The Horror Returns - THR - Ep. #366: Psycho Retrospective - Psycho III (1986) & Psycho IV: The Beginning (1990)

Episode Date: May 29, 2023

This week, Bede and Marcey from The Super Network take over as Lance and Nez are missing in action somewhere in Texas. Last known location: Texas Frightmare. We continue our Psycho retrospective. Cool of the Week includes MLB The Show 2023, Renfield, and John Wick Chapter 4. Trailer is The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster. The podcast spotlight shines on Plug It Up. and we get feedback from Beyond the Void, Ernest Rivas, Cameron Sullivan, Xim Vader, David Day, Stephen Lowblad, Patrick Lear, and Brandon Starocci. Thanks for listening! The Horror Returns Website: https://thehorrorreturns.com THR YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@thehorrorreturnspodcast3277 THR Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thehorrorreturns THR Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehorrorreturns/ Join THR Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1056143707851246 THR Twitter: https://twitter.com/horror_returns?s=21&t=XKcrrOBZ7mzjwJY0ZJWrGA THR Instagram: https://instagram.com/thehorrorreturns?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= THR TeePublic: https://www.teepublic.com/user/the-horror-returns SK8ER Nez Podcast Network: https://www.podbean.com/pu/pbblog-p3n57-c4166 E Society Spotify For Podcasters: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/esoc E Society YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/channel/UCliC6x_a7p3kTV_0LC4S10A Music By: Steve Carleton Of The Geekz  

victims, for those of you who delight and dread, who fantasize about fear, who glorify gore, welcome. You have found the place where the horror returns. Listeners beware. This podcast contains major plot spoilers and the foulest of the last of the world. language, join us in celebrating the old and the new, the best, and the worst in horror. And welcome to the horror returns. Oh, wait a minute, that's a Lance. It's me, Bean Jibind. From the Super Network and me versus the Living Dead, I'm taking over this

episode of The Horror Returns this week, or at least me and my Super Podcast co-host, Super Game straight. Exactly. But, yes, Super Network takes over. Exactly. Because some of the reason, Lance, who's not here for this episode

due to some family stuff. So I've taken over the episode, or at least he wanted me to. But, yes, we're here. And, of course, the actual real co-hosts of this show, Brian and Phil.

Hello, guys. How's it going? Thank you for having a song. Yeah. That's it. It must feel weird being guests. I guess it feels weird being guests on your own podcast. This is always the first time for everything. Exactly.

It's not like there's ever really a real theme to these things. So we just kind of roll with it. Exactly. Exactly. And of course, as I said it before, with us, of course, it is Super Marcy from the Super Network. Hello, Marcy. How are you?

Hello. Yes, I'm the most important one because I'm back on the horror returns. Indeed, indeed. I'm sort of trying to remember the last time. Actually, you know what? I do remember the last time you and I were on an episode together, Marcy. That was for the double feature of dead rigors and crimes of the future. That was a while ago.

I didn't do an episode with Batch, which was the full moon one. Yeah. I remember, what do we watch, Doll Man and Puppet Master? and I had batch with me from one of our other shows. And I did the previous Four Moon episode last week. Yeah. We love our film moon. Yes, exactly, exactly.

Far worse than the original Puppet Master. Yes, yes. But that's not going to stop me from watching the other films in the series. It's not stopping me from playing the Puppet Master game either. That is true. That is true, which we will have to play at some point. but we'll get that out of the way. Of course, this is the section of the show, which is Cooles of the week.

Who would like to go first? I'm picky on you, Phil. Yeah, I'll jump in because mine are always shitty anyway, and I haven't watched anything. But I have been playing this MLB, The Show, 23, and I'm so stuck on it. I get very one-track-minded, and so I've been playing the shit out of this game. But I ended up on the Astros, and we're on our way to the world. series for 2024, actually.

Steve Carlson's favorite team. Yeah, that's what I hear. What he told me. Allegedly, allegedly, allegedly, as we say

on the TV Tuesdays podcast. And yeah, my kid ended up making all-stars, so we're in practice for that every day. And it's good time. Nice.

Well, congrats with that. And, Marcy, what is your call of the week? or not so cool of the week. No, I'll have a call of the week. I actually forgot this was a thing,

so I've had to scramble and think of what it could be. That's usually where I'm at every week. Usually. All right. I'm going to give it to Renfield because we... Nice. Yes. We've watched that recently,

and I thought it was a very fucking awesome movie that I related to. On a lot of levels. I mean, look, it's Nicholas Cage's Dracula, so I can't complain at all. But it was very much my kind of movie, so I had a great damn time with it. Yeah, 100% better than I expected it to be.

Oh, yeah. It went places, and it was quite a wild ride, but I'm glad things were very positive at the end. Yes, yes And what about you, Brian? Do you have a whole list of stuff to give us? Yeah, per usual, yeah. Yes.

Well, we're going to segue from Renfield to another Nicholas Cage movie I actually checked out last night. Nicholas Cage is a Western the Old Way. Ooh. Never seen it. I kind of had fun with it. Just there's nothing this man can't do in playing an old grizzles. former, I think he was kind of like a bounty hunter that

got married and kind of changed over and made a new life for himself. And of course, situations happen and he has to get revenge. And it has a lot of if you don't know the actor's names, it's a lot of, oh, I've seen that

person before. The most notable one was Clint Howard's, one of the henchmen of the bad guy. Oh, nice. So, yeah, I had a good time. It was a decent Western. One that wasn't that I was going to, I was kind of hoping it was going to be was

Oregon Trail. Oh, is that out? Oh, yes. The organ trial. I was disappointed. It's shot well. It's acted well. It's just, it's kind of dull.

And it's not what I thought the movie was going to be. I thought it was going to be the hardships of. them going through this trail. There are some gruesome moments in it. But it just... There wasn't no dysentery. There's no dysentery. It's not like the game. What is this bullshit?

Yeah, so that one was kind of a letdown. Another letdown, well, it wasn't really a let down. I haven't really heard of this movie was... I think it's fairly new to Netflix. It's called White Noise, starting... What's his name?

Lauren. Adam Driver. I couldn't get the humor of this movie. It reminded me of that other Adam Driver movie. The Dead Don't Die. Yeah, he does some weird stuff. Wasn't it another movie called White Noise?

