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PODCAST

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast

Anna Bogutskaya

A weekly podcast dedicated to exploring horror film and TV history through a female lens. Each series we dissect a trope to death through deep dive conversations hosted by film critic and author Anna Bogutskaya.

tv & film film history

All Episodes

42:16

HERE BE WITCHES 22 • The Woods (2006) with Louise Blain

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/04/24

Set in 1965, rebellious teenage Heather (Agnes Bruckner) is sent to a remote all-girls boarding school by her resigned parents, where she has strange, violent dreams and struggles to fit into the school power dynamics. Very soon, she starts suspecting that the teachers, led by the chilly Mrs. Traverse (Patricia Clarkson) might be hiding something. Directed by Lucky McKee, the mind behind such horror cult classics as May and All Cheerleaders Die, this is a witch film big on atmosphere. I’m

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48:28

HERE BE WITCHES 21 • The Witches (1990) with Tara Judah

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/04/17

The Witches (1990), Nicholas Roeg's adaptation of Roald Dahl's book, is traumatising af. A young boy and his grandmother as stumble onto a witch's convention. The witches are wicked and sadistic, and beneath their appearance as regular women are hideous, bald, toe-less creatures who hate children more than anything else. Their leader, the Grand High Witch (portrayed with maximum camp by Anjelica Huston) is the worst witch of them all. I’m joined by the wicked smart Tara Judah, Cinema

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48:20

HERE BE WITCHES 20 • Black Sunday (1960) with...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/04/10

In this episode, we’re diving into Mario Bava’s atmospheric gothic horror Black Sunday, released in 1960 and banned in the UK untill 1968 for its graphic violence, considered too gruesome at the time. Based very loosely on Nikolai Gogol’s story VIY (which also has its own Soviet film adaptation that I’d highly encourage you to check out!), Black Sunday follows the wrath of the powerful witch-vampire Asa (played by Barbara Steele in her first big screen role), who places a curse on her

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60:35

HERE BE WITCHES 19 • The Love Witch (2016) with Inkoo...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/04/03

Anna Biller's film centers on Elaine (Samantha Robinson), a beautiful young witch, is determined to find a man to love her. In her Gothic Victorian apartment she makes spells and potions, and then picks up men and seduces them. However, her spells work too well, leaving her with a string of hapless victims. When she finally meets the man of her dreams, her desperation to be loved will drive her to the brink of insanity and murder. I’m joined in this episode by Inkoo Kang, TV critic at The

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49:17

HERE BE WITCHES 18 • The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/03/27

In this episode, we’re going to tackle a genuinely terrifying, creepy little film: The Autopsy of Jane Doe. Starring Emile Hirsch and Brian Cox as father-and-son coroners who experience supernatural phenomena while examining the body of an unidentified woman (hence the name Jane Doe) (played by Olwen Kelly). The more they uncover about Jane Doe, the spookier things get. I’m joined in this episode by producer, presenter and podcaster Louise Blain, host of the Killt Podcast. We talk about the

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60:47

HERE BE WITCHES 17 • Suspiria (2018) with Alexandra...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/03/20

In this episode, we’re diving into Luca Guadagnino's remake of a witchy horror classic, Suspiria. The basic premise of the 2018 Suspiria is the same: young, naive dancer Suzy (here played by Dakota Johnson, a Guadagnino regular) arrives in late 70s Berlin to audition for the renowned Helena Markos Dance Company. She quickly nabs the lead dancer role in an upcoming performance, impressing the head of the school, Madame Blanc (Tilda Swinton) but her arrival coincides with the disappearance of

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43:51

HERE BE WITCHES 16 • Season of the Witch (1973) with...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/28

In this episode, we’re looking at one of the most underseen films by the iconic director George A. Romero. We’ll be chatting about Season of the Witch (aka Jack’s Wife, aka Hungry Wives), Romero’s 1973 drama about an anxiety-ridden housewife (Jan White) who starts dabbling in the occult after meeting a real-life witch at a cocktail party. It’s a strange, eerie film, really clearly influenced by the third wave feminist movement and also the witch-craze of the late 60s and 70s. There’s

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74:32

BONUS • The Invisible Man (2020) + Interview with...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/27

Today, we take a little detour from our series dedicated to exploring witches onscreen to bring you a bonus episode about the new film by writer-director Leigh Whannell (Saw, Insidious, Upgrade). The first part of the episode features podcaster Becky Darke (@bunnydarke) on how The Invisible Man updates a classic monster, we gush about Elisabeth Moss, and how tension is built from the first moment. The first part of the conversation will be spoiler-free and we'll make it clear when the

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86:18

HERE BE WITCHES 15 • American Horror Story: Coven...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/21

In this episode, we’re going to tackle the third series of Ryan Murphy’s anthology horror series, American Horror Story: Coven. Starring screen legends Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett and Murphy’s repertoire of actors, including Emma Roberts and Evan Peters, Coven is all about witches. Namely, a coven in New Orleans close to being eradicated and battling internal politics to do with its reigning supreme.There is also a resurrected serial killer, Madame LaLaurie

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35:01

BONUS • Little Joe (2020) + Interview with Emily Beecham

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/20

Today, we take a little detour from our series dedicated to exploring witches onscreen to bring you a bonus episode about the new film by director Jessica Hausner, the plant-based sci-fi horror Little Joe. The first part of the episode features broadcaster Rowena Alice (@Rowenaaaaa) to discuss the film and some the themes it touches on. In the second part of the episode you’ll hear our interview with lead actress Emily Beecham, who picked up the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film

