Skeleton Closet

Episode 24: Nightmare Alley (2021)

Ladies and Gentlemen, Theys and Thems! Step right up to see this one-of-a-kind genuine freakshow known as the Skeleton Closet Podcast. This week, we’re diving deep into the world of interwar-era carnies, grifters, shrinks, and scammers with Guillermo Del Toro’s Nightmare Alley, starring Bradley Cooper and Cate Blanchett. In this episode, Shannon and Jake will explore the movie’s themes of exploitation, hubris, and the fear of being known. We’ll also mull over slick 1930’s lingo and of course, fawn over the presence of one Mr. Willem Dafoe. As always, keep it Jake, and join us on our instagram at https://www.instagram.com/skeletonclosetpod/ [https://www.instagram.com/skeletonclosetpod/] if you’re not on the level.

Episode 23: Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

This week on Skeleton Closet, we’re feeding our hunger for more 80’s musicals! Join Mean Green Mothers from Outer Space and Co-hosts Jake and Shannon as they break down a baffling set of aesthetic choices, an incredibly charming series of puppets, and a seriously catchy set of tunes that come together to make the cult classic, Little Shop of Horrors. We’ll get into the movie’s themes on suburbia and White Flight, which of the movie’s many endings is the most feminist, a surprisingly earnest segment on the meaning of success. By the end, you’ll come away knowing exactly what to do if your envy and jealousy manifest as a literal green monster with a gun. As always, keep up with us at linktr.ee/SkeletonCloset, and remember... don’t feed the plants!

Episode 22: Heathers (1989)

This week on the Skeleton Closet Podcast, our intrepid hosts are going back to high school! We hope you like padded shoulders and ankle-length leather jackets, because we're talking about Heathers, the 1989 horror staple that was pretty much cannibalized by every high school movie that came after it. Join Jake and Shannon as they explore full-contact Croquet, determine whether this movie is homophobic or just deeply straight, pit Jason Dean against Tyler Durden and Travis Bickle and Jughead Jones, and pretty much talk about the far superior Broadway adaptation for most of the podcast.  Check out our non-podcast shenanigans at https://www.instagram.com/skeletonclosetpod/. Happy listening!

Episode 21: Better Watch Out (2016)

Happy Holidays, or should we say Horrordays? This week on Skeleton Closet, we selected a movie billed as a Christmas Horror Comedy, which ended up neither funny nor christmassy. Still, there are some gems to be found in Better Watch Out, Chris Peckover's splatter-filled exploration of privilege, misogyny, and, well, murder. Join our hosts as they discuss the horror of the warmest season, suburban supremacy, and why this movie is going to make it hard to watch Home Alone again.  Follow us on Instagram to keep up with us between shows! Happy Holidays, y'all.

Episode 20: X (2022) & Pearl (2022)

We back! This week, in the return of the Skeleton Closet, it's another double feature! We're watching two of the best movies of 2022, X and Pearl, both directed by Ti West and starring Mia Goth. Join us as we break down why living through a pandemic makes people go squirrelly, what porn and horror have to do with each other, and why so many horror movies are about repression. Also just so much fawning over how much we love these movies.  Find the rest of what we do at linktr.ee/SkeletonCloset . Happy listening!