Yeah, I think it's a Michael Keaton. Yeah. Oh, yeah, I did see that Michael Keaton one. So, yeah, watch the Michael Keaton one. Don't watch the Adam Driver one. Yeah, I I did see that one as well. I kind of was like an air on it, to be honest.

I didn't know what was going on half the time. It took me two tries to finish it because halfway through, I just turned it off. Because I wasn't getting the humor. I understand what was going on in a movie. But just, I don't know. It just. Yeah, sometimes they try to be funny by, like, being quirky and it doesn't always work. Yeah.

But my cool week is a movie that Lance didn't really like that much. And that was John Wick Chapter 4. Oh, I haven't seen it yet. Oh, I thought it was great. I had so much fun with it. Yes, it is almost three hours, but there's so much action packed in this movie. I didn't not look at the time and it was like, when is this movie going to be over? so many cameos.

Donnie N. Steels it. I wouldn't mind seeing a spinoff movie of him. I forget the actor's name, but the character that played, I think they just called him Nobody. He was the one that had the dog this time. I would kind of like to see something more of his backstory,

because, I mean, you don't really get anything about him other than he just calls himself nobody. And, yeah, I'm a little disappointed that now they're trying to squeeze out a fifth movie. Because I thought it kind of ended nicely. It felt like a good ending, but, yeah, I guess we'll see what they end up doing. Yeah, sure. Yeah, I don't know what Lance was talking about. He said it was too ridiculous and it was too much world building.

And I'm like, that's what you got in the first three movies. Exactly. Yeah, exactly. But yeah. And also, sorry, go ahead. No, go ahead. I was just going to say John Wicks. It was a good time.

I enjoyed it. Yeah, I mean, it is an awesome movie. And I also love two other things about it. A, Scott Atkins and a fat suit. He was pretty memorable. Oh, my God. He was like, I can't even describe it. It was something else.

Yes. And also, it has probably one of the greatest action set pieces I've seen in a movie in a while. It's the staircase scene. Oh, my God. It's amazing. Just when you think he can't fall down any more stairs. Even the sequence with the nunchucks, I mean, it was, you've seen many scenes with people using nunchucks, but it just seemed like there wasn't real, nothing flashy about it,

everything, every use for the nunchuk was practical. And just even when he wasn't using it, he'd just flip it around his neck and just hold it there until he needed it again. The John book movies have been very practical as far as fighting goes. It's not a bunch of just dancing. It's like actual useful fighting stuff. If there

was a little bit of a letdown, I probably would have wanted to see more between Keanu Reeves and Bill Scarsgaard at the end. Just I don't. I mean, I like how it ended, but I just would have seen some sort of fight scene between them, too.

Oh, yeah, for sure, for sure. I'll watch John Wick until... And I'll watch John Wick until the Rock shows up and starts flying cars into space. Definitely. That's what's going to happen in Pop 5. I guarantee it. John Wick in space. John Wick.

in Fast X2. Yes. Would you check out this week, me? Well, speaking of the Rock in Space, which is a good segue.

I did check out one of my calls of the week, I did see Fast X, which is the latest. I really enjoyed it a lot, but then again, I do enjoy the Fast and Furious films, despite what Leant says,

and I can say that because he's not here. I still don't. why he went to see their movie. Well, I mean, you're getting exactly what you want from the Fastly Furious franchise in this film. Like, the action is great. Yeah, the story doesn't make entirely 100% sense, but it's really cool kind of seeing the cast and all together and also the newest additions that they added to it as well.

And also, I will say that Jason Momoa is absolutely fantastic as the villain. He's probably the best villain. that the series has had so far. Very over the top, he's very cartoonish, but he really has a citizen side to him. So I can definitely see how some people have compared his performance to the Joker, because it has a lot of Joker vibes to it.

Okay. And it's kind of worth it this to see his performance. And of course, like it actually adds a bit more stakes to the story as well. So I'll be kind of curious to see how, what's gonna happen in the next one. So, but then I hear that there's possibility there's going to be two other movies now. But, but, no, I really enjoyed this one.

I thought it was a good time. And I guess my other call the week is, well, since, given that we're talking about the two films we're talking about today, which is Psycho Free and Psycho 4 at the beginning, I decided to go back and rewatch Psycho 2 because I hadn't seen that in a while. And, yeah, that's definitely a very, such a great. and underrated sequel, that one. That movie had no right to be as good as it was. Oh, yeah. That's it. Yep, exactly.

And also, it's kind of the, I guess you can say, it's like one of the first legacy sequels in a way when you kind of think about it. Yeah. But, yeah, I guess other than that, those are kind of my calls for the weeks. No, not so cool in the weeks. I mean, not so cool picks.

this week from me. But we'll move right along to the next segment, which is horror headlines. Brian, what headlines are out there on the internet at the moment? Not many again this week. Another slow week for horror news. I think we'll start out with we're about to get Insidious 5. I believe it's called Insidious the Red Door. They seem to be really high on that one, that they've already greenlit a,

I guess a spinoff movie titled Thread and Insidious Tale. And rumor is they're getting Mandy Moore and Kumel and Johnny to star in that one. Okay. Well, I guess the other rate, I guess sort of thinking about it, I guess that based on what they've seen so far of the new one, that they think, oh, there's a lot of potential heads. They're like amping up the marketing for it. And now we're getting a spit-off film. I've got to curious, especially with Kamel Ninjani and Mandy Moore being part of the cast. I always like Mandy Moore.

I don't know. I didn't think she's that bad of an actress. What was the last thing she's done? She does a lot of, she doesn't do any, like, big budget type movies. It was like some other indie stuff or TV. Yeah, I think, she did a shark movie or something at one. Yeah, she. I think everybody's done a shark movie.

I know. I think she did 47 meters down, I think. Yeah. Yes. That movie. The good one. But I think, yeah. But I think the last few years, I think she's mainly been working on this is us, the TV show.

