The Core is a dissection of the brilliant minds from which genre films spring. Whether it's a demo on head explosions, or a primer on avoiding predictable jump scares, The Core busts open the traditional talk show and plays with its guts. Host Mickey Keating and his guests examine the onscreen techniques and real-life psychologies that strike fear into our very core. We'll turn you on to what's thrilling in filmmaking today, without subjecting you to a chat with that dude Greg from film school.
2.5 / 5
Episode 1
Even if you've never seen the films: you know the mask, and you know what those haunting piano notes portend. Why? Who better to explain than heir-apparent Halloween child star Danielle Harris.
Episode 2
How'd Steven Ellison follow up his diverse, Grammy-nominated music career? By prompting walkouts with his controversial debut film Kuso. Plus, SFX expert Jim Ojala shows us how to look pretty in puke.
Episode 3
Simon Barrett (writer of You're Next, The Guest, Blair Witch) talks tension and what's so great about a blender - as an instrument of death.
Episode 4
The Soska Sisters show how they achieve their films' practical body horrors without CG.
Episode 5
Wanna hear from an American master? Good. We've got iconic director Mary Harron to talk holding audiences in the palm of her hand. Plus, a mentalist shows how to execute a psyche out.
Episode 6
Leigh Whannell (Saw, Insidious) created not one but two massive horror franchises that radically shifted the direction of the genre. The reigning king of delicious, masterful, utterly surprising jump scares tells us how to get audiences involuntarily elevated out of their chairs. Hold on to that popcorn. Plus, we'll push the boundaries of haunted houses with an examination of the extreme, surreal vision of H E R E T I C.
Episode 7
The Nightmare's Rodney Ascher shows us how he turns his vivid childhood traumas into adulthood art. Then, a sleep specialist gets into the science of sleep paralysis, hallucinatory demons and all.
Episode 8
Elijah Wood's acclaimed company SpectreVision rips into the heart at the core of even the most provocative genre films. Plus, a doctor has her patients strap on VR glasses to confront their fears.
Episode 9
The Core pays tribute to George A. Romero and Tobe Hooper with Ken Foree (Dawn Of The Dead), Daniel Pearl (DP, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), and Gabriel Bartalos (FX, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2).
Episode 10
Punk and metal icon Glenn Danzig discusses the genre films that have influenced his work, including his favorite on-screen bloodbaths.
