This Subgenre Spotlight examines Hicksploitation, a unique branch of horror and exploitation cinema rooted in the tension between urban modernity and rural isolation. Defined by grotesque families, backwoods violence, and class-based anxiety, the subgenre transforms the countryside into a site of both moral transgression and cultural reflection. Across its evolution from early moral scandals to grindhouse terror, camp satire, and contemporary homages Hicksploitation has remained a mirror for fears about class, geography, and civilization’s thin veneer. It dramatizes the collision between outsiders and the “other” America, turning stereotypes of poverty, ignorance, and inbreeding into both spectacle and critique. Through its mixture of violence, dark humor, and social commentary, Hicksploitation continues to explore how isolation erodes civility and how horror thrives in the margins of society.

FILMS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE:

Child Bride (1938), Two Thousand Maniacs! (1964), Mudhoney (1965), Spider Baby or the Maddest Story Ever Told (1967), Daddy’s Deadly Darling (1972), Deliverance (1972), Deranged (1974), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), Eaten Alive (1976), The Hills Have Eyes (1977), Rabid (1977), Motel Hell (1980), Redneck Zombies (1987), Ozone! Attack of the Redneck Mutants (1986), Mad Jake (1990), Nothing But Trouble (1991), Cabin Fever (2002), High Tension (2003), House of 1000 Corpses (2003), Wrong Turn (2003), The Devil’s Rejects (2005), Hatchet (2006), Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010)

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Music:

Twisting, Half Mystery, Exit The Premises

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

FILM RANKINGS UPDATED AFTER EVERY EPISODE!!!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

In this episode, we thaw out one of horror’s coldest masterpieces, John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982). What starts as a monster movie quickly mutates into a study of paranoia, isolation, and trust disintegrating at subzero temperatures. We talk melting faces, flamethrower diplomacy, and the art of not knowing who’s human anymore. Equal parts gross, genius, and existentially terrifying, The Thing remains the gold standard for practical effects and icy dread. It's proof that sometimes the scariest thing in the room is everyone. It’s cold. It's cruel. It's the kind of horror that makes you question your friends, your coworkers, and maybe even your dog.

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⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

Our Film Rankings:

160 - Film Rankings After The Thing (1982)

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NOTE: In case we failed to mention the end date for the secret word discount at the store when recording this episode, it is October 26, 2025.

Episode Segments:

1. Welcome
2. Outside The Podcast Discussion
3. Film Studies Lesson Of The Day
4. Breaking News
5. What Is This Film About? - Synopsis, Genres, Themes, Insights, And Facts (Curated by Sunni)
6. Vital Statistics
7. Things That Happen In The Film
8. Analysis - Social Commentary, Inspirations, And Cultural Placement (Curated by James)
9. Trivia
10. Critical Reception (Including our rankings)
11. Final Thoughts

Music:

Exit The Premises, Loping Stings, Cloud Dancer

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Intro Remix 2 by Timbre Milton.

-- https://freesound.org/s/86862/ --

License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0

Breaking News Intro

By: Luis Humanoide (Via pixabay)

FILM RANKINGS UPDATED AFTER EVERY EPISODE!!!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

So this movie starts with two orphaned step-siblings moving in with their foster mom and thinking, “How weird can this get?” And then it gets very weird. Laura, the foster mom with unresolved trauma, is up to something occult, Oliver is a mute boy with creepy vibes, and Andy watches things fall apart like someone spilled ritual ingredients all over sanity. It’s emotional, gross, sad, and occasionally horrifying in ways you didn’t see coming.

Instagram:

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⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

Our Film Rankings:

159 - Film Rankings After Bring Her Back (2025)

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NOTE: In case we failed to mention the end date for the secret word discount at the store when recording this episode, it is October 19, 2025.

Episode Segments:

1. Welcome
2. Outside The Podcast Discussion
3. Film Studies Lesson Of The Day
4. Breaking News
5. What Is This Film About? - Synopsis, Genres, Themes, Insights, And Facts (Curated by Sunni)
6. Vital Statistics
7. Things That Happen In The Film
8. Analysis - Social Commentary, Inspirations, And Cultural Placement (Curated by James)
9. Trivia
10. Critical Reception (Including our rankings)
11. Final Thoughts

Music:

Exit The Premises, Loping Stings, Boogie Party

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Intro Remix 2 by Timbre Milton.

-- https://freesound.org/s/86862/ --

License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0

Breaking News Intro

By: Luis Humanoide (Via pixabay)

FILM RANKINGS UPDATE⁠

In this episode, we are once again digging up a true classic. Today, we are revisiting and reevaluating Frankenstein (1931), the film that quite literally electrified horror cinema. Nearly a century later, it’s still hauntingly beautiful, terribly tragic, and shockingly human for a movie about grave robbing and lightning-based life hacks. We talk mad science, misunderstood monsters, and why Boris Karloff’s performance remains one of the most heartbreaking in horror history. Will Sunni's feelings improve upon rewatch? Will James still hold the film in such high regard? It’s alive… again! And honestly? It’s never looked better.

