can find you if you've got anything going on that you want to mention at the moment yes well um as i was saying to you before we recorded um david lynch's uh death the news of his death prompted me and the Freud Museum to create
a new event that will be happening in June. So for your Lynchian fans out there, I will be focusing on Lynchian Women. It's an online course. It's open to international registrants. So you can come and like celebrate. his solid gold babes. His women in trouble. His women in trouble. Absolutely. Yes, exactly. That'll be happening with the Freud Museum. We haven't announced the details yet, but if you follow me on... social media. I'm at Psych Star on Blue Sky.
Instagram. I still have my X account, although I'm not really that active there anymore. You can find details of that. And I still have my Patreon content that you can access on Patreon.com slash Mary Wild. amazing Mary it's been an absolute pleasure thank you so much for joining me thank you so much Mike and before we hurtle into the second half of this week's episode i'm just going to take a moment to thank this week's sponsor the last sponsor of the season
Carl Richter. Carl just sent me a really sweet little, very short message. He said, Hi Mike, I don't have anything to promote, but I'd like to take the opportunity to wish everyone listening health and happiness. Be kind, take care of yourselves, and may all the horror in your life be on the screen. Oh, Carl, thank you. What a really lovely final sponsor message to read out. I'm really grateful for you. Thank you so much for supporting the podcast.
and for sending me that really short but really sweet message. And I think probably everyone could do with hearing that right now. One more time, a huge thank you to this week's sponsor. That's $20 Patreon subscriber, Carl Richter. And don't forget, if you want to become an official Evolution of Horror sponsor, You simply need to sign up to our Patreon at the $20 level, the highest level, and you can send me your own message that I can read out in the next season. Patreon.com slash.
evolution of horror. Don't forget, there's another weekly podcast in the EOH network, The Detective... and The Log Lady, a Twin Peaks rewatch podcast. If you have never watched Twin Peaks, why not dive in? Give yourself a treat. This is the perfect time, especially with so much reflection on the life and the career of the incredible David. lynch this feels like a perfect time to explore his work and dive in and oh my god we're having so much fun over on the detective and the log lady re-watching
and discussing every single episode. So in that podcast, I am joined by my co-host Stacey Ponder. who has never seen Twin Peaks, so is watching it for the very first time. So she's coming at it from the perspective of a newbie who has no idea where it's headed. I'm coming at it, obviously, from the perspective of somebody who has seen Twin Peaks several times and knows pretty much everything.
about it. And we are currently just at the beginning at the first couple of episodes of Twin Peaks The Return. So we've covered all of seasons one and two and Firewalk with me and a couple of the other.
kind of supporting Twin Peaks materials. And we're now on the home stretch. We've got 18 episodes of The Return to cover and discuss before we're done. So why not dive in? Come join us in the strange, weird, nightmarish... world of twin peaks find the detective and the log lady wherever you get your podcasts There we go. What was that? I don't know. There are no rumors about this.
snow room as we talked about this it's supposed to be haunted all right dude lock me in that was a little clip you heard there from hell house llc a found footage movie i still never seen. Can you believe it? I've never watched any of the Hell House LLC movies. People tell me they're really fucking scary. So I'm very excited actually because I'm going to be watching it for the very first time.
very soon for patreon over on patreon patreon.com slash evolution of horror we are in the midst of a found footage season for ten dollar patrons we've already covered man bites dog and we're going to be working our way through a bunch of other found footage
movies over the next few months including the aforementioned hell house llc also a bunch of really interesting asian stuff noroi the curse incantation the medium stuff like that some really fun kind of recent kind of screen life horror films like dash cam and host as well so there's loads of fascinating stuff to cover and discuss so if you want to join us especially while we are off the air from next week onwards on the main feed
come on over and listen to some found footage discussions. Patreon.com slash Evolution of Horror. That's available for $10 donors. But you could go lower than that. You can go to $5 per month and you will still get access to a whole ton of bonus episodes. Live panel discussions from screenings and our monthly Fresh Bloodstrand in which me, Brad Hanson, Steph McKenna and Becky Dark discuss new releases in horror. We talk about books, TV shows, video games, movies, everything. So all of that.
is available for $5 donors as well. And everybody who signs up, no matter what tier, will also get a little shout out on the main feed as a thank you. So speaking of, I'm going to give everyone who signed up in the month of February this year A little shout out, so a big thank you. To Alex Blackwelder, British Wrong Style, Jake Seymour, Lisa Price, Jessica, Matty, Claire, Jantamo, Abby, Jillian, Ray, Darlene, Sian, Trey Dean, Christopher Thomas, Jackie Kane, Jane Cartwright, Sydney...