That was kind of like what you've been doing recently. So now she's, that's finished. And now she's getting back to the movies. Okay. Boy star, the boy star, Jack Quay. Wade, and of course we last seen him in what was it, Scream 5. He is set to star in a new

sci-fi thriller from the same team that made Barbarian called Companion. Okay. You guys think Jack Quay could lead a movie? Yes. Yeah, I think so. Yeah, I think he hasn't,

I don't think he's hit his peak yet. And he's done some really good stuff. He definitely reminds. He's got a bright future. Oh, yeah, and he reminds me of his dad way too much. Yeah. Like, especially when he smiles as like, I see Dennis Quaid right there. But I think he's definitely got the charisma and the likability.

So I can definitely see him, like, you know, going further into leading role territory. Yeah. That's true. Let's see. Yeah, there's not a lot of news. Glenn Danzig's film, Death Rider in the House of Vampires, he seeks distribution. I guess he submitted it for Cannes Film Festival.

Yes. He's like, fucking Rob Zambi's making films. I can't make films. Has anybody seen this movie? I know it got a small release like two or three years ago. No, I've been kind of anxiously wanting to watch it. I mean, his first film, Veronica, is terrible, but it's kind of fascinating at the same time. So I kind of want to watch this one.

Of course he did. Yeah, well, that is true. But mainly because he actually got real actors this time around. Yeah. Like about a favorite. Feratica was so bad. I can't believe it, but I got tired of seeing boobs after a while. It just was so boring.

That's the thing. I think it's weird about this. Like you said, Brian, it came out two years ago. It was released, like a limited release, was never released, like, on DVD or anywhere else. And now he's looking for distribution for it, so I don't know. What's going on?

People saw the movie. It sucks. Yeah. People saw it and it was crap. But I will watch it because our man Marcia, Devonsawa, is the lead of that movie. I mean, gotta watch anything with

the man. Hunter Dunbar. Exactly. Exactly. Still got to record our little skit for that. Yes. I think we'll have to find a day to like sit down and record that one all of us together. It'll happen.

It's going to happen. It ought to be a terrible train wreck. Exactly. That's what we want in life. Yeah, I'm looking here. There's just really nothing. I mean, Ron Perlman. and Rosanna Arquette are going to be in a new horror thriller called Sucubis.

Okay. Yeah. So that's not a movie about me? Probably not the actors I'd pick the put in that movie, but okay. Marcus Dunstan's Slashor, All My Friends Are Dead, starring Joja Siwa is now filming. Nice. Is she like an actor, too? I don't know.

I just remember that she was a YouTube sensation. Yeah, she's like the little kid one, right? Yeah, that my daughter was into for like a week. And then that was it. She's really famous for being famous. Something like that. Yeah, I'm not really seeing anything. There was an Alien versus Predator anime series filmed with 10 episodes

that Disney's had it in its fault for a while that nobody knew about. And it's staying there. You don't think it'll ever be released? Well, given a lot of the controversy with Disney at the moment.

Yeah. With what they're doing right now, it's like really bad. Yeah. They're shelving a lot of original content, like not available anywhere now. I don't know. I feel like the industry

is in kind of a mess. Yeah. Yeah, it sounds like they're almost doing it for like accounting purposes or something instead of real estate. I don't understand it. Yeah. And probably also kind of a residual thing because, you know, there's the writer's strike going on at the moment.

So maybe it might have something to do with that too. So I'm not exactly sure. But yeah, I mean, who would have fought like in this day and age? Like piracy is what's saving cinema right now. But, um. If it wasn't for people cop-like pirating things, there are things that would be just completely lost. Yeah. And if we were taught anything from an era where none of us were alive in the silent era of just non-film preservation, it's so important.

Exactly. It should not be a thing. Release everything at least on physical media. Yes. I agree. Yes. Yeah, exactly. Filmed at least selling.

Yeah, or some company picks it up and then releases it on a DVD and Blu-Rite. Or just send it to Tooby. Yes. Give it to the guy behind Kroger's. He sells all kinds of VHS shit still. Definitely, definitely. And lastly, I guess we'll finish with from the makers of Winnie the Pooh, Blood, and Honey. Bambi the Reckoning.

horror film secures distribution in multiple territories. So this is also happening. But why? Nobody asked for Winnie the Pooh, whatever the hell that was. I haven't seen it, but I've heard many things. And I'm like, no. And now you want to turn Bambi into something. Like, okay, I can understand the appeal, but just no.

I don't know. Well, the director doesn't plan on stopping there. He wants to do something with the Thor name as a horror movie. And Peter Pan, Peter Pan. He wanted to do something with that one, too. Look, I'll give you this. Peter Pan has potential to be horrific. And if anybody has read Alan Moore's Lost Girls,

you'll definitely understand. how that could be, but that's all I say on that. Yeah, I mean, he's stealing kids at night? Peter Pan the pedophile. He's Captain Hook the pedophile. What if Captain Hook's the good guy in this one? Oh, good point. Good point.

Although, I got to say, though, I think if they're going to cast anyone for Bambi, the reckoning, it needs to be The Rock since he's already played Bambi at an S&L sketch going after for revenge. Yes. Yeah, I'm curious to how they're going to do it. Is it going to be like, you know, just a dude with a deer head on? I hope so. That's kind of the Winnie the Pooh, stick.

I mean, it's from the same team, so. Yeah. It's very likely. I think we'll see Bambi just go on this, like, crazy revenge tale to get the hunter that killed its mom. I mean, if he's not wearing fucking rainbow bandana by the end of it and mowing people down, I don't want to see it. It could be like

a set in the same universe as John Wick. Yes. Hell yeah. Yes. All right, that is the news. Indeed. We'll move along to the next segment of the show, which of course is Ed Marcy.

Are you ready to go down to the trailer park? I never usually am, but... I'll fill up on meth and Coke, thanks. Exactly, exactly. So, yes, it's trailer park time. And Brian, what's our trailer for this week? Keeping up with the lack of news, we only have one trailer, and that is the angry black girl and her monster.

quick synopsis it tells the story of a teenage anti-hero Vicar who is on a desperate quest to cured death and this star is sorry about the puppy barking in the background got a new puppy

Leah Delion Hayes Chad L. Coleman Denzel Whitaker and a guy for a quick second I thought was John Travolta but is Tim Perez Ross. His IMDV pictures very John Travolta. This is directed and written by BOMani J. Story. Marcy, you did not watch it? I did not because I forgot. Okay. It's okay. I'm going to throw it to

be it. Yeah, I actually really dug the trailer a lot. Like, it's an interesting different take on the Frankenstein story. Well, obviously, that's what the film is based on. But I'm very curious. to see how this one turns out. It actually looks really good. Like, it's got good atmosphere. The acting seems to be pretty good. And also, they sort of take on the actual Frankenstein monster looks really cool, too. So, yeah, I've definitely doubt for checking out this one.

