Welcome to Dread Pod Picks, a new weekly column spotlighting the freshest episodes from across the Dread Central Podcast Network. This week’s pick is Kim & Ket Stay Alive… Maybe with their two-part pod on Azrael (2024).
Part of what makes horror movies so fun to watch is the natural introspection that occurs when watching characters make sometimes understandable, sometimes inexplicable decisions. For example, how would I react in this situation? Why are they doing that? For the love of all that is holy, don’t go into the basement! This meditation on decision-making is also what makes the Kim & Ket Stay Alive… Maybe pod a perfect horror fan listen.
Each and every week, longtime buds Ket Porter and Kim Burns and Ketryn Porter take turns watching (and totally spoiling) a film the other hasn’t seen, pausing at key moments to ponder what they would do to survive that particular moment. This fun format showcases Kim and Ket’s extensive genre knowledge and very real friendship, and turns each movie into a game that begs the ultimate question: would they (and you) survive the film and #StayAlive?
For their recent two-part release, Ket recounts the culty, survival horror thriller, Azrael (2024) to Kim and puts her post-apocalyptic survival skills to the test. While both hosts are immediately hooked by the mere fact that the iconic Samara Weaving (Ready or Not) stars in the film as the titular Azrael, the heavy reliance on silence and lack of dialogue takes Kim a moment to get on board with. But that’s all part of the fun, right? What follows are two energetic, highly descriptive episodes filled with the perfect amount of BFF tangents, Samara Weaving praise, and hypothetical post-apocalyptic pondering.
Directed by E.L. Katz (Channel Zero) and written by Simon Barrett (You’re Next), Azrael is set in a haunting post-apocalyptic world where speech has been renounced, Azrael (Samara Weaving) breaks free from a devout, female-led cult of silent zealots only to be hunted, recaptured, and marked for a brutal ritual meant to appease the dark forces that stalk the wilderness. The story continues with a relentless, physical fight for freedom as Azrael repeatedly outwits and battles both her human captors and the terrifying unknown they worship, transforming from prey into a single-minded force of survival.
In Part 1, Ket sets the stage, describing the oddly quiet world of Azrael and the dire, tense, post-rapture situation where we first meet her. Due to the very nature and creative style of the film, Ket’s describing skills are put to the test—and she passes with flying colors. Her attention to detail in relaying the choreographed fight scenes, the sinister blood-sniffing creatures, and Weaving’s killer performance make an actual watch of the movie optional for pod enjoyment.
In Part 2, the ladies kick things off with a recap of their BFF sleepover, which included a screening of Skinamarink. Regardless of where one falls on the Skinamarink appreciation spectrum (some love to love it, some love to hate it), hearing the ladies recount their first experience with this lo-fi, liminal horror nightmare is worth the price of admission alone. Then, they dive back into the world of Azrael and learn if Kim would survive the film or be sucked dry by the blood beasts.
Catch “Azrael, Part 1 and Azrael, Part 2” on the Dread Central Podcast Network and major platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify. New Kim and Ket Stay Alive…Maybe episodes drop every Wednesday!
Craving more Dread Pod Picks? Bookmark this column for weekly spotlight features on standout episodes across the Dread Central Podcast Network with short, curated recommendations from our horror pod-obsessed staff.
No comments:
Post a Comment