Eric Wye, Catherine Horan, Liam Pickles, Christine Panda Peepers, Shobi Martin, Ulf the Wolf, Bradfield Nameknotz, Daryl Palmer, Jess Graves, Igor, Laura Marie Stalabras, and Jessica Godby. A huge thank you to all of those people for signing... up to our patreon and one more time if you want to join them if you want to continue listening to eoh content for the next few months while we're off air then sign up now patreon.com slash evolution of horror
Alright, we are going to finish off this episode and this season as always by dipping into the mailbag and also counting down listeners' top 10. nature bites back movies a massive thank you to all of you we had more feedback than ever this season loads of really lovely messages and emails unfortunately i'm not going to be able to read all of them but i'll just pick a handful here read a few comments and respond to a few questions
So this comes from Angela in LA. Angela says, hello, Mike. Thank you for another brilliant season. This has probably been my favorite season of EOH so far. I always endeavor to watch every film covered to keep up with the podcast. and i've got to admit i found the home invasion season a struggle for this reason but this season has been so fun and varied a genuine highlight of my week has been sitting down to watch the next silly pair of creature features
on natural disaster movies. This last year has felt like a real-life horror film for so many of us. So I found these films excellent escapism. And I think that's what really sums up this subgenre for me. Fun popcorn escapism. Except, of course, for melancholia, which I opted to skip, especially given what was going on in early January here in LA when that particular podcast episode aired.
Anyway, thanks for another amazing year of content. I already can't wait for next season, and I finally subscribe to the Patreon so I can keep up with new weekly episodes. Oh, thank you so much, Angela. I hope you're doing okay. I know it's been a really scary time for everyone in LA over these last couple of months. And I think absolutely fair enough.
to skip melancholia that week. I think that's totally fair. This email comes from Craig, Craig in Cambon, who said, Hi Mike, this season has probably had the most... quality variants of any season so far with some of the best and most iconic movies of all time like Jaws followed by some of the worst movies ever covered on the main pod, like the Jaws sequels. However, even the most terrible films covered have been so fun to watch, and the entire season has been entertaining.
There have been a good amount of films I hadn't seen before compared to other subgenres, which has made it a delight to follow along with. This from Louise in New Zealand. Louise says, Hi Mike, I've loved this season and it's made me laugh every week.
hearing how terrified all of your guests are when it comes to nature and the outdoors. Particular highlights were the Jaws episode with Becky, the Raw episode with Rihanna, and of course the Jaws sequel episode with Susan Kalman, which I've listened to several times already. Let me just say, there have been more comments than ever, I think, about that particular episode, the Jaws sequel episode with Susan Kalman. I'm so glad that you guys...
And I agree with you. I mean, it was one of the funniest conversations I had. Susan Kalman. I mean, it's almost as if she's a professional comedian, right? She is absolutely amazing. Hopefully Susan will be back next. This email comes from Stephen Ripley. Stephen says, Hello Mike, thank you for a wonderful EOH season. Each episode I enjoy hearing you and your co-hosts tell personal stories.
and feelings about nature. The overall theme seems to be, nature is great but we disrespect it at our peril. I have two close encounter animal incidents I'd like to share. Years ago I took a trip to Hawaii. I was swimming in a gorgeous lagoon early one morning when I sensed a presence beside me. I thought it was a person, but it was a huge old sea turtle swimming calmly right next to me. A really lovely moment.
Another story, less lovely, more scary. The family took a trip to Mount Rainer, a local mountain range with large forest areas. We stayed in a lodge. One foggy morning, I got up early to take a walk in paths up the hill from the lodge. Again, I sensed a presence. I turned around. About 200 feet behind me was a large black bear. I walk back towards the lodge, never have the hairs on my back.
I was fortunate it ignored me. Oh, holy shit, Stephen. That is absolutely terrifying. I mean, a lovely story and a terrifying story. And again... What a perfect way to sum up the beauty and horrors of nature, right? Thank you for that lovely message. This comes from Fabiola. She says, not my favorite subgenre of horror. but I was drawn in by the banger Barracuda soundtracked montage.
and surprisingly became invested further week by week. Mike, you served up something altogether different and prompted much... thought-provoking discussions this season. I am a mahoosive fan of the pod, which I discovered during the first lockdown and have been faithfully following ever since.
The pod revived my love of horror, which somewhat took a backseat over the years as I became a mum to my two wonderful children and was immersed in the domestic responsibilities that naturally entailed. Thank you for helping me find my way back. to my horror passion oh thank you for that lovely message This from Vincent Gain in Lancaster. Mike, you force of nature.
You have done it again with all the force and power and Godzilla and King Kong dancing a Kaylee. This season, you and your guests have highlighted the fun, the ferocity and the fear of seeing nature biting back in its various forms. Whether it be red in tooth and claw, green in stem and shoot, or literally elemental, I've discovered new delights like The Bay and The Ruins, as well as gaining new appreciations for classics like Jaws and The Day After Tomorrow. Thank you as always.
Thank you. So many lovely messages. Now, obviously, I do also like to dip into a few negative messages and some criticisms as well. You know, I always embrace some criticisms. Actually, I've got to say, we got way less this season than previous seasons. There was a lot of...
There was a lot of criticism at the end of my home invasion season last year, but there have been way, way less this year. Overall, it seems to be quite positive feedback on our Nature Bites back season. However, a couple of criticisms. This one comes from Mark in Winchester. Lots of unnecessary movies this season which were loosely nature but boring or insignificant, like Link, The Uncanny and Cat's Eye.
Liked that you stretched the criteria to include Wake in Fright, but there were way more 50s titles you could have covered. Very disappointed there was no slugs. Sorry, Mark. What are you going to do? You know, there are so many movies to cover. And, you know, I disagree about Link and the Uncanny and Cat's Eye. I thought that they were all really fun.
movies to discuss. And I think, you know, there are lots of reasons that I choose to program certain films. Some of them are my guests want to discuss them. Some of them are simply because I want to include something a bit different that doesn't necessarily fit. completely with the theme of the others. And some are just because For my own delight, to be honest, as well. So yeah, you can't please everyone. Speaking of, this comes from Karen in Manchester.
hello mike i was so excited to hear in-depth reviews of all the classic fun 70s animal attack movies and was very disappointed you chose to only briefly mention most of them in one single episode. Surely Orca, The Swarm and Day of the Animals all deserved their own deep dive discussions.
