179 - The Others (2001) & Lake Mungo (2008) →
CW: Suicide, Infanticide, Child Abuse, Rape
It’s Ghostly Grief Week on Pod Sematary! Chris & Kelsey watch some really depressing horror movies that share more than one specific thematic link. And Chris gets what he asked for!
Read our afterthoughts for this episode here!
The Classic Film: The Others (2001)
"A woman who lives in her darkened old family house with her two photosensitive children becomes convinced that the home is haunted” (IMDb.com). The Others takes a very interesting spin on a classic haunting story and then buries under a climactic twist. If you didn't like it the first time you watched it, maybe go back and give it another watch with a different perspective.
The Modern Film: Lake Mungo (2008)
"Strange things start happening after a girl is found drowned in a lake” (IMDb.com). Lake Mungo is a completely po-faced mockumentary about the family left behind after a tragedy and it commits to that concept in ways almost no other horror film does. It could have lost a few of its numerous ideas and spent more time developing the ones that really matter to the movie's core themes (and is it just a recreation of Twin Peaks' primary mystery?), but it's definitely worth watching to find out if it's your thing.
Audio Sources:
"Lake Mungo" produced by Mungo Productions, et al.
"The Others" produced by Canal+, et al.
"Pet Sematary" written by Dee Dee Ramone & Daniel Rey and performed by The Ramones