Oscar as the kid who fell through every crack in the social safety net — absent parents, unchecked bullying, zero adult intervention

The film's place in the Nordic noir tradition alongside The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — horror as a lens on the failures of Scandinavian social democracy

Eli as an ageless predator disguised as a child — the anti-romantic vampire, feeding scenes played as animal attacks rather than seduction

The castration subplot: the book, the brief film moment, and how it connects to the history of the castrati and the "monstrous trans" trope in horror (Silence of the Lambs, Sleepaway Camp)

That pool scene — one of the top 10 horror scenes ever committed to film, don't @ us

The grooming debate: Is the ending a love story or a tragedy on repeat? (Spoiler: it's the second one)

Top 3 vampire films: Let the Right One In, Coppola's Dracula, The Lost Boys (According to Johnathon)

What We've Been Watching: 28 Years Later, Abraham's Boys, The Thing, The Abominable Snowman, The Shining, Together

Coming Soon: Scream 7, Undertone (A24)

Next Month: True Detective Season 1 with the Baldwin Boys!

Weapons confused us until it didn't. The Long Walk made Levi cry. 28 Years Later pissed off Jonathan because The Walking Dead ruined everything. And somewhere in there, we imagined Lloyd the bartender giving Jack Torrance relationship advice.

Films Discussed: Frankenstein, Sinners, Weapons, The Long Walk, 28 Years Later, Bring Her Back, Companion, The Monkey, The Ugly Stepsister, Silent Night Deadly Night, Welcome to Derry, Nosferatu, and—of course—Maximum Overdrive.

Coming in 2026: Werwolf (it's spelled that way, we checked), Clayface, and whatever nightmare the Pinocchio public domain is cooking up.

Give Caleb's wine podcast Natural State of Wine a listen—he's a level two sommelier and will make you a better person, probably.

• Rowan Campbell returns to horror after Halloween Ends, once again playing the tortured guy nobody trusted

• The Nazi barn scene: Makes zero geographic sense. Maximum entertainment value. Very Indiana Jones.

• A spirited debate about why modern horror will gleefully show you intestines but treats consensual nudity like radioactive material

• Budget: $750k. Box office: $3 million. Verdict: Added to the annual Christmas horror rotation.

• Brief tangent about Luigi Mangione, because of course

• Levi's history lesson on Christmas drinking traditions—turns out our ancestors got absolutely hammered for 12 days straight and we've been cowards ever since

• Coming up: New Year's episode with the Baldwin boys

• Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023)

Things We Discussed:

• Why Christopher Robin abandoning his woodland friends turns them into rage-fueled killers (relatable)
• The beauty of democracy: bastardizing beloved characters the second copyright expires
• Where's Tigger? (Answer: safe in copyright jail until the sequel)
• That surprisingly decent animated opening vs. everything that follows
• 80s slasher vibes meet sexist trash aesthetics
• Why elevated horror fatigue is real and trash cinema has its place
• Other recent disappointments: Keeper, Shelby Oaks
• Looking forward to: Nosferatu, Silent Night Deadly Night

The Verdict: Tasty trash or tasteless trash? You decide. Either way, bring friends who can handle knowing you watched this.

Film Discussed: Velvet Buzzsaw (2019), directed by Dan Gilroy

Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, John Malkovich, Toni Collette, Zawe Ashton, Tom Sturridge

Wines Featured:

• Lovehammer Cabernet 2020, Pine Mountain, Slow Jam's Vineyard
• Dominique Renard Rosé Champagne
• Jordan Chardonnay 2022

Key Discussion Topics:

• The pretension and exploitation in the contemporary art world
• Authenticity vs. hype in wine, art, and culture
• Haunted/cursed art as a horror subgenre (references to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Pickman's Model)
• Why visual art gets more latitude for bullshit than other art forms
• The film's morality play about respecting an artist's final wishes
• Memorable deaths: the sphere, Hobo Man, paintings that literally kill

References: HP Lovecraft's "Pickman's Model," The Devil's Candy, Candyman (2021), Nightcrawler, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Ongo Gablogian

• Back from a 6-month break (Levi's "summer slumber")
• Spooky season timing couldn't be better
• Beer of choice: Maharaja IPA from Avery Brewing ("battery acid in a can")

Phantoms (1998)

• Directed by Joe Chappelle (Halloween: Curse of Michael Myers)
• Written by Dean Koontz, adapting his own novel
• Starring baby-faced Ben Affleck as a sheriff/ex-FBI agent
• Features Peter O'Toole bringing gravitas to exposition dumps
• Rose McGowan and Joanna Going in peak Miramax era roles