I also don't get the decision to include kids' movies like Jumanji when there are lots of genuine horror movies that fit the criteria that you completely glossed over. However, I did love your Jaws episode and I'm excited for the next season. Thank you, Karen. All fair feedback. And, you know, people always have a problem with me covering a couple of...
family-friendly horror films. That's absolutely fine. That is a completely valid opinion. And I will just repeat what I said to Stacey Ponder on the week that we covered all of those 70s Animal Attack movies. They're all great, but... there would have been the same conversations. You know, even Stacey said that. She said, I'm going to end up saying the same things about all of these films.
great fun great casts stupid storylines with a few amazing set pieces i mean they were all kind of that and they're all great fun but i would have run out of things to talk about and i think you would have all got bored of hearing it so you know sometimes You've got to lump a few things together in one single discussion. This comes from Charlie in Belfast, who says, Hello, Mike. Thank you for a brilliant season. At the end of each season, I always have the same worry.
How close are we to completing? all of the subgenres. And have you thought about how the podcast will continue when you've run out of subgenres to cover? As someone who depends on this podcast to make me happy every week, I dread the thought of it finishing. Thank you, Charlie. You don't need to worry. There's a lot still left to cover, to be honest, on this podcast.
And if people, you know, if eventually we do get to the point where we've covered all of the main podcasts and if people aren't bored of me by then and it still feels like there is life left in this podcast, then we will absolutely find. new ways to continue it. In fact, I've already got plenty of ideas in my head of what we could do once we've covered the main subgenres.
So don't worry about that. We're not going anywhere anytime soon. This from Kadja. I think it's Kadja in North Heart. I utterly loved this series and it introduced me to EOH. I'm an academic who researches... eco-gothic and eco-horror So this was a real pleasure and added a lot of depth to my film knowledge. My listening highlight was getting lost in the countryside whilst on a run listening to episode 23. I'm a huge fan of shark horror.
So those episodes were a delight. And the Jaws episode was superlative. Analysis that is longer than the actual film? Yes, please. Now to the big question. Are werewolf films... nature biting back oh that i mean that is the big question kadja isn't it um
Well, no, you know, according to me, no, because I have not included werewolf films this season. Werewolf films are going to be covered and people are always asking me about when I'm going to cover werewolves. Obviously, they will be covered at some point in the future, just not. This from Tim. Hey Mike, I'm a zoologist specialising in crocodiles, snakes and frogs, currently based in Australia, who has been glued to the podcast from day one.
I've spent entire field seasons re-listening to different EOH seasons. So a massive thanks for making such an incredible, engaging podcast that has kept me company on some long and occasionally spooky nights. I am naturally a creature feature omnifan and will pretty much consume any film content as long as the CGI or practical effects have a vague resemblance to a shark, crocodile, snake, etc. I've absolutely loved this season and I'm super excited for the next.
Keep up the amazing work and love to your own critters, the adorable bunnies. Oh, thanks, Tim. Love hearing particularly from people in Australia, actually. I've got a couple of other bits of feedback here from Australians. Alad. When this season was announced, I was a little uninterested. The topic just didn't excite me. But...
When the watch list came out and I saw all the classic movies included, Jaws, Godzilla, etc., I rethought my opinion and was ready to watch along. There were a lot of new watches in this series and great ones that I had overlooked. As an Australian, I really appreciate the Australian representation we got this season. i had not seen some and not even heard of others i think wake in fright will be a frequent rewatch
Amazing. Love that, Alad. I love the fact that I can introduce Australians to wake in fright as well. What an absolute banger. This from Alice, also in Australia. As an Australian, I love how during this series you made us sound like real tough guys just for living and surviving here each day. On Boxing Day, a three-meter great white shark was spotted 100 meters offshore at my local beach.
I wasn't there that day, but was on Christmas Day when the only sea life I saw were a big crab and a baby crab. The following week, I was swimming at that beach, looked over, and saw a couple of dolphins swimming about 20 meters away. which made me gasp with delight. Oh my god. I mean...
Absolutely not. A three meter great white shark. No. thank you but congratulations on your bravery this from sarah in new york hi mike i'm a long time listener and thank you for another brilliant season maybe for me the most consistently fun season you've ever had As much as I love this subgenre, this may have been my easiest top 10 I've ever assembled, because there are a few genuine masterpieces, some personal favourites, and then...
Just a lot of absolute garbage. So this was a quick and easy list to put together. Thanks for the great work, and I can't wait for the next season. Well, there you go. Well, thank you, Sarah. That's maybe a nice segue to hurtle into the listeners' top 10. nature bites back movies. And I think that is probably the case, right? Like, you know, I'm guessing, I mean, you know, we're going to build some tension. We're going to count down from number 10 to one.
But I imagine most of you have a fair idea of what is going to be number one. Right. And I think for a lot of people, they commented saying, yeah, this was. this was a pretty easy at least a very easy sort of top five there are there are five also very clear winners, I would say, in this subgenre. And then I think it comes down to what certain people sort of grew up watching, I would say, in their childhood.