And also, I have an affinity for the Frankenstein story. So I'll watch any version that is out there on this one. Yeah, I agree with you. I love the take on Frankenstein, a modern-day take on it. It looks really well-made. The acting looks pretty good. And even throwing a little creepy kid that the little young girl that seems to be friend, the monster, which wanted to see how that story plays out. Because it seemed like everybody knew each other in this neighborhood, but she doesn't recognize the older girl's brother is the monster.

So I kind of want to see how that story plays out. So, yeah, I'm all enough for this one. Yeah, I mean, despite the obviously racial name to the movie, because I kind of rolled my eyes initially, I didn't get that at all from the trailer. It looks like it's going to be really good. And it looks like a pretty good story, and the actors just happen to be black, which is totally cool. Nice. And also, I think it's covering the shutter later this year. I think it's, is it dropping limited release next month, but then coming the shutter later in the year?

Yeah, I believe you're correct. I can't find the exact release date. It did get a small, I'm assuming, like a festival run in March. It did get picked up by shutter. So I think we'll get a small theater release here soon. And then before the end of the year, it'll be on shutter. Yep. Awesome. It looks really good. I'm excited about this one. Oh yeah, for sure And that is the trailer Only trailer, sorry guys Nothing's coming out

I think we're in that time when No news really comes out before Like Comic-Con or anything like that Oh yeah You have the summer blockbuster's about to hit Yeah, exactly exactly But listen to feedback, Phil Yeah, we'll move on to some listener feedback

This week we shine the podcast spotlight on plug it up. Plug it up is a horror movie podcast about the monstrous feminine. Host Caitlin Grant and her funny guest look at the monstrous feminine in all its forms, including monstrous menstruation. Okay. Like Carrie and Ginger Snaps. Monstrous motherhood like Rosemary's Baby and the Omen.

Those seem more like monstrous babies, but I get it. The femme fatals like Jennifer's body and the love witch, black widows like Dolores Claiborne and body horror in women like teeth and raw, treacherous friendships between women like the craft, women battling

horror like your next, and women who are themselves horrific like Gone Girl. Although this show focuses on the experiences and portrayal of women in horror, it's a gender inclusive space, and the discussion is open to people of all gender identities and

presentations. It's an explicitly intersectional feminist, trans, inclusive podcast from horror fans. So plug it up is a bloody good horror production. Check it out. Yeah, I have to give that word to listen because I just love that name of the podcast. Yeah. I mean, as a Kerry fan, yeah, great name.

But yeah, it sounds really good. So I'll have to check them out. Plug it up. All right. Beyond the Void Horror Podcasts says thanks for sharing. Thank you. Regarding the podcast that wouldn't die, Cameron Sullivan says, love you all. We love you too. Regarding the Invisible Man, Ernest Revis says Good One. Zim Vader says, the Invisible Man, my house is near my house. Oh, nice. How do you know? Is it invisible?

Well, I think it's because, like, the film was filmed in Sydney, Australia. That's probably why. He's not even in Sydney. It's just, hey, I'm in Australia. That counts. Regarding the haunting of hellhole mine, David Day says, oh, how size more has fallen. Well, I hate to say this, but I don't think it's going to be four. anymore so there you go.

Yeah. RIP, RIP. RIP. Mm. Regarding a picture of a cold one in the old horror returns, Coosy. Steven Loblad says, well, and Patrick Lear says, old school. Since Lance isn't here, we can't talk shit about him. I mean, how hard is it to get to the post office?

Come on, man. Yeah, I think it's safe to say he still hasn't made it. I don't. I'll find it... I find it hilarious at the post office is literally just next door to his house. I think he lives at the post office. It is.

He's just lazy. Yeah, Lance, where's our coosies? But Marcy and I are waiting for a house. I know, right? Brandon Storoki says... Or Storochi says, Hello, we have a horror comic that has a live kickstores.

starter. We're hoping to come on your show and talk about it. Please let us know. Well, shit. Yeah, of course. Yeah, email us. Let anybody on. Look at who we got today. And the official winner for last week's poll, which film best describes motherhood as expected in the final tally, the Bobadook ran away with it. That makes sense. Better than Psycho. I hope that doesn't describe a whole lot of motherhoods. our show intro and all the new logos come from Steve Carlton from the geeks and be on the lookout for some more great stuff from him of course our original skull artwork like we mentioned in the cooosies before came from Natsulani so check her out on Instagram

and please consider consider becoming a Patreon patron we'll let you pick the movies for a future show at any amount and for $5 or more month, also pick the commentary for a future bonus show. Except right now, a dollar. Give us a dollar. You pick commentary for a future bonus show and come on and talk about it. I'm waiting for

my invitation. Oh. But let's roll on to our featured attractions. We're going to do our second and a fan chosen retrospective for the series Psycho. So we're doing Psycho 3 and 4.

But I'll be free. I'll finally be free. We'll, of course, start with Psycho 3 from 1986. Norman Bates falls in love with a fallen nun who stays at the Bates Motel alongside a drifter and a curious reporter. Meanwhile, mother is still watching. Director is Anthony Perkins. Oh, I didn't know that. Who also went on to direct Lucky Stiff, and his directing career pretty much ended there.

writer is Charles Edward Pogue, also known for Dragon Heart and the Cronenberg remake of the Fly. That was a great one. It was Anthony Perkins' idea to use the unique scene transitions, like the light under a door that's actually a knife, and the scene where Norman leaves the hospital and closes the door and finds himself in his mother's room. And Anthony Perkins originally suggested that the film be shot in black and white as an homage to the original. but Universal opposed it. They were like, yeah, it's not 1960 anymore. Voteled that one.

