NaschyCast

NaschyCast #9.5 - Werewolf Giveaway!

It’s an October surprise you can be happy about! Troy and I return briefly to let you in on some Naschy news and to expand on our ideas about COUNT DRACULA’S GREAT LOVE. That’s right! You only thought we’d talked enough about that film but after we recorded episode 8 new information came to light that clarifies some of the problems of its production. Its fascinating stuff and we’ve added a couple of other good things to make this .5 show a fun listen. We can be reached for comment at naschycast@gmail.com and the first five minutes of the forthcoming documentary called THE MAN WHO SAW FRANKENSTEIN CRY can be seen around the web. 

NaschyCast #9 - HOWL OF THE DEVIL (1988)

As HOWL OF THE DEVIL is a hard to find title we’ve decided to be as careful as we could in our discussion so others can discover the many surprises it holds. This is a film with a lot to say even if sometimes what it says might not be pleasant or kind. Adding to the discussion we have a surprise guest! A spoiler free Naschycast? How is that even possible? Well…...it’s complicated. October brings podcast number nine (number nine) focusing on our first 80s film from Mr. Molina. Described by Nashcy as “a howl of anguish, a painful catharsis which finally liberated me from long repressed phobias and obsessions” HOWL OF THE DEVIL is a harsh stab of cinema violence directed at his critics and his own alleged failings and comes on like the meanest version of horror that he could muster. A fascinating film, full blooded in its depiction of human cruelty it serves as a fascinating look back at Naschy’s career up to that point and a dark goodbye to that fertile period as well. An essential film if a deeply flawed one.

NaschyCast #8 - COUNT DRACULA'S GREAT LOVE (1972)

Proving that there are no obstacles that we won’t overcome to bring you Naschy film discussion here is number Ocho. One of the most talked about of his non-Daninsky films COUNT DRACULA’S GREAT LOVE is an amazing mix of the clunky and the sublime. In a way, this film is a succinct summation of all that is usually praised in a Naschy film and all that is usually criticized. A mangled mess of a story with elements that don’t come together it still shines as an atmospheric horror piece with some truly brilliant moments that often distract you from a script that seems to be running in two directions at once. This film might be the perfect Rorschach test for fans- What do you remember from the film when it’s over? 

We discuss vampire tears, non-existent sequels, the variable speed of vampirism, mad voice-overs, active vs. passive film viewing and the relative merits of a script with too many contributors. 

You will find the sound quite variable as I had to cull the entire show from multiple sources. I apologize for the occasional distortion and changes in sonic quality. The uphill battle to get these shows made is often surprising for us untutored computer illiterates. Drop us a line at naschycast@gmail.com if you please! 

NaschyCast #7.5 - Extra Yeti

Here’s an unexpected surprise! Let’s call this the first ‘extra’ show for the NaschyCast with no promises that we’ll do this kind of thing often. We decided to record this brief episode to answer a few questions, ask for listener input on a few topics and tell everyone about a friend of the show’s new Spanish horror internet radio program. But the biggest reason for this bonus bit of audio babble is to let everyone know that the uncut version of NIGHT OF THE HOWLING BEAST is out there! It may be available only on the bootleg market but, as we relate, it contains far more than you might have guessed. We were just thrilled to be able to see it. Listen closely and you’ll hear Troy’s cat Flex enter the room and make his presence known. 

Drop us a line at naschycast@gmail.com to let us know what you think. 

NaschyCast #7 - INQUISITION (1976)

This time out we venture back to the 16th century for a dose of religious persecution during one of history’s nastier periods of paranoia. Who’s a witch, there’s a witch, everywhere a witch witch! 

Taking his place in the director’s chair for the first time Paul Naschy serves up a harsh look at human nature by way of fear, torture and hatred. Putting his well researched stamp on a sub-genre made financially viable by Vincent Price in WITCHFINDER GENERAL and made gorily disturbing by THE MARK OF THE DEVIL this film serves up a complex look at what might drive someone to embrace darkness. Based on an actual historical event, Naschy spends a lot of time getting the details right and this realism pays off. 

The film boasts an excellent cast able to bring both the over the top elements and the more subtle shades of character to play. INQUISITION is one of the most authentic looking of Naschy's films and the script shows that when working without the usual supernatural elements his stories retain their power and possibly even gain deeper relevance. Another winner from Naschy but certainly one that is harder to enjoy when it dips into graphic, matter-of-fact torture. Typically enough for the podcast, it becomes a contest to determine which is more gruesome – the nastiness onscreen or my mangling of both Spanish and French names.

Remember- we can be reached at naschycast@gmail.com and you can subscribe through iTunes.

