Horror Queers

In honor of its fifth anniversary, we're chatting Canadian thriller The Retreat (2021), which pits a lesbian couple against homophobes at an isolated cabin in the woods.

Screenwriter Alyson Richards and director Pat Mills' survival horror adds a queer element to a familiar premise, which doesn't entirely make the film stand out. Still, it's a good opportunity for Joe to revisit a film he had issues with.

Plus: good gore; an untapped backstory for Renee (Tommie-Amber Pirie), and comparisons to other recent queer horror titles.

Read Joe's original review: ‘The Retreat’ (2021) Is A Queer Revenge Thriller That Plays It Safe

Questions? Comments? Snark? Connect with the boys on BlueSky, Instagram, Youtube, Letterboxd, or join the Horror Queers Discord to get in touch with other listeners.

> Trace: @tracedthurman (BlueSky)/ @tracedthurman (Instagram)

> Joe: @joelipsett (BlueSky) / @bstolemyremote (Instagram) 

Be sure to support the boys on Patreon!  

Show Art: Travis Falligant  / Theme Music: Alexander Nakarada   

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Stay out of the pool and work on your singing because we're talking Edward Bianchi's The Fan (1981) starring Grand Dame Lauren Bacall and a twinky Michael Biehn.

Joining us for the discussion is returning guest Michael Varrati, who dubs the film "parasocial peril" and praises Bacall's emotionally vulnerable performance as aging starlet Sally Ross.

Look for adaptation questions about Bob Randall's pulpy source material; critiquing James Garner's autobiography; and highlighting the subway stalking and pool slicing sequences.

Plus: the queer coding of Douglas Breen; the film's uneasy place in (horror) history; and trying to figure out the plot of in-movie musical Never Say Never.

>Support Michael's queer horror comic, 'Four Seasons of Fear: A Year of Queer Horror' on Kickstarter here

>Our Bloody Disgusting editorial: “Stanning” Goes Too Far in ‘The Fan’

Questions? Comments? Snark? Connect with the boys on BlueSky, Instagram, Youtube, Letterboxd, or join the Horror Queers Discord to get in touch with other listeners.

> Trace: @tracedthurman (BlueSky)/ @tracedthurman (Instagram)

> Joe: @joelipsett (BlueSky) / @bstolemyremote (Instagram) 

> Michael: @michaelvarrati (BlueSky) / @michaelvarrati (Instagram) / Midnight Mass Podcast (website)

Be sure to support the boys on Patreon!  

Show Art: Travis Falligant  / Theme Music: Alexander Nakarada   

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Here's a sneak peek at our all new Patreon minisode on Simon McQuoid's sequel/franchise kourse korrection Mortal Kombat II (2026).

Like what you hear? Head on over to www.patreon.com/horrorqueers and become a Patron for more exclusive bonus content today!

Show Art: Travis Falligant / Theme Music: Alexander Nakarada

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Climb that metallic Christmas tree and follow that renegade reverend because we're going to Hell (upside down!) in Irwin Allen's production of Ronald Neame's The Poseidon Adventure (1972)! Tagging in for the conversation is horror blogger and Final Girl After Dark podcast host Stacie Ponder.

Join us as we tackle a movie filled with Academy Award winners both in front of and behind the camera. We laud its era-defining (and Oscar-winning) special effects, while sobbing over all things Shelley Winters. No one phones it in in this disasterpiece from Master of Disaster Irwin Allen.

Plus: "My Linda!", the shocking adaptation change made to Paul Gallico's 1969 source novel, a semi-positive portrayal of sex work in a '70s film and emphasizing the importance of grieving dead characters in a disaster movie.

Questions? Comments? Snark? Connect with the boys on BlueSky, Instagram, Youtube, Letterboxd, or join the Horror Queers Discord to get in touch with other listeners.

> Trace: @tracedthurman (BlueSky)/ @tracedthurman (Instagram)

> Joe: @joelipsett (BlueSky) / @bstolemyremote (Instagram) 

> Stacie: Final Girl (Blog) / Final Girl After Dark (Podcast)

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Here's a sneak peek at our all new Patreon minisode on Damian McCarthy's third feature, Hokum (2026).

Like what you hear? Head on over to www.patreon.com/horrorqueers and become a Patron for more exclusive bonus content today!

Show Art: Travis Falligant / Theme Music: Alexander Nakarada

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.