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⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

Our Film Rankings:

⁠RV 3.02 - Film Rankings After Revisiting Frankenstein (1931)

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NOTE: In case we failed to mention the end date for the secret word discount at the store when recording this episode, it is October 19, 2025.

Music:

Rocket, Exit The Premises, Loping Stings, Cool Hard Facts

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Intro Remix 2 by Timbre Milton.

-- https://freesound.org/s/86862/ --

License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0

In this chapter, we examine how splatter evolved from underground provocation to mainstream institution, filtering its way into the most conventional forms of horror throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Once taboo, gore became a central spectacle within the slasher and supernatural franchises that defined the era—each sequel striving to outdo the last in creative mutilation. From the summer-camp carnage to surreal viscera and the metaphysical fleshcraft, splatter transformed from transgression to tradition. These decades reveal how gore became not only an aesthetic but an industrial engine, driving sequels, sparking moral outrage, and solidifying the body as the ultimate site of horror’s evolution.

FILMS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE:

The Halloween Franchise (1978–present), The Friday the 13th Franchise (1980–present), The Burning (1981), The Evil Dead Franchise (1981–present), The Sleepaway Camp Franchise (1983–present), The Silent Night, Deadly Night Franchise (1984–1991), Street Trash (1987), The Hellraiser Franchise (1987–present),

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⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠

⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠

Email us:

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Music:

Waltz Primordial, Galactic Rap, Exit The Premises

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

FILM RANKINGS UPDATED AFTER EVERY EPISODE!!!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Spirit Halloween: The Movie (2022) is exactly what you’d expect from a movie based on a store that materializes in abandoned Kmarts every October... and somehow, it’s even funnier for it. A group of kids get trapped overnight (on purpose, no less) in the most haunted seasonal retailer in America, where the animatronics come to life and the budget politely stays in the corner. It’s part Goosebumps, part corporate product placement séance, and all Halloween spirit... literally. It’s the kind of movie that makes you nostalgic for bad carpet, flickering fluorescent lights, and the faint smell of plastic masks and broken dreams.

Instagram:

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⁠https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠

⁠https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠

Our Film Rankings:

⁠158 - Film Rankings After Spirit Halloween: The Movie (2022)

Email us:

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Find our store on Facebook and Instagram:

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NOTE: In case we failed to mention the end date for the secret word discount at the store when recording this episode, it is October 19, 2025.

Episode Segments:

1. Welcome
2. Outside The Podcast Discussion
3. Film Studies Lesson Of The Day
4. Breaking News
5. What Is This Film About? - Synopsis, Genres, Themes, Insights, And Facts (Curated by Sunni)
6. Vital Statistics
7. Things That Happen In The Film
8. Analysis - Social Commentary, Inspirations, And Cultural Placement (Curated by James)
9. Trivia
10. Critical Reception (Including our rankings)
11. Final Thoughts

Music:

Exit The Premises, Loping Stings, Mccary Bay

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Intro Remix 2 by Timbre Milton.

-- https://freesound.org/s/86862/ --

License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0

Breaking News Intro

By: Luis Humanoide (Via pixabay)

FILM RANKINGS UPDATED AFTER EVERY EPISODE!!!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Who knew a robot could get a glow-up and a vendetta? M3GAN returns upgraded to face off against AMELIA, a rogue military android with a serious attitude problem. Gemma and Cady get caught in the crossfire of sparks, lasers, and robot one-liners that are somehow both adorable and terrifying. The chaos gets an upgrade in this sequel, delivering a non-stop, hilariously violent, and surprisingly clever thrill ride. From AI-powered mayhem to inventive kill sequences, this film gleefully and unapologetically leans into it's own absurdity.

Instagram:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/a.darkish.cinema.podcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

https://www.instagram.com/james.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/

https://www.instagram.com/sunni.a.darkish.cinema.podcast/

Our Film Rankings:

157 - Film Rankings After M3GAN 2.0 (2025)

Email us:

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Find our store on Facebook and Instagram:

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NOTE: In case we failed to mention the end date for the secret word discount at the store when recording this episode, it is October 12, 2025.

Episode Segments:

1. Welcome
2. Outside The Podcast Discussion
3. Film Studies Lesson Of The Day
4. Breaking News
5. What Is This Film About? - Synopsis, Genres, Themes, Insights, And Facts (Curated by Sunni)
6. Vital Statistics
7. Things That Happen In The Film
8. Analysis - Social Commentary, Inspirations, And Cultural Placement (Curated by James)
9. Trivia
10. Critical Reception (Including our rankings)
11. Final Thoughts

Music:

Exit The Premises, Loping Stings, Fantasia Fantasia

By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Intro Remix 2 by Timbre Milton.

-- https://freesound.org/s/86862/ --

License: Attribution NonCommercial 3.0

Breaking News Intro

By: Luis Humanoide (Via pixabay)