Marcy, what did you think about Psycho 3? Yeah, so, all right. Okay. Where does one start? So kind of a backstory. I guess for the past, I don't know, 10 years or so, like I've been championing that while Psycho is a absolute classic,

I did discuss that movie with you guys a few years ago, I believe. So, yeah, I was on an episode where we discussed that. It's a masterpiece of cinema, but I've been one of those people who are like the sequels to Psycho are actually really good. There's something to each and every one of them. I think Psycho 2 is probably the strongest of them all. It's a great film, but I think there's definitely a lot with three and four. So it was great to rewatch three and four in prepped for this podcast.

And I think it's very interesting that we get Anthony Perkins directing a psycho film. So it's, you know, I guess it's got a bit more of him in it. because there are definitely ways you could sort of continue the story. And as they did with two, like he'd been institutionalized for 20 years or so. And it's kind of like how does somebody who went through all of that get back into society? So at this point, he's kind of a little messed up after what happened in two. But we see that he's, you know, there's always,

this kind of battle within him against that, I guess, ghost of mother. And I think this one goes into some interesting places. Jeff Fahey's Duke is such a disgusting character.

It's, I love, I like, Jeff Fahey's like a great actor. He's he was very, very handsome in the film, but you just freaking hate him. um he's so loathsome and it's so it like with each film like it's difficult not to have some kind of sympathy for norman um and it is kind of interesting how it does tell i guess

norman kind of falling for somebody um but having all these other like feelings because we have seen um through the telling of these uh films that there's a lot of repression going on and the fight within which I think this film captured very well. I don't feel like it's a throwaway sequel at all. I think it adds quite a bit to I guess the psycho legacy of everything. I feel like I'm rambling, so I'll stop for now. All right, V, what do you think? No, I think it, I mean, as I said it before, like Psycho 2 is a great sequel. Like, I don't think Psycho Free is as good as part two, but it's still a pretty solid one. And compared to the previous one, this one definitely goes for more of that slasher vibe.

It's 100% more of a slasher type of film. Oh, yeah, but it still has that psychological element to it as well. Like you say, Marcy, we got to, with each progressing film in this franchise, we learn more about Norman and actually feel a lot of empathy towards it. as a character. Yeah, you definitely feel a lot of sympathy, even if you kind of don't want to see Norman kill anybody anymore or do anything bad because you kind of feel for him and he's had this tough life and you probably shouldn't be feeling sorry for somebody who's murdered people. But they definitely make it very intricate with that.

Oh, for sure, for sure. And I think from a filmmaking standpoint, I think Anthony, Perkins did a great job with his direction of this film. I think visually it looks fantastic, and I love the fact that it almost kind of has a bit of a gialo vibe to it with a lot of the shots and also the use of color in it. And like we were saying in the trivia before, like the C transitions are really cool. I really love the shot where you think it's going to, it's the light, a light coming under a door, but then it zooms out and it's actually just light reflecting off a knife. and I thought that was such a cool, interesting shot.

And I think the supporting cast are all pretty solid. I think Diana Scarwood, who plays the nun Maureen, who's kind of suffering from a crisis of faith in the film. I think she's really great in the film as well. And you definitely feel for her character and why she would kind of latch on to Norman, especially because when Norman goes into what, to kill her at one point, he discovers that she's trying to commit suicide and saves her.

So again, it kind of brings up the whole confliction that Norman kind of feels throughout the film. And also, there's some pretty cool, like, little homagees to the original psycho as well with certain shots or, like, scenes kind of replicating those moments. But, yeah, I think, I mean, I would say of the sequels, it's probably my least favorite, but it's still a pretty solid, enjoyable sequel overall. That's fair. Brian? Yeah, I said it before, and I'll say it again.

I think the Psycho franchise is underrated, and I don't think about it now. Beat, I do agree with you. This is probably, if I had to rank them, this would be at the bottom. But not because it's a bad movie. I just like the other three more. I liked the way Anthony Perkins portrayed Norman Bates. Marcy, you were talking about feeling sympathetic for him. I really didn't want him.

I wanted good things to happen for Norman. Right. To kill anybody. And then Maureen shows up and then Dwayne Duke shows up. And they, Jeff Fahey did an excellent job portraying Duke. Because when you meet him, you kind of. already know what kind of guy he is. And then when he tries to take advantage of Maureen

and then throws her out in the rain and says, he tells her you could have been coming instead of going. I'm like, okay, we know what kind of guy he could be. And I thought he did a great job. I think where it kind of is the lesser out of the four

movies is it, I think it went a little bit more slasher than psychological. And I felt like the other The ones did a good job of kind of balancing that aspect, the psychological and the slasher aspect. And, yeah, I thought everybody did great in it. I liked to, we continued straight from the second one. We had the cast from the second one come over to this one, like the diner owner. And the diner owner, that guy's great because he was even pulling Norman.

He was like, you know, that guy's already paid his debt to society, leave him alone. Yeah. on the sheriff. Yeah, the sheriff was kind of there with him, and he just kept telling that, of course it was a reporter there, you know, digging up old stuff and trying to,

I felt like bring, kind of brought some of the stuff out of Norman by asking all these questions. And yeah, it's a solid movie, but it's definitely the lesser out of the four. I'll sort of bring up before, but I found interesting about the show,

because like you say, Brian, it literally takes place, I think a month after the events of part two. So it's pretty close together. And also this movie kind of goes back on the twist of the previous film because we find out that this is Spool who we find out, well, she says she's Norman's mother, but the film kind of does another twist at the end of this one.

We find out no, in fact, Mrs. Spool wasn't Norman's mother. She actually was Norman's mom's sister. who was wanting to have an affair with hurt his dad and claimed that Norman was his son. So it was kind of like, okay, so we got this twist, but then they kind of backtracked on that twist at the end of this third film. In the books, do they ever, like, really speak on the father? I don't know. I haven't read them.

I haven't read them myself, but I know when Marcy and I were doing a podcast last year, we had a friend of Aaron Dries, who's an author, and he was talking, because he's a big fan of this franchise, too. And he's read the books. And the second book, Psycho 2, is actually an incredibly meta book where I think, wasn't it that? I'm trying to remember that Norman finds out that they're making a movie based on his life. So he goes to Hollywood to kill people. Like Jay and Salabobo. I was about to say, like Jay and Salabai.