Plot Discussion

• Small Colorado town mysteriously empty (before it was cool)
• Ancient enemy that's basically primordial ooze meets ChatGPT
• Lovecraftian influences mixed with The Thing vibes
• Pacing issues: "It's a four-act movie pretending to be three"
• CGI that aged like milk left in the sun

Peter O'Toole Appreciation Corner

• From Lawrence of Arabia to... this
• Survived pancreatic cancer in the '70s (absolute legend)
• Professional drinker, occasional actor
• Died in 2012 at 80

October Horror Plans

• Pumpkinhead (Kentucky hillbillies and monsters)
• Witchfinder General (Vincent Price at his cruelest)
• Discussion of recent releases: Sinners, Weapons, The Long Walk

Random Tangents

• SSRIs and their gill-growing properties
• The bridge troll health guru phenomenon
• Why cigarettes are actually good for you (they're not)
• Ben Affleck's chin as a character unto itself

Rating: Mixed bag - great concept, questionable execution, worth it for Liev Schreiber's creepy giggle alone

Do you idolatry?

We idolatry.

INSTAGRAM: @well_adjustedpodcast

THREADS: @well_adjustedpodcast

X: @wellhorror

Bluesky: @well-adjusted

Topics discussed:

• The gruesome effects of radiation poisoning
• The political horror show of the Soviet system 
• The existential dread that'll make you question everything 
• The incredible attention to detail and tension-building
• The powerhouse performances by Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, and Emily Watson

patreon.com/welladjusted

Follow us on:

X:@wellhorror

Instagram:@well_adjustedpodcast

Threads:@well_adjustedpodcast

Bluesky:@welladjustedpodcast

Levi's short film : https://youtu.be/xzTIg6Iqfh0?si=CCXnpZBf3l6REm2d

X: @wellhorror

Instagram and Threads: @well_adjustedpodcast

Levi's short film "Madness Within" : https://youtu.be/xzTIg6Iqfh0?si=7wsxkltp7kpwcFME

INSTAGRAM: @well_adjustedpodcast 

X:@wellhorror

THREADS:@well_adjustedpodcast 

BLUESKY: @well-adjusted.bsky.social 

Themes: Spectacle vs significance, capitalism vs family, animals vs humans, and aliens vs ... everybody.

patreon.com/WellAdjusted

Check out Levi's short film, Flight:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxldWAMMrBU

But this week's movie is not okay. It's the cold war. It's West Germany. Sam Neil is a spy who can read anyone but his beloved — and maybe the tentacle monster she spawns to replace him?

Check.

Zombies?

Check.

A severed head in a compromising position with a co-ed?

Check.

The boys lose their heads with a celebration of their favorite carnival ride of a movie, H.P. Lovecraft's Re-Animator.

Is it a  strait-forward haunting tale punching above its weight because of the based-on-true-story angle?

Or is it a more subtle allegory about economic anxiety?

It may not be the best sequel ever made, but what an electrifying ending!

Also, what does it take to lose a mayoral election in Amity?

This one has all the ingredients of a great King adaption — rabble-rousing yokels, nostalgic voice overs, and a severed head in the first 5 minutes.

Also, dad hats.

It's been called "the perfect bad" movie, and the boys agree with that, except for the "bad" part.

Press play and join the love fest for one of the best genre movies ever made.

Levi kicks it off with a look at the generational divide that made this movie such a bombshell upon its release, while Johnathon sheds light on the process of becoming a cranky old man. From there the boys quickly get into the deep water of the movie's theology. What does it mean to depict supernatural evil but no supernatural good? Does the God invoked in this movie save his servants, or are our two hero priests left alone in their sacrifice? 

Give it a listen.

Brad Pitt is beautiful and sad. Tom Cruise is beautiful and angry. Antonio Banderas is beautiful and confused about consent.

Also, theater kids are insufferable.

And this week's movie has it all — switchblades, strippers, albino street thugs, asian stereotypes, and oh yeah, VAMPIRES.

One thing is certain: Werner Herzog is a genius, even when the boys struggle to follow his vision.

Also, check out the trailer for Levi's short film on YouTube:

In a world beset by people punching flight attendants, screaming at waiters, and otherwise making asses of themselves, is Hannibal the hero we deserve?

Also discussed: the purpose of manners and etiquette, the taboo of cannibalism, and the importance of aesthetics.

Sure, multiple killers are running around in Santa suits, but at least the young ladies in the cast get to sneak their boyfriends into their boarding school for a fun filled weekend.

