It Comes at Night (Trey Edward Shults, 2017)

In this episode, Stacey and Matthew sit down to talk about Trey Edward Shults' It Comes at Night (2017), starring Joel Edgerton, Riley Keough, Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo, and Kelvin Harrison Jr. This post-apocalyptic horror film explores the dynamics of two families who decide to live in the same house in hopes of increasing their chances of survival, and whose secrecy and mistrust eventually lead to a horrific set of tragedies. In this conversation, we discuss how alienation factors into racial tensions both between and within the two family units, and how commensality and shared spaces might function in times of crisis. 

Film: It Comes at Night (Trey Edward Shults, 2017) Intro Music: “The Army of You” (Library of Congress Free Music Archive) Outro Music: “Late Night Indigo” (written and performed by Stacey Baran)

Fear of the Dark is a film podcast about race and horror, hosted by Matthew Vernon and Stacey Baran. Episode edited by Matthew Vernon. Mixdown and mastering by Stacey Baran.