Kind of, yeah. So I kind of want to read the... We're going to Hollywood. Exactly, exactly. But, yeah, but Phil, what did you think of Psycho? Free? Yeah, so I had actually never seen any of the sequels before I watched Bates Motel. And I was like, man, they really went into a deep dive on this stuff.

And I was like, oh, well, after watching the sequels, they're actually a whole lot better than I expected them to be. And that's where they dug up most of the backstory. I feel like. I mean, I'm sure that they changed some things. It was more inspiration than a resource. But you're right. This is definitely not the best one of the group, but it was still a really solid movie,

like a whole lot better than I expected it to be. Like I sort of rolled my eyes when we were doing it this week. I was like, Psycho 3 and 4. All right, here we go. A bunch of other horror sequels that suck that nobody's ever seen before. and I was pleasantly surprised, man. This is a pretty solid movie, man. Anthony Perkins may be a Hitchcock fanboy, you know.

He puts a whole lot of effort into this part and does it for four movies. Yeah. It is interesting how, like, we've mentioned that this one leans more into, like, the slasher territory, or if the other ones are very much more like psychologically focused. So it's interesting that maybe that's, you know, what Anthony Perkins kind of leaned into more of the slasher element. So I think that says something because, you know, he did direct the film. So it's interesting to kind of maybe get an insight into how he sees Norman,

I guess, dealing with everything. Yeah. And I'm not sure how he keeps getting out of prison. And as far as the slasher aspect, I do kind of feel even though the second one balanced the cyclone. It balances it very well. Yeah, but I felt like the kills were a little bit more tamer than the second one in this one. Because, I mean, we don't get Robert Lozier falling down the stairs onto a blade. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, the kills have never really been the thing in this movie.

I know it's really what's remembered, you know, with the bathtub scene and all. But, I mean, the kills have never been really super gruesome. It's more about the psychological horror part of it, which this one doesn't hit quite as hard on. But still does a pretty good job, I think. I was relatively impressed with it for being a third movie in the franchise. Yeah, third movie in a franchise, like 20-something years later. from the original. Like screen.

All right, Marcy, what's your score on this one, one to 10? Yeah, my score for this one would be a seven Norman meltdowns out of 10. I think it's a very, very solid film. It might be the weakest of the four, but it doesn't mean it's not a very good and watchable film. I think it's got a really good cast. And I think it tells an interesting story, and it's always interesting to hang out with old Norman Beats at the Beats Motel.

Yeah, it's still better than most horror sequels. Generally, yeah. Beed, what do you think? I give it a 7 out of 10 as well like it. I mean, out of the sequels, it's definitely the weakest one, but it's still a pretty solid and enjoyable one. it's well-made performances are top-notch. And, of course, Anthony Perkins, you know, once again, just brings it as Norman. And, you know, based on his work here, I know he only, he passed away a few years later,

but it would have been great to kind of see more directing work from him, because I think he has a pretty good eye just even based on his work for this one. Although my favorite thing about this movie in terms of trivia, the woman who got killed on the toilet. in the film. She would go on to direct Poison Ivy and the rage carried two. Oh. Oh, there you go.

Yes. And I just randomly found that out in the, on the credits. Oh, what a horrible way to die at a party where you're supposed to be the sober one. Exactly. They were trying to make that the next shower scene is by being killed on the toilet. Like the guy in Jurassic Park. exactly Brian what do you think

I think 7 is a fair score I like the direction I liked Anthony Perkins performance Jeff Fahey I liked that Jeff Fahey got killed with his guitar after he kept saying his little watch the guitar quote or whatever it was

yeah and I think it's a worthy entry in the franchise guys and I can't wait to talk about the fourth one. Yeah, I'm going to go maybe six and a half, but I think it was definitely a very solid movie, and I've enjoyed it more than any movies that we watched in the past couple weeks. So I take that. No offense.

All right, let's move on to Psycho 4 from 1990. Tor out of my house. She's not a whore, mother. I said get rid of her. Or do I have to do it myself? No, mother. I'll get rid of her. Kill her. Kill her?

I can't. No. No, I can't. All right, all right. Then I'll do it for you. Norman Bates recalls his childhood with his abusive mother while fearing his unborn child will inherit his split personality disorder. Spoilers.

A little bit. Director Mick Garris, also known for the original TV miniseries of the stand and sleepwalkers. Classic. Writer is Joseph Stefano, also known for the original Psycho,

as well as an episode of Star Trek The Next Generation. Of course, Lance had to throw it in there. Marcy, what about Psycho for? Better than Psycho 3? I do believe it is better than Psycho 3. I think this one, yeah, this one is absolutely a lot more psychological, and this is, I guess, I don't know, I feel like the show Bates Motel kind of took a lot of cues from this film,

because we really dive into that childhood of Norman. We get to see Mother, who's played by, Olivia Hussie and we get young Norman played by Henry Thomas. So it's very solid casting all around it. I think they do great jobs in their roles. So we do see this childhood that he had and I guess in an effort to explain kind of why there is this relationship and you don't necessarily need to know more than what we've known. But I think the way they handle it in this film, makes it very interesting and because like Norman is somehow living a normal life. He's married as we find out during the course of the film, his life is pregnant and he's very much against it because he, you know, it is a film that kind of brings up nature versus nurture.

And he's kind of convinced that because he turned out the way he did that any child, will potentially turn out that way. So this is why he goes back through, like, the childhood and upbringing, but he's also called into a radio show. So that's like the framing device of the film, where for some reason this radio show has a guy on who apparently killed his mom. And that's the matricide is the, topic of conversation and Norman calls in because he's having, I guess, this crisis after having

found out that his wife is pregnant. So it's framed in such an interesting way. It builds up a lot attention because as we're sort of live on this radio show and Norman's retelling the story, he's kind of, you know, losing it a bit more as it goes on as he, you know, really, you know, takes a handle of what the hell is going on and I think it's a really interesting approach it's very very psychological and it sort of you know it does bring up that debate of nature versus nurture and I think it kind of handles that really really well yeah what you think what you think I rambled well um but I guess for me Well, this was my first time watching Psycho4, so I've never seen it until now.