Let's get into it. I am going to count down the listeners' top 10 Nature Bites Back movies. A big thank you to all of you for sending in your top 10s. We had hundreds of lists. We have collated them. As always, we have scored them where the number 10 choice got one point, the number one choice got 10 points, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. So we've mounted up the scores and it's a very interesting top 10. So let's hurtle into it. Your number 10.
is Deep Blue Sea. anymore we're going to pull together and we're going to find a way together I love how much love there is for Deep Blue Sea. And if I'm honest, I would not have expected this movie to pop up in the top 10 of the whole season. So... I'm really glad to see it there. I wonder if part of it comes down to...
A lot of the listeners of this podcast grew up in the 90s, I wonder. Because I just, I feel like there may be some nostalgia linked to this movie. As great fun as it is, obviously. I'll read a few comments about the film. Matthew in Canada said, so much fun. An iconic death sequence for sure, but my favourite moment is when they miss the shark and hit the actor. The movie knows exactly what it is.
Kimberly says, The science makes no sense, but this is one of my favourite ever horror comedies. Samuel L. Jackson's death and everything associated with LL Cool J makes me love this film. Nick in Edinburgh says, shark movies are a dime a dozen, but it's always difficult not to want to compare them to Jaws. But Deep Blue Sea stands alone as a creature feature classic. It's so 90s.
and there's something about the experience of watching it that makes me grin from ear to ear. Sarah in Utah says, do I need to put any reason besides Samuel L. Jackson's death? Okay, fine. The shark throwing Stellan Skarsgård's body at the window will never not make me giggle. It's still one of the most bonkers shark-related deaths ever put to screen. So true, Sarah. And this from Cody in Phoenix, Arizona.
The more I revisit the film, the smarter it feels. Probably my favourite of the 90s era Animal Attack films. you feel really bad for the sharks in the end they are given hyper intelligence and only seek one thing it's what an 800 pound mako shark thinks about freedom
This is a sad prison film that underscores fantastic action sequences and an ensemble of truly awesome characters. I love that. Yeah, a bit of sympathy for these poor, hyper-intelligent sharks. And that's the thing, right? The film is so much fun. I talked about this in my conclusion section. I've talked about it a lot throughout the series.
Deep Blue Sea is one of those classic examples of, for the most part, you don't really care about the characters, right? And we are all looking forward to some of the big, iconic death sequences, like... Of course, Samuel L. Jackson's death, which is one of the most iconic moments in this sub-genre. So there you go, that's number 10, that's Deep Blue Sea. At number 9, delighted to see this in the top 10, it's Wake in Fright.
New to the Yabba? Yes. Staying long? No, just tonight. Oh, that's hard luck. I want to see a bit more of the Yabba than that. Now, I love this. This movie was actually on fewer lists than Deep Blue Sea, for example, but it placed so high on so many lists.
that it's ended up in your top 10 because so many people don't just like this film they love this film and i could not agree more obviously i've talked about this movie a lot on the podcast i think it's basically perfect i think it is one of the most kind of sweaty, scary, intense.
quite grueling, but kind of beautifully grueling cinematic experiences I've ever had. It's kind of the ultimate Australian horror film, I would say. But let's hear what you guys have got to say. This is from Ash in Germany. One of the most jarring and poignant examples for what being stuck with alcohol-infused men will do to you. An absolute nightmare of horrible people being horrible to each other and themselves.
Matt from Wales says, My favourite thing about your podcast is when you introduce me to absolute classics that had never been on my radar and oh my god. since watching wake and fright i've basically made it my whole personality i bought the poster the soundtrack and i've bored all of my friends to death at the pub with how perfect i think it is This movie is visceral filmmaking at its finest, an absolute highlight of this season. Vanessa from Bathgate simply says,
masterpiece. Sarah in Toronto, Canada says, I've got to say, I was a little jarred and somewhat angry watching this film for the first time due to the sheer amount of animal cruelty in one particular sequence. But I've got to admit, that the film stuck with me and lingered in my brain. I've gone back and revisited it a couple more times, but I've skipped over that scene. And I do think it's a genuine masterpiece. Not an easy watch by any means. but genuinely brilliant filmmaking.
And this from Sam in Birmingham, Wake in Fright offers a depraved and disturbing descent into the darker aspects of masculinity, presenting a stark portrayal of a town where traditional notions of manhood manifest in anger, violence and emotional suppression. Despite being over 50 years old, the film's depiction of male behaviour remains eerily relevant, reflecting enduring societal attitudes.
I'd have hated the town of the Yabba as it magnifies the worst traits of masculinity that I sometimes see from the alpha pricks at my local pub. The film effectively delves into the theme of suppressed emotions highlighting how men in the town struggle to express vulnerability amidst a culture of stoicism and aggression. The Yabba is a strange fantasy land where men can be men, but this just means anger, violence, sexual tension and pain.
made when in a time where men talking about their feelings would have got your head kicked in, the men in this town boil and steam under the influences of drink. until they erupt, having suppressed and pushed back anything that might make them feel less than. Wake in Fright is sweaty, uncomfortable, weird, and really, really great. Oh, beautifully put, Sam. What a brilliant little review that was. I couldn't agree more with everything you said there. And I think that's true. I think those...
