Today I welcome sci-fi and horror author (and fellow librarian) TT Madden to discuss about one of their favorites, Rusty Cundieff’s classic anthology horror Tales from the Hood (1995). TT writes a lot of short stories, so we begin our discussion by talking about short narratives and anthology horror. Then we go chronologically (for once!) to discuss the 5 tales in order, including the mortuary wrap-around. So thankful that we finally got a Blu-Ray of this movie and so thankful I got to chat with TT, finally! If you enjoy this episode, please consider buying their books!
TW: discussions of violence and racism (throughout), domestic abuse (Boys Do Get Bruised) and lynching (Hard Core Convert)
If you watch before you listen, please note these content warnings especially the section Hard Core Convert which has archival footage of images from lynchings and heavy strobe lights.
00:00-10:00- Intro / How TT Got Into Horror / How We First Saw Tales from the Hood
10:00-19:00- Brief Synopsis / Discussions on Short Form Storytelling
19:00-39:00- Welcome to My Mortuary (Wrap-Around) / Rouge Cop Revelation / Boys Do Get Bruised
39:00-50:00- KKK Comeuppance
50:00-1:05:00- Hard Core Convert / Themes of Systemic Racism / Performances
1:05:00-1:17:00- Watchalikes / Where to Buy TT’s Books / Outro
Please note: timestamps are estimates.
References:
Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror (documentary mentioned by TT, can be streamed on Shudder)
Horror Noire anthology tv show (mentioned by TT)
‘Tales from the Hood’ Director Rusty Cundieff: Why It Took 20 Years to Make a Sequel to His Black Horror Anthology, by Eric Kohn, Indie Wire, July 13, 2018
Twenty-Five Years Later and Still Haunted in the ‘Hood’- Pod of Madness
Books mentioned:
Dark Paths: A Queer Horror Romance Collection by TT Madden
The Neon Revelation by TT Madden
Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror edited by Jordan Peele (mentioned by Chloe)
When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen (mentioned by Chloe)
Visit TT Madden’s website, and follow them on Instagram and Patreon.
Follow Chloe’s Letterboxd and Instagram.
Find other great film podcasts on the Now Playing Network.
Listen to Guide to the Unknown podcast!
The music used in this episode is from the soundtrack and clips from Tales from the Hood (1995) used for educational purposes.
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