Puppet Masters / Castle Freaks

A group of curious kids accidentally unleash an ancient demon from Middle Eastern mythology in the fun effects-driven Moonbeam film DEMON IN THE BOTTLE! Cameron Chaney of Library Macabre joins us for a film discussion, and continues with us as we rhapsodize about the GOOSEBUMPS era of YA horror. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail...

As a special treat, we sat down with a literal member of the Full Moon family: composer Richard Band! Band has scored dozens of Full Moon and Empire films, and we're looking back over his long and storied career!

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram/Threads: @puppetmasters_castlefreaks 

YouTube: @PuppetMastersCastleFre...

Tony Todd was a giant of the genre, and his death last November was deeply felt. So it's nice that we get one more film from him, thanks to CUTTER'S CLUB, a 2005 film long thought lost, but finally recovered and released just this year! Not only do we get some unseen work from Todd at his most deliciously over-the-top, we also get to see one last film from late Full Moon greats like Mac Ahlberg and John Carl Buechler! 

Hosted by Ja...

We're committing ourselves to discussing HELL ASYLUM, Danny Draven's 2002 reality TV ghost flick! A surprisingly gory, effectively shot micro budgeted gem, HELL ASYLUM hearkens back to the brief craze of haunted reality shows like MTV's "Fear" in a fun little thriller. Writer, critic, and all around amazing human Jerry J. Sampson returns to the show!

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by D...

Enroll this semester in the VOODOO ACADEMY, David DeCoteau's quietly groundbreaking queer softcore opus. Considered too risky for most major video store chains, the film still found a devoted cult audience and remains a fascinating piece of queer horror history. We're joined by the amazing writer-filmmaker-urban mystic Sarah Lyons to talk about the film and it's long-delayed sequel 2: VOODOO ACADEMY! 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and ...

Roll them bones! We're taking a chance on THE HAUNTED CASINO, aka DEAD MAN'S HAND, a movie that, believe it or not, takes place in a haunted casino. We're joined by the awesome Katie Hettenbach, aka Katie Afraidy, for this campy old-west throwback that features genre icons like Sid Haig and Michael Berryman!

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastle...

This week, we're checking in to the RAVENWOLF TOWERS from 2016! This bizarre little flick was repurposed from a Full Moon streaming series, that unfortunately was cancelled abruptly in the middle of it's season, just as it was setting itself as a kind of Kushner-Locke era AVENGERS. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram...

We're hitting the streets this week for a double-dose of mid-80s Linda Blair exploitation flicks! We're covering SAVAGE ISLAND, a cobbled-together amalgam of two sleazy women-in-prison movies with a tacked-on Blair wraparound, and as a bonus, we're covering the non-Empire film SAVAGE STREETS, a teen revenge flick that encapsulates the state of Blair's post-EXORCIST career. We're joined this week by the delightful Sean O'Connor of M...

This week we're joined by B-movie (I'm sorry, B-Plus) icon Tiffany Shepis! Tiffany started her career in James Gunn's TROMEO AND JULIET and has gone on to appear in nearly 200 projects, including Full Moon favorite DELTA DELTA DIE! We catch up with Tiffany for a delightful conversation about coming up in the microbudget horror scene and our own double-feature mixed tapes. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by K...

Step right up! This week we're stepping into the SIDESHOW, Fred Olen Ray's loving homage to Tod Browning's FREAKS! Filmmaker Frank Sabatella joins us on our tour through the horrors of this carnival treat. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram/Threads: @puppetmasters_castlefreaks 

YouTube: @PuppetMastersCastleFreaks 

N...

We're back with the PUPPET MASTER series, and the franchise has entered a bumpy transitional period. We're talking about CURSE OF THE PUPPETMASTER, an odd side adventure starring the puppets and a crew of entirely new characters, and RETRO PUPPETMASTER, which takes us all the way back to the beginning of the timeline with Greg Sestero as young Toulon! Author and PM expert is back to walk us through the weird and tortured production...

Two movies for the price of one! This week we're lumping two flicks together for one high-quality episode, with returning guest Jed Shepherd (HOST)! We're talking about 1992's BODY SNATCHERS knockoff SEEDPEOPLE, one of our last films from Full Moon's golden era, and then we're transitioning to an oddball Kushner-Locke era film from David DeCoteau, 1997's SHRIEKER!

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornb...

Pew pew! This week, friend of the show Adam Torkel returns to talk about one of Charlie Band's earliest hits, the sci-fi thriller LASERBLAST from 1978! This film not only looms large in Band's pre-Full Moon catalogue, it also inspired one of the best "Mystery Science Theater 3000" episodes ever! 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail...

This week we're talking about AIMEE: THE VISITOR, a title that could refer to either our movie or our guest! Director and writer Aimee Mayumi Kuge (CANNIBAL MUKBANG) joins us for one of Full Moon's most recent entries, a film that introduces cinema's first AI-generated femme fatale! 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagra...

Full Moon takes on the slasher genre for... the first time? Can that possibly be true? We'll dig into it with BLEED, Devin Hamilton's micro-budget SCREAM-a-like that has more twists than they know what to do with. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram/Threads: @puppetmasters_castlefreaks 

YouTube: @PuppetMastersCastleF...

One of the quietly more controversial Full Moon films, the fun giant arachnid flick DEADLY STINGERS marked the contentious end of the Tempe era and sent the studio off on a new path. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram/Threads: @puppetmasters_castlefreaks 

YouTube: @PuppetMastersCastleFreaks 

Next week's episode: Ble...

We're going guestless this week for one of the most recent Full Moon films, DEATH STREAMER! This movie tries to bring vampire mythology into the modern age, and in the process helps kick off a new Full Moon sublabel, the sordid Pulp Noir! 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle Hornbeck 

Logo by Doug McCambridge 

Email: puppetmasterscastlefreaks@gmail.com

Instagram/Threads: @puppetmasters_castlefreaks 

YouTu...

Finally, the cinematic showdown between lingerie models and leprechauns that we all didn't know we needed! We're talking about UNLUCKY CHARMS, a deeply silly 2013 flick that is the only Full Moon movie, and maybe the only movie period, to be packaged with a novelty box of cereal. We're joined by the great Matt Orozco of Macabre Daily for this bizarre little confection. 

Hosted by Jarrod Hornbeck and Steve Guntli 

Theme song by Kyle...

2002's dark psychosexual thriller DEATHBED may have limited production values, but there's a smart and incisive story at the heart of it. Stuart Gordon saw it, too, and added it to his short-lived sublabel of STUART GORDON PRESENTS films, which aimed to bring Full Moon back to it's darker, nastier days. We're discussing the film with none other than Danny Draven, the director of this film plus many other Full Moon titles (HORRORVIS...