It's those portrayals of kind of alpha masculinity that really scares me about this film and makes me feel deeply uncomfortable. It's like the worst parts of getting dragged along on a stag weekend, isn't it? you know, times 20 in this film. It's a grueling watch, but a brilliant film. So there you go. That's your number nine. That's Wake in Fright. At number eight, we've got another 70s Aussie horror film. At number eight, it's Picnic at Hanging Rock. And what we seem are but a dream.
In some ways, the antithesis to Wake in Fright, right? And we paired these films together in the same episode, and I felt they made such a good pairing. One look at kind of... you know, angry, violent masculinity, and the other at this kind of stifling femininity, I suppose, right? So here's what you guys have got to say about Picnic at Hanging Rock.
Meg in New York says the flock of birds that takes flight when Miranda opens the gate, a lizard crawling over a pale white foot, salacious lava forced up from deep down below, waiting a million years. just for them. George in London says, I can't explain why but this is one of the scariest movies covered all season for me. It's so haunting and uncanny and fills me with dread. Mike in Leicester said the flip side to the grisly, violent side of nature biting back.
that we might see in films like Eaten Alive or Jaws. There are no teeth in this film. It instead presents us with the sublime, the awe-inspiring unknowability of nature. and it's somehow way scarier than anything with teeth. A genuine masterpiece. Kimberly in Newport says, the earth itself puts people in our place. An Australian classic and a thriller which does not answer all the questions.
Love it. Vincent in Lancaster says a gorgeous, suffusive, eerie post-colonial folk horror mystery of repression. desire and the inexplicable and nick in calgary canada says the beautiful dissonance absolutely terrified me i think this movie made me feel troubled and not a lot of fiction does that plus it's just
Oh, yeah. I mean, I agree with everything you guys have said there. There is a kind of unknowability, an uncanny vibe to this film. And it is, for some reason, genuinely scary. And you can't quite put your finger on why, considering it's so... luscious and beautiful you know so yeah i love that you guys included that in your top 10 excellent taste as ever your number eight picnic at hanging rock
At number seven, a little bit more of a classic creature feature now. Again, I was very pleasantly surprised this ranked as highly on the list as it does. At number seven, it's Arachnophobia. Love this, because it's a family-friendly creature feature, right? You know, this isn't an R-rated violent movie, and yet... It scared so many of us, didn't it? I think, again, many people will share the same experience as me, which is
watching this film when you're young, being absolutely terrified by it and basically never forgetting it your whole life. And I do think, you know, as much as I love Infested... I think this stands as the greatest spider horror film as well. And I still find it weird that we haven't had that many spider attack horror films, at least that many successful ones. But maybe it's because arachnophobia kind of did it.
And it's like, well, what can you do beyond that? You know, it kind of perfected it. So this comment comes from an excellent name, by the way, J.R. Snyder in Erie, Pennsylvania. Love that. He says, I remember when this was released in the U.S. They called it a Thrillomedy. Definitely a childhood favourite that holds up nicely. I don't think another scary spider feature has topped it. This from Catherine in Germany. This subgenre has made me think of my childhood more than any other.
I saw so many creature features and animal attack films growing up. It was my gateway to the genre. But ever since I was a kid, no film affected me quite like Arachnophobia. No other spider movie has tapped into the sheer terror that you feel. when a huge spider drops onto your hand from inside a lampshade or crawls up your leg when you're not expecting it. It's still as scary today as it was in 1990. And this from Cody in Phoenix.
I revisited this film last year and man does it hold up beautifully. The spider work is wonderful and the almost pandemic-like elements of the film are given new life. It's a great blend of comedy and horror that we just don't see much anymore. Love that. Couldn't agree more. Thank you for those lovely comments. That's your number seven spider attack classic, Arachnophobia.
Up to number six, and again, I'm kind of surprised at how high this movie is, but there is so much love for it. A film that came out in the same year as Arachnophobia, and it was covered alongside Arachnophobia on the pod. It's tremors! Run, Val! Run!
So much love for Tremors. Again, it's one of those movies that just featured on so many people's lists. I think so many people... kind of hold it so dearly uh and uh you know really have a special place in their heart for it so this from peter in lincoln proper b-movie storytelling but with a massive heart and giant ass worms paul in london said
As I think Steph mentioned in your discussion of the film, who doesn't love Tremors? It's a film that has way more heart than you'd expect and is way better than it might have any right to be. It also really holds up on repeat viewings. One of my absolute comfort watches. Tim in Melbourne says the real horror is seeing the release date and the blushing youth of ingenue Kevin Bacon forcing you to face the passage of time. Also, graboids. This from Matt in Dursley. It could have been trash.
Should have been trash, but it's one of the tightest scripted horrors ever. Such great fun. And this from Hazel in Chesterfield. This is a rare gem of a comedy horror with real heart. What begins is teased as a slasher movie until the reveal and then it's a full-on monster thrill ride. Yeah, I love that. I love how much love there is for Tremors. And I think and I agree. And somebody mentioned this in their comment as to quote Steph McKenna.