So I wasn't sure what to expect. Other than I knew that it was a TV movie and Mick Garris directed it. And so I wasn't sure what to expect. But I got to say, I think out of all the sequels to the original Psycho, this might actually be my favorite one. I think it's an extremely well-directed film. I think Mick Garris did a really great job with how this film is made. but also on Joseph Stafado, I think it's a pretty solid script from him. And also, I do love the fact that for most of this film, it basically is a conversation between Norman and the radio house played by CCH Pounder.

So I like the fact that it's for, yeah, for at least two thirds of it, that's what this film does. And also getting flashbacks to Norman's childhood. And it goes at different ones. So it's either with his scenes with his mom, who I think Olivia Hussey does a really great job playing this very unhinged woman. But I think the way how the character is portrayed, I think in kind of hindsight, you would easily say that she's obviously suffering some kind of bipolar disorder. Like when you see her, she acts towards Norman. And also the scenes after when she's already been murdered are like how Norman. at first killed people.

And I think Henry Thomas does a great job at sort of capturing that essence of what Anthony Perkins did with the character, especially back in the 1960 film. And also the twist when it comes in when you find out the reason

why all this is happening is because Norman's wife is pregnant. And this is like the first for him because this isn't mother controlling him to kill people. It's out of his, from his own mindset. So that I found really interesting, and I was kind of just curious to see how all of this was going to happen.

And also, the film, also, it wraps up the whole franchise in a really nice way, too. Like, it brings the story full circle, and I think it's a pretty solid end to the franchise, at least with this one. And then... It actually, like with Howard. ends it kind of has this really good and strange to say like because it is a psycho film but um it's very symbolic of kind of um burning uh certain aspects of your life away so you can move on um which i think is just fantastically done but it's uh like we know again norman's killed people but the way he talks

about it and you know you are really you're really sure that he has not as Norman been in control of that so like as you said when he says he will kill someone that will be from him like it's not something he actually wants to do so I think it adds this more sympathetic layer um as well but uh I don't know man make Garris and boys wanting to fuck their moms I don't I don't get it. Because, yeah, this is better interesting. Yeah, and also like a weird double feature with sleepwalkers

because that also deals with kind of the exact thing, too. A little bit, a little bit. Brian, what do you think? Yeah, I really enjoy this one. Again, Anthony Perkins is great. Olivia Hussie, I think, in the flashbacks. I just love her portrayal of Norma. I like the flash.

like the scenes, the funeral, where she's tickling him to get him to laugh. And then as soon as he laughs, she smacks him in the face and tells him, I'm like little stuff like that. Or when he's a little bit older, they're playfully rolling on the floor. And then she gives him that, do you have something in your pocket? Are you just happy to see me kind of look, you know, get off me? And just, I like the whole story being told through these. this radio conversation, which, yeah, it's weird that this radio show actually has someone that's killed their mother and has also not only killed their mother and done time for it, but is living with his mother's father?

Is that how I remember it? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And we get no explanation on how Norman's out again. He's just free again. I was like, how many people is this? fucker killed. Have we not learned

our lesson at this point? All I know is if the diner owner was here, he'd be yelling at us that he's paid his due again. So, he belongs. Paid his dues. Leave him alone. I don't know that that's true. Leave him or but

I mean, I do like they connected it, that he went back to the hospital and that's where he met his wife. She was a counselor, their psychologist, so one of those things. And that's how, that's how they met. So I like they connected it, but it's just a little odd that he got out again.

And I also like the twist of her being pregnant because I kind of see it from his thing. I mean, killing his wife is bad, but I see, I understand where his mindset is. He doesn't want this seize to continue in his child and start killing again. And, yeah, this one kind of, it went back to more psychological than the third one. Yeah. So I liked all that. And it's good to see CCH Pounder in here. I totally forgot she was the radio host.

It's exactly the same? Yes, she does. Yeah, I thought it was a good closing to the franchise. I like the burning down the house and just. kind of getting rid of everything. All the bad juju that was following him around. And I even liked that little closing scene of the chair rocking. I thought it was just a nice close to the franchise.

And then we got the remake that came out. Oh, yeah. I don't know if that counts. I mean, especially since it was basically shot for shot, just without the Yeah. Who's Norman? Vince Fond?

Was Norman, right? Yes. Which I want to like more than I do. Yeah, no, this one is, it was,

it's making a murderer. I think it's, uh, the most interesting side of it. You know, like if you, if you watch Psycho, I,

the most glaring question is, why did he end up this way? And so this sort of delves into that, which is exactly what Bates Motel does, and I think that they straight up pull off of this movie and made a series out of it. Definitely. I think both of them were a really great job

and probably more interesting than any of the sequels before it. I think I like Psycho4 better than Psycho 2 personally. And this is the first time that I've watched it. It was a, I just, I think it's on paper, the radio show thing, doesn't sound like it's going to be awesome, but the way that they do it really pulls it off. And they have all these little flashbacks of him when he was a kid,

and they had great actors to, great cast to do the whole. And John Landis is one of the radio show producers. Yeah. Just pops up in there. And I really liked this movie, man. And it kept me enthralled through the whole thing, you know. And it kept me interested. And I like what they did with it.

It was pretty cool. I still don't know why he's not, you know, in jail. Like I get everybody has the reasons. Monsters are made not born. Yeah, I kind of wish they gave some sort of, I mean, at the end of three, he's riding in the back of the police car holding the severed hand of his, who we found out, is his aunt, not his mom, but he's holding it, stroking the hand. Yeah.

And then we get part four, and he's out married and has to be a pretty nice home. And he always killed like 12 people, but he'll, at this time, it would be okay. He's been properly rehabilitated this time. Yeah. Well, that is true, but that being said, I find it interesting that it's like a counselor, what's the, is married to him. to Barry Norbin after killing so many people. And then have his baby.

Exactly. Who's her counselor? Oh, this seems like a bad idea. Like Harley Quinn. Exactly. Oh, that is a good point. That is a good point. So Batman animated series completely ripped off

Psycho Four. Yeah, that's exactly what happened. Yeah. All right, Marcy, what's your score on this one? This one I give eight. It's Norman's birthday out of ten. It's a fantastic, I think it's a fantastic sequel. It's a fantastic addition to the Psycho franchise.