Also discussed: Twitter trolls, hiring assassins online, why Americans are losing their minds in record numbers, and why we need more insane asylums. 

Some terrible movies we forgive because of budget constraints. Some terrible movies we forgive because of the heroic efforts of the cast. Some terrible movies we forgive because the movie is in on the joke. 

And some we forgive because cocaine is one hell of a drug.

Not this one. 

It's the Christmas season. And Gary Busey is still beyond the help of the sweet baby Jesus. 

Emotional repression, psychological oppression, sexual oppression, bad weather ... you get the idea.

Oh, and ghosts. 

Levi admires the stiff upper lip Brits display under duress, while Johnathon finds himself reluctantly admiring the censor board (sort of). 

Questions asked : What rate of change can a culture endure before the wheels come off? Is there a non-authoritarian way of slowing things down? How many seconds of an eye gouging scene does a movie need? And why is Levi obsessed with the Brits?

Bonus follow up discussion of The Monster Squad.

But don't worry, Johnathon immediately derails him with a mini rant on cancel culture. You can't cancel Frankenstein!

John Carpenter's The Fog (1980) starts with an old man scaring the hell out of some little kids with a campfire ghost story, and it only gets better from there.

Levi  celebrates the scream queen royalty in the cast, as well as the creepy New England lighthouse vibe (despite the movie being set in California).

Johnathon is convinced he and Adrian Barbeau could be happy together. Johnathon is also convinced he would have made a decent priest. Johnathon has issues.

This week the boys revisit Night of the Creeps (1986), a hilarious horror mashup that's part detective noir, part zombie film, part college coming-of-age story, and all awesome. Tom Atkins (from John Carpenter's The Fog) gives a performance for the ages as a hard boiled detective investigating a series of mysterious deaths. 

Aliens, an escaped  mental patient, a sorority formal, a flamethrower, and too many one liners to count.

Even Levi liked this one. 

In this episode, we nerd out on all things King, discuss whether the social environment in high schools has improved, and consider mean girls as villains.

Check out our new YouTube Channel: 

Tying them together is the Lovecraft-inspired Don't Breathe, a 2016 movie about a romantic bed and breakfast run by a kindly disabled veteran played by Stephen Lang.

From Samuel Jackson's shocking and hilarious exit to Michael Rapaport's Shakespearean acting chops, everyone finds something to sink their teeth into. 

Also, some JAWS followup from our previous episode and some belated praise for the late Richard Donner. 

Finally, Levi reveals a scandalous sexual confession. It's gonna be a hot podcaster summer, y'all.

Alternate title: Theses rhymes with feces.

Topics covered: math as demonology, latin as bad news, and what's up with the recent UFO discussions in the mainstream media?

Discussion of the movie's hero leads to a deep dive on the causes of procrastination and why we so often put off the things that are most important to our well being.

Watch Saint Maud on Amazon Prime.

If you find yourself in the mood for a perfect cocktail to accompany your listening, check out this special episode from Griffith Goods and Spirits. They don't call it the chest burster for nothing.

Levi defends Godzilla's place as the most iconic of all movie monsters, while Johnathon wonders if and when we'll ever account for all the losses of the COVID years. 

Also, don't miss the new theme song in the intro. Long live the banjo.

Also, whatever you do, don't get a degree in the humanities. 

Levi's list of recommended horror stories:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XBQmakZnZC8fdTrYos6AQOMEWP4y5umQN5HzZpGCnj4/edit?usp=sharing

This one has it all: John Saxon as the archetypal police detective, Margot Kidder before she was Lois Lane, a sorority house mom with a drinking problem, and the first-ever instance of the killer calling from inside the house.

Levi bemoans the loss of innocence when belief in Santa wanes. Johnathon wants more Linnea Quiqley. 

Also, Xmas is quite literally the darkest time of the year from our recording latitude. Science!

The first is a film ostensibly about a 70s housewife finding liberation through witchcraft and mariticide; the second is one of the most original and disturbing takes on vampirism you'll ever see.

Also discussed: do a person's political leanings / ideology affect their reaction to horror stories? 

Hat tip to Caleb for the title.

Levi wonders whether COVID fatigue is similar to zombie fatigue. In both cases, how long can the human spirit endure? Johnathon has kind words about the 2004 remake, despite its use of fast zombies. 

And both wax nostalgic for the lost era of shopping malls.

Johnathon and Levi discuss the lost art of monologuing, whether supernatural evil is de facto proof of supernatural good, and one of the best jump scares in the history of cinema.