Who doesn't love Tremors, right? Like, I think anybody that watches it is like, yeah, that film was fucking great. It's so much fun. There's nothing not to enjoy. Great performances, fun characters, really great set pieces. the worms the graboids still look amazing as well and it's just tight easy breezy movie to watch love it um one day maybe on patreon we'll do the we'll do the sequels as a mini season as well so because i'm intrigued i've never seen any of the sequels
And I'm kind of intrigued. So there you go. That's your number six. That's Tremors. Now we're into the big boys now for the top five. We're into the classics. Your number five is the oldest film on this list, the very first film covered this season. And number five, it's King Kong from 1933. He was a king and a god in the world he knew. But now he comes to civilization. Merely a captive. A show to gratify your curiosity. Ladies and gentlemen, look at calm. the eighth wonder of the world.
Feels like a long time ago that I covered King Kong, way back at the beginning of this season with James Swanton, but my god, what a perfect movie, right? It is an absolute marvel. to behold even watching it now nearly a hundred years later you cannot get your head around how they pulled off certain set pieces and effects it is Truly one of the greatest magic tricks ever created that film. And it's got so much heart too.
A perfect movie, I would say. So let's read some of your comments. Tim in New Jersey says, Beauty killed the beast. So quotable, but the theme showing nature biting back for love is absolutely the best. This movie and The Wizard of Oz were the first two movies that scared the shit out of me in my early journey to horror. Took me a while to forget King Kong eating the natives,
and the scene with the dinosaur and the sailor in the tree is sheer terror, especially his high-pitched scream. Astra from Texas says the movie that got the ball rolling on Giant Creature Fleet. Steph in Brighton says, how does a stop motion killer ape always make me cry? Such is the power of this absolute masterpiece. Nick in Edinburgh said, The perfect entry point to Nature Bites Back, a genuine masterpiece of cinema that still looks as breathtaking today as it ever did.
and it sums up the theme of nature biting back in a single movie. The beauty, the majesty and power and might of nature, all summed up in this one unbeatable story. Peter in Melbourne says, Atmospheric and correctly judgmental about human nature and the lure of showbiz, King Kong himself is too sympathetic for me to regard him as an intended threat though and vincent in lancaster says a glorious
tragic and enduring adventure of jungles old and new, the hubris of colonialism and extraordinary expressive effect. Maybe something to show my four-year-old nephew who loves gorillas. there you go uh couldn't agree more with all of your sentiments there that's your number five that's king kong and now up to number four Oh man, King Kong's nemesis beat him by one place because your number four is Godzilla from 1954.
What a movie, right? Again, a movie that will really take you by surprise, I think, the first time you watch it, at just how beautiful and how tragic and sad and poignant and haunting the film is for a big giant monster film, you know? And I find it really interesting actually how a lot of these kind of pairs of movies have featured next to each other in your top 10. You know, you had Arachnophobia and Tremors, two creature features from 1990 that we covered in the same episode.
next to each other on your list. You also had Wake and Fright and Picnic at Hanging Rock next to each other on the list. And here we have Kong and Godzilla next to each other in your top 10 as well. So kind of interesting how this top 10 has worked out. But anyway, let's read some comments on Godzilla. Kimberly in Newport says, No one wins. A message I find meaningful. A hugely influential film. This is a classic and a film that matters.
Anna in Stockholm says I think this film takes everyone by surprise when they first watch it. Not just the sheer craft on display, but how emotional and gut-wrenching this film is. this film to me demonstrates the power and importance of cinema. Nick in Edinburgh says, into what feels like a second Cold War, this film remains as vital and chilling as it ever was.
If, like me, you grew up watching the terrible 90s Roland Emmerich Godzilla, you'll be shocked to see just how melancholy, dark and political this movie is. in comparison. Meg in New York says, if I was making a list of my favorite movie sounds, Godzilla's Raw would be at the top. James in Lancaster says, I still don't know how this holds up as well as it does.
a moving, scary tale that now has its main character appearing in Fortnite. Yeah, Godzilla's been on quite the journey since the 1950s. Matt in London says, not only... was this my favourite first time watch of the season. It was also one of my favorite ever episodes of the podcast. So much fascinating insight and subject matter to explore around the film. And Graham Skipper was such an incredible guest. Please have him back. Oh, 100%, Matt. That was one of my favorite conversations to have.
this season graham skipper was incredible and i really hope to have him back next season so there you go that's your number four and i will just point out actually of all the hundreds of lists submitted there was one person that put Godzilla 1998 as their number one film.
Who's that person? What's that person doing? It's like there's a couple of people too that included Jaws the Revenge in their top 10. One person, I believe, put Jaws the Revenge as their number one as well, forcing me to give it 10 points. I mean, stop that, people. Stop that. You are just trolling me. You are choosing chaos. It's because of people like you that Brexit happened. Anyway, let's move into the top three. And oh my god, I mean, like three...
Just undeniable masterpieces left on this list. And, you know, you can probably guess the three movies that it's going to be, but let's see how the order pans out. At number three, you guys voted for Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds. They're coming! They're coming! Chris in Glasgow says one of Hitch's best. dripping with humour and dread at the same time. Love the shot of the two lovebirds swaying on their perch as they are being driven in the car. A great piece of work.
Honna from Aurora, Colorado says, even more than half a century old, the birds... still hits hard. It's just a classic and takes something so mundane and simple and makes it terrifying. The scene when they're trying to leave the school and are chased by the crows is iconic. Bronwyn from London says, I saw this for the first time watching along with this season and every time I have seen a flock of birds since.
