In this unnerving episode of Sitting in the Dark, host Tommy Metz III and his co-hosts delve into the spine-chilling world of confinement horror. The discussion focuses on three hand-picked films that trap characters in claustrophobic spaces, forcing them to confront their deepest fears. Want to watch along? You’ll want to set up Gerald’s Game, It Comes at Night, and The Crazies (the 2010 remake).

“If it can be a play, it’ll suck as a movie.” Yeah, they take on that old saw and debate the merits of adapting contained stories into feature films. Guess what? It turns out skilled directors can elevate these constrained tales beyond their stage-bound origins. They particularly focus on the 2017 Stephen King adaptation Gerald's Game, dissecting how it taps into unspoken relationship fears and traumas by locking viewers inside the protagonist's increasingly disturbed psyche.

Join the Sitting in the Dark team as they explore how cinematic craft can transform limited locations into expansive mindscapes where our darkest terrors become inescapably real. Brace yourself for a haunting journey into the heart of confinement horror.

Check out the Films

• (00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark
• (02:15) - Scream in a Box!
• (06:46) - Gerald's Game
• (28:43) - It Comes At Night
• (47:57) - The Crazies (2010)
• (01:06:09) - Support this Show!
• (01:07:00) - Coming Attractions

Learn how to support our show and The Next Reel’s family of film podcasts by becoming a member. It's just $5 monthly or $55 annually. Learn more here.

Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world in our Discord community!

Here’s where you can find us around the internet:

• The Web
• Letterboxd
• Pete
• Kyle
• Tommy
• Kynan

What are some other ways you can support us and show your love? Glad you asked!

• You can buy our movie-related apparel, stickers, mugs and more from our MERCH PAGE.
• Or buy or rent movies we’ve discussed on the show from our WATCH PAGE.
• Or buy books, plays, etc. that was the source for movies we’ve discussed on the show from our ORIGINALS PAGE.
• Or renew or sign up for a Letterboxd Pro or Patron account with our LETTERBOXD MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT.
• Or sign up for AUDIBLE.

This month, host Kyle Olson takes listeners on a chilling journey through the British Isles with a trio of alien invasion films. Joined by panelists Tommy Metz III, Kynan Dias, and Pete Wright, the group explores the 2012 Irish horror-comedy "Grabbers," along with "Attack the Block" and "The World's End."

The discussion begins with "Grabbers," a lesser-known gem that surprised the panel with its impressive creature effects and charming drunk-acting from its lead actress. The hosts delve into the film's unique premise: a small Irish town must get intoxicated to survive an alien attack.

As the conversation unfolds, the panel examines what makes these films distinctly British, from their focus on tight-knit communities to their reluctance to call in outside help. They note the underlying theme of existential hopelessness that permeates British comedy and how it manifests in these alien invasion narratives.

The hosts also touch on the cultural significance of pubs in British and Irish society, and how these films use them as central locations for both community gathering and monster-fighting.

With a blend of humor and insight, this episode of Sitting in the Dark offers listeners a deep dive into the world of British alien invasion films, proving that sometimes the best defense against otherworldly threats is a pint and a close-knit community.

Film Sundries

• Watch the movies discussed:
  • Grabbers: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • Attack the Block: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • The World’s End: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch

• (00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark
• (05:49) - Grabbers
• (16:37) - But what makes it British?
• (27:52) - Attack the Block
• (48:30) - The World's End

Learn how to support our show and The Next Reel’s family of film podcasts by becoming a member. It's just $5 monthly or $55 annually. Learn more here.

Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world in our Discord community!

Here’s where you can find us around the internet:

• The Web
• Letterboxd
• Pete
• Kyle
• Tommy
• Kynan

What are some other ways you can support us and show your love? Glad you asked!

• You can buy our movie-related apparel, stickers, mugs and more from our MERCH PAGE.
• Or buy or rent movies we’ve discussed on the show from our WATCH PAGE.
• Or buy books, plays, etc. that was the source for movies we’ve discussed on the show from our ORIGINALS PAGE.
• Or renew or sign up for a Letterboxd Pro or Patron account with our LETTERBOXD MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT.
• Or sign up for AUDIBLE.

This month, Kynan, Tommy, Kyle and Pete dive deep into the terrifying world of survival horror. They leave no dark corners unexplored, from the creepy confines of Bodega Bay in Hitchcock’s classic The Birds, to the zombie-infested mall of Dawn of the Dead, the monster-filled hive of Resident Evil, and the deadly game of hide and seek in Ready or Not.

The panel examines key tropes of the genre—resource scarcity, societal breakdown, and how safe spaces become inverted into horrifying death traps. They put Hitchcock’s decision to interrupt a rom-com with an apocalypse in The Birds under the microscope. They hail sound design as the unsung hero for crafting a sense of dread.

Central to the conversation is the relationship between survival horror films and video games, from limited resources to permadeath to discovering clues in each film’s very own "book of the vampire.” What is the cinematic genetic material connecting these films to 70s disaster movies like The Towering Inferno, where catastrophe erupts into the banality of everyday life?

You’ll never look at birds… or malls, mansions, and wedding games… in the same light again. Listen now… if you dare! Just keep some spare ammo and a med pack handy, just in case.

