Oddity (2024)

Show Opener

Sean 0:04

It's toe looking good.

Movie Introduction

Kris 0:09

Damien McCarthy's horror work keeps returning to spaces where the physical world feels almost rigged against the people inside it. Rooms become traps, objects carry histories, grief and guilt linger in the architecture, waiting for someone to touch the wrong thing or ask the wrong question. Before we review McCarthy's latest film next week, we're actually looking back this week on another of his films that actually shows him working through several of the ideas that define his style. Contain locations, uncanny props, old objects driven by past, and scare sequences that are built with a precision of a stage illusion. This week's film follows Danny, a woman who dies violently while renovating an isolated country house, and her blind twin sister Darcy, who later arrives with a strange wooden mannequin and a personal need for answers. But, of course, the house, its residents, and the objects inside it begin to reveal more than anyone really wants exposed. And the film turns a family tragedy into a puzzle about what the dead leave behind. This week we're talking about oddity.

Greetings & Salutations

Kris 1:18

Greetings and salutations, and welcome to Hack or Slash. If you're joining us again, well, welcome back. If this is your first time listening, welcome to the party. We are a horror movie review podcast dedicated to telling you whether a movie is a hack.

Sean 1:31

Total joke, a waste of time.

Kris 1:32

Or a slash.

Sean 1:34

Totally killer, pun intended.

Kris 1:35

My name is Chris. I'm your friendly neighborhood slasher enthusiast. This week I'm joined by the classic horror connoisseur, Sean.

Sean 1:42

You can look around, but please don't touch anything. You're tuning in to Oddity, and if you support the show, you'll also get to hear our B-side at the end of this episode where we get into some creepy cursed objects and what we would do with them.

Kris 1:56

I cannot wait to get into that. I've had many a tale of some cursed objects in my own life. But Sean, before we even get there,

Spoiler-free Discussion

Kris 2:04

have you seen this one before?

Sean 2:06

I actually have seen this one before. I remember hearing a lot of buzz about this movie when it first came out. And I know a lot of people were praising this movie. There was a lot of people saying like it was the best horror movie they'd seen that year. All this stuff was happening. But I, truth be told, skipped over this a bunch of times until I finally hit play about a year ago. And let me tell you, it definitely did not disappoint.

Kris 2:32

Yeah, I had no idea what this movie was, had never heard of it before until you brought it up to me fairly recently, because obviously you just saw Hokum and you're talking about how people have talked to you about not only that film, but this one as well, and kind of comparing which of the two films from by Damien McCarthy that you prefer.

Sean 2:52

Yeah, I mean, realistically, the conversations that I've been having since Hokum came out was rehashing conversations around what they loved about Damien McCarthy's films. And realistically, he has these three feature films. He's got Oddity, Caveat, and Hokum, which is the newly released movie. And I just have had a lot of conversations of people that really are kind of comparing the different movies together. I know I was telling you, which we'll probably get into a little bit later on in the show, of like there's some little things that connect his films that's kind of really fun. So yeah, there's been a lot of discussion around all of this stuff that Hokum kind of re-sparked, which I think, you know, I know we have that coming up very soon that we're going to be talking about, but it kind of sparked an interest to kind of take a look at Oddity finally.

Kris 3:38

Yeah, I'm glad that you recommended this one to me. And obviously, with the changes that we had in our lineup, this week was supposed to be Iron Lung, but our patrons wanted us to review it before it's even out for streaming, so we had to do a little rearranging.

Sean 3:53

We had to circle back a little bit.

Kris 3:54

Yeah, we had to just throw it back a little bit. But I'm glad that that happened because I do think this is a great primer to just get a feel for what maybe Hokum can be. And let me tell you, Sean, I didn't know what to expect going into this. Besides, this should be a quality time. It should be a quality production based on what you shared about Hokum and what people shared about Oddity in particular. But I was locked in by this movie's opening. And one of the first things that really stood out to me was the way it uses both cool and warm tones throughout the opening scene because it it introduces you to this house that feels empty but also beautiful, but also a little lived in, and it's a little bit warm, specifically because of the character that we're introduced to. But then it has this stark contrast between warm lanterns and like a nice yellow tent versus cold shots and dark corners, not unlike Skin of Marink, that it makes you feel like cold and unsafe in a way that creates a lot of unease before you really even understand what the movie's trying to do to you.

Sean 5:04

100%. I can't even express enough how much this cold open really just gets you in all the different feels. I think this movie does an amazing job at really building tension and you know, some would say genuine fear. Like there's this sense of unease that you don't really get in a lot of horror movies these days. It really kind of sits with you. I don't know, there's that it may be just like the things that you're talking about, like the contrast of lighting, the dark corners, the little sounds, the sound design, all the things that like you don't see. There's a lot of restraint with this film, but it makes you feel uneasy.