I have taken a sharp turn in the opposite direction. Yeah. Cody from Phoenix says, I still have no idea to this day.
how Hitchcock pulls off the finches in the chimney scene. The movie is pretty blah without the birds, but every time one flies onto screen, oh man, top-notch bird work. Annika from London says, just hitchcock's best horror movie but it's his best mystery too the film is so opaque nothing is explained or resolved we have no idea why the bird attacks are happening how it connects with the character of melanie
or whether everything is okay by the end. And that makes it all the more powerful and infinitely rewatchable. and this from Ryan in Brighton, to me, the best horror films are the ones that make us scared of something we didn't even know could be scary. And nowadays, nobody can walk past a group of birds on a roof or a climbing frame and not immediately think of this movie. It's part of our collective.
subconscious oh it's so true isn't it all amazing comments there's nothing that i need to add really to that except that of course I do think it's one of the greatest monster movies ever made. I think it's actually one of Hitchcock's best as well. I love it. So that's your number three. That's Alfred Hitchcock's The Bird. At number two, you know, if I'd put this film in a different sub-genre or a different season, it might have been number one, but...
At number two, one of the most perfect horror films ever made, Neil Marshall's The Descent. Ah! Ah! Thank you. What a film. One of my favourite conversations to have this season, discussing that film with Louise Blaine. One of my favorite movies to watch every single time. It is just a perfect horror film. Ryan says there are a handful of horror films that I use as examples of films that I would show to an alien to demonstrate what horror is.
The Shining would be one, The Texas Chainsaw another, and The Descent. Because The Descent has it all. Incredible tension. Terror. psychological trauma, claustrophobia, brilliant jump scares, gore, bloodshed and violence and so much creature feature fun. Lindsay in Austin, Texas says, still my favourite horror film of all time.
Fabiola says, utterly compelling, truly horrifying. The combination of the caving claustrophobia and the zombies' subterranean creatures are completely nightmare-inducing. I remember watching this for the first time with my husband and being desperate for a pee. At the time we lived in a long rectangle of a flat.
with the lounge at the front of the property and the bathroom at the back. It was completely pitch black throughout and I didn't want to traverse the length of the flat on my own, patting for the light switch as I was so terrified. I begged my husband to come with me to the loo. Also, now being a mother myself, the dreamlike culmination with the reunion of the mother and child is simply Heartbreaking, with a surprise gut-wrenching poignancy after such a bloodbath.
Beautifully put, Fabiola. I'm right there with you. Meg in New York says, de-evolved humans, compound fractures, and horrific car accidents are nothing compared to getting stuck trying to crawl through a narrow tunnel that's caving in. Sarah in St. Joseph, Michigan says, it is terrifying and horrifying and so, so sad. And Annika in London says, surely this rivals The Mist for having the most downbeat yet perfect ending of all time.
yes agreed and actually funnily enough i mean that that comments from Annika who is in London if you're listening in the US and you've only seen the US version of The Descent you might not know what Annika's talking about there you might be confused by that comment but I would say if you haven't seen the original UK ending of the film the proper ending Seek it out. Just prepare yourself.
So there you go. That was your number two. That's Neil Marshall's The Descent. And so I wonder if anyone can guess what might be the number one on this list. I mean... Of course, it's pretty obvious, right? It got about 10 times as many points as the number two pick because this is basically everybody's number one animal attack film of all time. Your number one is Steven Spielberg's Jaws. What? No!
I mean, I talked about this film for literally two and a half hours this season, so I won't say too much more about it. Astra in Texas says there is really no other choice, is there? The quintessential nature bites backflip. Joe in Wirral says, my favourite film of all time. I've watched it dozens and dozens of times, and I'm unsure of why it's a comfort movie, plus the most tense that I ever feel watching a movie Chris in Leeds says not just my favourite Nature Bites back film
Not just my favourite horror film, but my favourite film of all time. Jeffrey in Columbus, Ohio, my favourite movie of all time. I could listen to you and Becky talk about this film for days. Thank you so much for creating this podcast. Peter in Melbourne says, I am not a fan of Spielberg at all but I must acknowledge the power and heart of this debut on the world's screens. Jaws never gets old.
Ozcan in Istanbul says, yes, it's a boring answer. I watched Jaws for the first time in our communal area in a camp when I was 11 years old. The movie ended after midnight and we dared each other to go for a swim in the sea. Although the last great white sighting in the area was 50 years ago, when I found myself knee-deep in the sea I began shaking, and I was barely able to go back to the beach, like I was slowly walking in my dream.
After watching it for a second time for the podcast, I found that it still retains its teeth. 10 out of 10, no note. Christina from Chicago says, Jaws is hands down my favorite movie of this subgenre and also a favorite of all time. Meg in New York City says, how could it not be Jaws? Best Victim Award has to go to the people of Amity Island, even when they're at their worst, calling for the death of an innocent shark because closing a beach for 24 hours is like closing it for three weeks.