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64:26

HERE BE WITCHES 14 • Practical Magic (1998) with...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/14

It’s Valentine’s Day, and we couldn’t resist talking about one of my own childhood favourites, Practical Magic. It’s a mix of romcom, horror, fantasy, drama and it’s weird as hell and very much peak nineties. The story centers on Sally (Sandra Bullock) and Gillian Owens (Nicole Kidman), the latest in a long line of witches who bear a particular curse: any man who dares to fall in love with an Owens woman will meet an untimely death. All grown up, Gillian gets involved with an abusive

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62:49

HERE BE WITCHES 13 • Suspiria (1977) & Inferno (1980)...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/02/07

In this episode, we go deep on two witch horror classics: Suspiria (1977) and Inferno (1980), both directed by Dario Argento. Suspiria was the film that shot Argento to international fame, after it became an unexpected box office hit. It follows an an American ballet student, Susie (played by Jessica Harper) who transfers to a prestigious dance academy in Germany but realizes, after a series of brutal murders, realises that the academy is actually a cover-up for a coven of witches, all

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50:37

HERE BE WITCHES 12 • Drag Me To Hell (2009) with Mary...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/01/31

In this episode, we’re going to be discussing Sam Raimi’s comedy horror Drag Me To Hell in depth. Our protagonist is the young loan officer Christine (played by Alison Lohman), who, in order to prove to her boss that she can make the "hard decisions", chooses not to extend an elderly woman's mortgage. In retaliation, the woman, who turns to be a witch by the name of Mrs. Ganush, places a curse on Christine that, after three days of escalating torment, will plunge her into the depths of Hell

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80:30

HERE BE WITCHES 11 • Chilling Adventures of Sabrina...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/01/24

"Hell is under new management" In this episode, we discuss in depth the new series of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, available now on Netflix. Though she defeated her father Lucifer in the previous series, the Dark Lord remains trapped within the human prison of her boyfriend, Nick Scratch. Sabrina can't live with herself, knowing that Nick is burning in Hell. So with an assist from her mortal friends, “The Fright Club” (Harvey, Rosalind, and Theo), Sabrina makes it her mission to free him

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48:40

HERE BE WITCHES 10 • Hocus Pocus (1993) with Tara...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/01/17

We're diving into a childhood favourite and campy classic Hocus Pocus, from 1993. The devious Sanderson Sisters (a trio of witches, played by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimi) return from the grave to continue their quest for immortality. The Sandersons were burnt at the stake in the 17th century because of their penchant for, ahem, sucking the lifeforce of children to remain forever young, beautiful and powerful. They come back from the grave in the 1990s, where a

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54:14

HERE BE WITCHES 09 • The Blair Witch Project (1999)...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/01/10

In this episode, we’ll be taking on the 1999 found footage horror, The Blair Witch Project.The Blair Witch Project is the original found footage horror that follows three film students, Heather, Michael and Joshua, as they go into the Maryland backwoods to cover the mystery behind the Blair Witch incidents, which legend says are the product of an exiled witch taken her revenge on the town that wronged her. However, they lose their map and things take an unexpected turn. It’s an interesting

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96:56

HERE BE WITCHES 08 • Buffy the Vampire Slayer...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2020/01/03

In our first episode of 2020, we dive in our first TV show AND a Very Important One at that: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The beloved cult TV series, created by Joss Whedon, ran for seven seasons from 1997 til its finale in 2003. The series’ protagonist is the titular Buffy, a teenage girl trying to make sense of high school whilst also grappling with being the Slayer, the latest in a long line of young women chosen by fate to battle against vampires, demons, and other forces of

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47:26

HERE BE WITCHES 07 • The Witch (2015) with Chloë Wicks

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2019/12/20

In this episode of our witch series, we take on Robert Eggers' The Witch (aka The VVitch: A New England Folk Tale). Set in 1630s New England, English settler William and his family—wife Katherine, daughter Thomasin, son Caleb, and twins Mercy and Jonas—are banished from a Puritan Colony over a religious dispute. William and Katherine try to lead a devout Christian life on an isolated and borderline barren farm. When their newborn son mysteriously vanishes and their crops fail, the family

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54:36

HERE BE WITCHES 06 • The Witches (1966) with Marion...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2019/12/13

In this episode, we discuss the lesser-known Hammer horror film The Witches (aka The Devil's Own), starring Joan Fontaine as an uptight English teacher who comes into the small town of Heddaby to teach at a private children's school run by local siblings Stephanie Bax (Kay Walsh), a well-known journalist, and Alan (Alec McCowen), a wannabe vicar. Very soon, Gwen starts getting inklings that things are not as they seem in the seemingly idyllic village. The film is surprisingly conservative,

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51:56

HERE BE WITCHES 05 • The Witches of Eastwick (1987)...

The Final Girls: A Horror Film Podcast ·

2019/12/06

In this episode, we discuss the comedy horror The Witches of Eastwick (1987), featuring a star-studded cast including Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer, Cher and Jack Nicholson. Three single women in a village have their wishes granted when a mysterious and flamboyant man arrives in their lives. The film is full of raunchy comedy, big hairdos and presents witchcraft as an aspirational, empowering tool for women who have been trying to fit into a stifling community. Anna is joined by actor

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