NaschyCast #6 - DR JEKYLL AND THE WOLFMAN (1972)

It's that time once again my friends, so gather around! The moon is rising and so is our favorite hairy beast. This time out Naschy indulges his love for the Monster Mash and combines two unlikely members of the classic horror gallery for a romp through swinging London. Knowing that putting these two together requires some work Naschy first takes us to the rural villages of the Carpathian Mountains for a gothic tinged introduction to our old friend Waldemar Daninksy before his trip to England in search of a cure for his unfortunate problem. The grandson of the infamous Dr. Jekyll agrees to try an unorthodox (and completely nutty) method of dealing with lycanthropy, but, as is usual in a Paul Naschy script, things don’t go quite as well as our poor cursed man might hope. 

This was the sixth Waldemar Daninsky adventure and it’s a good one. Once again rebooting the character from scratch we have the tortured soul hoping for deliverance from a hellish life and given some small measure of happiness by the love of a beautiful woman. It’s a shame the village people hate him so! Troy and I have a great time going through this one point by point finding pleasures both large and small even if I have to be reminded that Hombre Loco is a very different thing from Hombre Lobo! 

NaschyCast #5 - CRIMSON (1976)

First a disclaimer: I regret that the audio on this episode is not as good as it could be. This podcast has been an ongoing learning lab for me in how to record the two of us with some form of sound quality. I finally got pretty happy with the way the show sounds with episode #4 but then, as we sat down to record this one I promptly forgot one simple lesson of microphone operation. Because of that Troy often sounds as if he’s in a pit or roughly a mile away from me. For this I apologize and you can rest assured the people responsible have been sacked. And I promise it won’t happen again. The good news is that Troy did a little audio tweaking to improve some of the worst spots so hopefully it won’t be too bad. Let us know if we suck. naschycast@gmail.com

For the fifth show we decided to step outside the horror genre and for our deviation from the norm we paid a heavy price. CRIMSON is not a good film. It is at best a passable time waster with a few points of interest for Euro-Trash enthusiasts and very little screen time for Naschy. A French-Spanish co-production it is mostly boring with long stretches of tedium broken up by moments of crap. Director Juan Fortuny didn’t step behind the camera for many movies in his career and it’s easy to see why. Luckily Troy and I find some joy at the edges of the screen as we marvel at some of the reoccurring actors working in Spanish cinema in the 1970s. You might actually enjoy us talking about CRIMSON more than you enjoy the film itself! 

NaschyCast #4 - THE MUMMY'S REVENGE (1973)

In the 4th episode of NaschyCast we unravel THE VENGEANCE OF THE MUMMY a.k.a. THE MUMMY'S REVENGE. Occasionally slow but packed with Egyptian lore and mystery this film is one of my favorite mummy movies and Troy (despite a lack of mummy movie love) actually feels the same way. Of course, calling it the second best mummy movie of all time is like claiming to be the leper with the most fingers but it’s still one Hell of a fun movie. Bloody, sexy and filled with murder set pieces that rival what was being done in gore films of the same vintage it’s a fun, furious ride with a few surprises along the way. Crushed heads for everyone!

Back from HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB is director Carlos Aured, lovely co-star Helga Line and Naschy his own bad self is again playing two separate roles. Hey! When you can play both the villain and his main henchman why not do it? I wonder if he got two paychecks?

Anyway- this is a great Naschy horror film and we have a lot of fun with it so enjoy!

NaschyCast #3 - NIGHT OF THE HOWLING BEAST (1975)

In the third episode of NaschyCast Troy and  I delve into the 8th Waldemar Daninsky werewolf film NIGHT OF THE HOWLING BEAST. Afflicted with at least a half dozen alternate titles the film is a fun adventure film crossed with Naschy’s usual lycanthropic madness and some unexpectedly acrobatic fight scenes. The movie has more than a few surprises including disproving one of my earlier statements about Mr. Molina’s tendency to write only two types of female characters. Also note that with this episode we add sound clips from the movie for your entertainment and edification. Some of the lines in this one are just too good to miss.

NaschyCast #2 - HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB (1973)

Troy and I are proud to present the second episode of The NaschyCast! This time we run through HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB and discover even more madness than we had thought might be there. How did we manage to link THE EXORCIST, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and DIRTY HARRY to this film? Were we able to pronounce the actor’s names any better this time out? Did we get distracted by the copious nudity on display? How much does religion play a part in the symbolism used in the film? Were we able to make sense out of the jumble of crazed ideas tossed around in this Euro-horror classic? All of these questions and more will be answered (or at least mentioned and picked at) in this show!

Truly, HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB is one of the most enjoyable of Paul Naschy’s movies and was part of an amazing string of entertaining pictures that showed him and his collaborators working at the top of their game. In the end I have to agree with Troy that this may be one of the best to introduce newcomers to the joys of the Mad Spaniard’s horror output. It’s certainly impossible to be bored by the movie.

Keep in mind that this is a spoiler packed Podcast and that we discuss the entire film from start to finish so if you haven't seen HRFTT yet you might want to be wary. And once again feel free to give us your thoughts on the Podcast –pro or con- at our email address naschycast@gmail.com or in the comments below.