My personal favourite islander is the lady with an opinion and a motel. I don't think that's funny. I don't think that's funny at all. And Craig in Camborne just said the word, obviously. Obviously. I mean, it was the most obvious number one on any list of any sub-genre, I would say, right? There you go. But that is an incredible... top 10 i'm gonna run through it one more time so your top 10 nature bites back horror movies at number 10 deep blue sea number nine wake and fright
Number eight, Picnic at Hanging Rock. Number seven, Arachnophobia. Number six, Tremors. Number five, King Kong. Number four, Godzilla. Number three, The Birds. Number two, The Descent. And number one, Jaws. What a fucking banger of a list that is. just brilliantly entertaining movies there. All 10 of those films I would happily put on and watch right now. And I think that's been the overall vibe and theme of this whole season, right? Just riotous, fun.
scary but really exhilarating experiences all of these movies you know um i'll mention a few honorable uh titles as well that just missed out on getting into the top 10 Alligator from 1980. That was a hugely popular one. It got hundreds and hundreds of votes. It just missed out on making it into the top 10, but there was a lot of love for that. Lake Placid as well, the classic 90s crocodile film. That was very, very narrowly missed out from getting in the top 10.
Creature from the Black Lagoon as well. That was very high up. Bong Joon-ho's The Host just missed out on getting in the top 10. And also Godzilla Minus One. There was so much love for Godzilla Minus One. I actually thought at one point, are we going to end up with two Godzilla movies in the top 10? So there you go. All of those films got a lot of votes as well. It was tough competition, really tough competition.
So I'm going to finish very quickly running through my own top 10 Nature Bites back horror films. And I won't say too much about each film because you've heard me talk about those films over the last 38 weeks. So here come my top 10 Nature Bites back.
horror films. And number 10, I've gone with The Reef. It was the scariest first time watch for me of this season. Number nine, I've gone with Cujo. Love it. I've got a lot of nostalgic fondness for that film. Number eight, I've gone with Melancholia because my God.
I just, I can't get over that movie. Number seven, I've gone with Arachnophobia for all the reasons you guys did. And number six, I went with King Kong, just a masterpiece. Number five, I've gone with Godzilla as well. I mean, perfect movie. Number four, Wake in Fright, one of my all-time personal faves.
And then my number three, The Birds. Number two, The Descent. And number one, Jaws. I have the exact same top three as you guys do. So there you go. My number one and your number one Nature Bites Back movie is, of course, Steven Spielberg's Jaws. And that's it for this series of The Evolution of Horror. Thank you all so much for listening. Thank you all for supporting this podcast, listening, for watching along every week, for sending in all your amazing feedback.
As always, I'm so bowled over by just the sheer amount of support this podcast gets. And for me, the most... rewarding thing about making this podcast is this amazing community of people that it's created so thank you all for being a part of this community and coming on this journey with me we'll be back later on in the year, probably in the summer of 2025. to kick off season 11.
I'm going to talk a little bit about our next season in just a minute. But first of all, just a few quick plugs. Don't forget, if you want to continue listening to weekly horror content, you can. Subscribe to our Patreon, patreon.com slash evolutionofhorror. We do also have another free podcast on the Evolution of Horror Network. That's The Detective and The Log Lady, a Twin Peaks rewatch podcast with Stacey Ponder.
you can find that wherever you get your podcasts please if you can i would be so grateful if you could spare a moment to drop us a rating and review on your podcast app of choice It really helps us particularly while we're off the air to get discovered by new listeners to keep us on people's radars.
So season 11. God, I cannot believe we're up to our 11th season of this podcast. We'll be back in the summer to kick off season 11, which is going to focus on... monsters this is essentially the flip side to nature bites back it's a kind of science bites back uh series so this time we are going to be looking at the dangers of science of men playing gods and the horrific consequences. This means we are going to be covering
classic monster movies like Frankenstein. Finally, we're going to be spending some time talking about Frankenstein, and obviously there are so many to cover there. It's going to be similar to what I did on the vampire series with Dracula, where I'm going to spend a few weeks
just on Frankenstein adaptations, from the book to the Universal era to the Hammer era and to what came afterwards. We'll then be looking at a whole bunch of other... man-made monster movies there's a lot of classics from the 1930s and 40s we've got Jekyll and Hyde we've got The Invisible Man, we've got The Island of Dr Moreau. We'll then be moving to the Atomic Monster era of the 1950s, finally covering movies like Them and Tarantula.
There'll be loads of fun films to discuss in the hammer horror eras of the 60s and 70s. Stuff like Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde, of course. A lot of fun, campy classics to look at from that era. Things always get a little bit more political in the 70s, of course, and we'll be looking at the dangers of computers and robotics and AI in movies like The Stepford Wives.
and Demon Seed. We'll be covering Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001 a space odyssey and examining hell as being one of the ultimate man-made monsters. we'll be diving into sci-fi horror films of the 1980s like Robocop, Blade Runner and The Terminator. We'll be looking at the schlockier killer robot movies of the 80s like Deadly Friend and Chopping Mall, of course. And then as we get into the 90s, we'll be covering some absolute classics.
including Jurassic Park. We'll be looking at the Asian tech horrors at the turn of the millennium like One Mist, Cool and Pulse. In the 21st century, we'll be diving into television shows like Black Mirror. and we'll be looking at recent man-made monster classics like The Substance, Poor Things, and Companion. I've only scratched the surface there.
of all the stuff I want to cover. It's going to be another epic season, and I think it's going to be a really, really fun flip side to Nature Bites Back. So join us later on this year for season 11 on Man-Made Monsters. But in the meantime, let's drop a giant asteroid on Nature Bites' back and say goodbye. Join us again very soon for another season of the evolution of horror.