And it's definitely a very underrated film. I think there's quite a lot of good. stuff in there. It's very watchable. It's very captivating. And I think everybody did a really great job with it. Covered a lot of ground on this one. Mm-hmm. Uh, Bid, what do you think? I'm actually going to give this a nine out of TED. I really enjoyed it that much as a sequel. And I think it probably is my favorite of the sequels, because I think it does a good job of continuing the psychological elements while diving more into Norman's backstory. And the way how it's all set up from a writing standpoint,

I thought was actually pretty clever and really interesting. And it also does offer some good twists and turns in there as well. Although I've got to say, I feel sorry for Paul Norman, is that he has to cook his own birthday dinner. Yeah. Yeah, but she was busy at work, damn it. Yeah, but they were going to eat at least about 10.30 at night. Like, that's just not on.

Well, maybe all the restaurants were closed for ordering takeout. Well, that is true. And he had to, and his wife wanted to get it, wanted him to go get his own birthday cake. And he's like, that could be picking up my own birthday cake. He's got a strict nine in the cabinet. Is that a thing? Well, maybe his neighbor had something nice for him. She never came back.

Well, that is true. That is true. But, yeah, I think it's a great secret. And probably, I would even say even more underrated than the second one. Yeah. Oh, it's massively underrated. Yeah, no, I could. I had never heard anybody say, hey, you really got to watch these psycho sequels.

Except for me, but no one listens to me. Brian, what do you think? Yeah, this for me is an easy aid. It's another great entry into franchise, a great closing to the franchise. I loved Anthony Perkins in it. Olivia Hussey was great in it. And beautiful? Yes, definitely.

It's a little small stuff too, even his memory of her having beautiful hair, and then her being in the casket and the strict nine was just actually making her hair fall out and just all the little stuff like that. And love to see CCH Pounder in there. Still have my questions about how he got out and little stuff like that, but it doesn't hurt the movie for me. I still like the second one, the best, out of the three sequels, but this one is right there close with the second one for me.

Yeah, definitely. And again, this one was even less on the kills since, you know, as far as violence, it kind of went downhill since the second one. and it didn't bother me at all. The story had me in from the beginning, so I think, you know, hats off to the director for that. Well, and you still had a lot of kills. They were just kills from the past.

Yeah. So there's that. Yeah. That poor girl who just wanted to bag Norman. I know. But nobody told her to run to the house. He said, go into the parlor. I'll just be right back.

I got to unclog this shitty toilet. I mean, she kept escalating that. It's like, as you're watching it, you're like, girl, don't do this, don't do this, get out of there, you're making it worse for normal. I almost forgot how the movie went because it almost kind of seemed like she was playing with him, like she wasn't there for him.

And then when she went in the house and took her top of, off. I'm like, okay, I'll see where this is gone. Yeah. Like, somebody, she made a bit with somebody or something. Yeah, it was like, I was like, I was like, am I remembering her right? Or like, is the bully about to jump out and everybody

laughing Norman or something? But once they got into that, once they got into the house, I was like, okay, I'm remembering this correctly. Uh, yeah, I, I'm going to go eight and

half, I think. It was a really, really solid movie, man. It's not quite as good as Bates Motel, but considering it came out in 1990 and it's just a two-hour movie, it's a pretty solid, dude. This is a great horror franchise that never gets talked about. Absolutely true. I mean, it doesn't have the kills that, you know, a Friday and 13th or something has, but I think they're pound for pound better movies. I think the sequels are better than they have any right to be considering, like, who would have thought you could make a good psycho sequel as a film. Yeah, I totally expected them to suck. All right.

Obed, you want to play us out? Indeed, indeed. So, hold on, I just got to get the notes because I just lost it for a second. Yes, indeed. Yes, my first and only time I'll be hosting. All right, we need to last the first place. All right. Well, guys.

It's been great. Always talking to work. It's a good time. Sorry, just reading what last. Always a good time when we, when we podcast together. And coming up on the separate network we have,

Marcy, what do we have coming up on the super network? Oh, geez. What do we have coming up on the supernetwork? We have the To Be Tuesdays podcast where we watched, what did we watch, I can't remember. We watched Terrify 2 for the latest episode of the show. Oh, geez, I had I already forget that. Yes, Terrifier 2 will be our most recent episode.

What an experience that was. And also coming up, the Super Podcast, we will be having a discussion on the Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires and Ricky O, the story of Ricky, for our movie swap episode. Yes. So keep an eye out for those, a podcast. And for me, hopefully after Dark with Super Marcy and Adults Only podcast, we'll be back very soon with an epic discussion on Lolita. Nice. I think at some point maybe like when it's one of our turns, Marcy for the commentary for your guys' show,

maybe one of us will have to pick Riccio as a commentary. Oh, hell yeah, let's go. Yes. For me personally, you can find me at my Twitter page, at Twitter.com.com slash beid Jemite or my letterbox account at letterbox.com slash be Jemine. And, of course, you can find all my work over at supermassy.com. so you can find my solo podcast, Bid versus the Living Dead, on all podcast streaming services everywhere. The latest episode that's out at the moment is on the anthology book,

Nights of the Living Dead and Anthology, which I did with Australian horror authors Aaron Tries and Zachary Ashford. So that's out at the moment. And you can also follow the official Twitter account of that over at Twitter.com slash feed vSTLD. So as always, we want to thank everyone to listening to another episode of The Horror Returns, which has been taken over by the Super Network. Yes, we have.

And please check out all our stuff because we rule. Exactly. And if Lance was here, he would say, we would love to hear you the feedback and ideas. You can always reach us at The Horror Returns at gmail.com. and you can find this at www. thehorror returns.com and follow all of our social media links from there, as well

as hear our latest episode of the show. Please consider becoming a Patreon patron just as even just as $1 a month helps so much. Next week, you got Yes. Yes, yes. We've got to do Ricky.

I think that's a given. But next week for you guys, once late it comes back, You guys are heading off to the theater once more to check out the latest film The Boogie Bad, and as well as doing a double feature of that with the 1980s film The Boogie Bad. So until the horror returns again, Brian.