Film Sundries

• Watch the movies discussed:
  • The Birds: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • Dawn of the Dead: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • Resident Evil: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • Ready or Not: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch

• (00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark • Survival Horror
• (08:16) - The Birds
• (28:14) - Dawn of the Dead
• (48:07) - Resident Evil
• (01:01:37) - Ready or Not
• (01:14:38) - Coming Attractions

Learn how to support our show and The Next Reel’s family of film podcasts by becoming a member. It's just $5 monthly or $55 annually. Learn more here.

Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world in our Discord community!

Here’s where you can find us around the internet:

• The Web
• Letterboxd
• Pete
• Kyle
• Tommy
• Kynan

What are some other ways you can support us and show your love? Glad you asked!

• You can buy our movie-related apparel, stickers, mugs and more from our MERCH PAGE.
• Or buy or rent movies we’ve discussed on the show from our WATCH PAGE.
• Or buy books, plays, etc. that was the source for movies we’ve discussed on the show from our ORIGINALS PAGE.
• Or renew or sign up for a Letterboxd Pro or Patron account with our LETTERBOXD MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT.
• Or sign up for AUDIBLE.

The oceans hold unfathomable mysteries and horrors in their lightless depths. In this episode, Kyle Olson returns to lead the hosts of Sitting in the Dark—Tommy Metz III, Ray DeLancey, and Pete Wright—as they dive deep to confront three tales of terror from beneath the waves.

They begin with 1989's DeepStar Six, recounting the ill-fated mission of an underwater military base beset by a monstrous intruder. The claustrophobic setting evokes our deepest fears of the unknown. Next comes Leviathan, another 1989 underwater thriller with corporate greed unleashing abominations from the abyssal plains. We probe the human hubris that lies beneath these aquatic nightmares.

Finally, we reach 2020's Underwater, finding glimmers of hope amidst oceanic alien beasts. Kristen Stewart anchors this thoughtful look at sacrifice and humanity's relentless spirit of exploration.

While the terrors lurk in every murky depth, so too does wonder, adventure, and our indomitable need to understand. Join us as we plumb the lightless parts of ourselves and emerge stronger. The ocean calls to us with ancient songs of fear and freedom. Will we have the courage to listen?

Watch the movies discussed:

• Deepstar Six: Amazon • JustWatch
• Leviathan: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
• Underwater: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch

• (00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark • Terrors of the Deep!
• (03:40) - The Abyss: The Hall of Fame Entrant
• (05:53) - Deepstar Six
• (15:06) - Leviathan
• (21:31) - What is your underwater job?
• (33:12) - Underwater

Learn how to support our show and The Next Reel’s family of film podcasts by becoming a member. It's just $5 monthly or $55 annually. Learn more here.

Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world in our Discord community!

Here’s where you can find us around the internet:

• The Web
• Letterboxd
• Pete
• Kyle
• Tommy
• Kynan

What are some other ways you can support us and show your love? Glad you asked!

• You can buy our movie-related apparel, stickers, mugs and more from our MERCH PAGE.
• Or buy or rent movies we’ve discussed on the show from our WATCH PAGE.
• Or buy books, plays, etc. that was the source for movies we’ve discussed on the show from our ORIGINALS PAGE.
• Or renew or sign up for a Letterboxd Pro or Patron account with our LETTERBOXD MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT.
• Or sign up for AUDIBLE.

Gather round the flickering candlelight, boils and ghouls! In this special episode of Sitting in the Dark, Ray DeLancey welcomes two macabre mavens to the morbid merriment: Pete Wright and Tommy Metz III. Together, these horror hounds aim to dig up the decaying details on two Vincent Price classics given modern makeovers—the 1999 and 2005 remakes of House on Haunted Hill and House of Wax.

Hunkering into the cobweb-covered crypt, the ghastly trio finds plenty to praise in the remakes’ attempts to recreate the vintage thrills of the originals. From entire towns gruesomely molded from wax to clever winks to William Castle’s famous theater gimmicks, the filmmakers conjure the macabre spirit of the classics. Yet Ray, Pete, and Tommy agree that capturing the unique charisma of Vincent Price or conjuring new horror icons is no easy feat.

Throughout their late-night analysis, they look at these films as “playgrounds” for horror, where anything goes, and the screams come easy. But they conclude that without rules that make sense and characters you care about, the scares just aren’t the same.

Film Sundries

• Watch the movies discussed:
  • House on Haunted Hill: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch
  • House of Wax: Apple • Amazon • JustWatch

• (00:00) - Welcome to Sitting in the Dark
• (03:16) - A Little Price Backgrounder
• (11:46) - The Remakes
• (12:42) - House on Haunted Hill
• (36:44) - House of Wax
• (53:09) - Coming Attractions

Learn how to support our show and The Next Reel’s family of film podcasts by becoming a member. It's just $5 monthly or $55 annually. Learn more here.

Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world in our Discord community!

Here’s where you can find us around the internet:

• The Web
• Letterboxd
• Pete
• Kyle
• Tommy
• Kynan

What are some other ways you can support us and show your love? Glad you asked!

• You can buy our movie-related apparel, stickers, mugs and more from our MERCH PAGE.
• Or buy or rent movies we’ve discussed on the show from our WATCH PAGE.
• Or buy books, plays, etc. that was the source for movies we’ve discussed on the show from our ORIGINALS PAGE.
• Or renew or sign up for a Letterboxd Pro or Patron account with our LETTERBOXD MEMBERSHIP DISCOUNT.
• Or sign up for AUDIBLE.