Kris 5:42

And it does that because the opening specifically captures the highly specific anxiety of staying alone in a large place.

SPEAKER_02 5:51

Yeah.

Kris 5:52

It's arguably really both new and familiar, which is uncomfortable to say the least. Like you should feel safe. And you get the impression that this character is familiar with this location. This should feel like home, but you as the viewer don't really know the space yet. So every single hallway that you see, every room that you see, every sound that you hear has this potential of feeling wrong, and it's such a nuanced way to really open it. And what hooked me about this early on, Sean, really felt reminiscent of like the classic trappings of the opening of Urban Legend.

Sean 6:30

Oh, for sure, definitely. I I I 100% agree. I think the way this movie makes you feel and the tension, the creepiness, all of that. It kind of there are like a little like it starts off really strong and then it kind of lets up and then it kind of happens again, but it doesn't. Once that tension happens again, I feel like it continues to build throughout the entire rest of the movie, and it uses its scare tactics, if you will, really, really tastefully. It's a really at the end of the day, it's a really wonderful, like kind of creepy, ghosty story. We were talking when you had watched it. It's a very like simplistic story in essence, but it's told extremely, extremely well in its execution across the board. And so it's one of those unique films that you know, there's a lot of familiar tropes, but how it goes and does the things that make you that kind of like bring you back to some of those tropes, it's done really tastefully, and there's something about it that feels fresh.

Kris 7:29

You know what it is? It's atmosphere, it's mood, yeah, ambiance. This movie positions itself very quickly as tense and also patient and atmosphere first. So you have this atmosphere of dread that just lingers throughout the whole thing. It's really controlled, it's really deliberate. You mentioned the word restraint earlier, right? It gives scenes room to breathe, which lets the discomfort of this movie build instead of constantly rushing to the next scare. Which as I watch and I think back on this, I'm trying to remember the last time I felt that way because Hereditary did something similar, but then it has big gotcha moments, and it doesn't feel the same as this movie. Some of Mike Flanagan's work feels similar to this, but there's something different about Damien McCarthy's approach to this one, where it gives you this sense of like, who can I trust? What actually happened? What are we hiding here?

Sean 8:32

Yeah, I think it just gets you, it lets you sit in your feelings a little bit longer than a lot of movies are comfortable doing. Now I feel like I I'm a an aficionado here with Damien McCarthy because I've watched all of his films. I think what I love about Damian McCarthy films, now that I've watched all of the feature films, I've even watched one of his short films on YouTube. He builds these moments where there's you're feel like you're you should be lingering a little bit longer than you should. He feels a little bit off-putting, but the longer it goes and the use that he does, like he always has some really good sound, a really good score behind everything that really amplifies those moments. And I think he does it very, very well. And I think that's kind of what the difference is, or at least one of the things that makes his films different than other films. I also really love that they all pretty much exist within the same universe as of right now. I don't know what he's going to continue to do, but they all technically exist within the same universe. And I think, you know, when we think of movies like that, we think of like the conjuring universe, right? With like Annabelle and all those, right? So it's a little bit similar, same, same but different. But I think in essence, the universe, but also they're connected through these little Easter eggs, which makes watching these films really fun. And even though I think part of the movie is a little bit, you know, predictable in some moments, there are these moments that add some really fun and creepy depth. And I think it was executed really well. Like we're talking about not only just the sound design, but the editing, I think, is masterfully done. I think the the camera shots are really well done. The writing is really well done, just very like a story just very well told.

Kris 10:14

Yeah, you know, when I reflect on this even more, I'm gonna be real with you, Sean. I I trust you and I trust your opinion implicitly. But I wasn't that excited to watch Hokum, even though I love Adam Scott. But I don't know what it is about that movie or just the idea of it. Or I was like, yeah, I'm sure it'll be good, but I wasn't like chomping at the bit to go watch it. I think I'm really in my space right now where I just want some dumb bullshit to distract me and I want a little bit of joy, even though I I think over almost 10 years of this podcast, I've been the person who's like, I want the depth and I want the serious.

SPEAKER_02 10:49

Yeah.

Kris 10:50

But what I appreciate this is this movie's ability to make an ordinary domestic space feel really unsafe without over-explaining anything. So not just the opening, but really what to your credit, right? The craftsmanship of this film, the level of nuance and tension from the characters, even a little bit of the comedy that we feel and the chemistry from these from these characters, it all comes together really nicely to make one singular package where I'm like, damn, okay, I want to see more. I want to know what else is in store here. And I think one of the bigger highlights of this and what works the most is we have a dual performance by Carolyn Bracken, who is a major asset. We get two completely different characters, two completely different ways, and she brings a lot of presence in both of them. It she gives it like this both like a big sense of vulnerability while also being like really sharp, emotional, edgy, and just uh almost cathartic in a way.

Sean 11:54

Well, I agree with you. One, I'll say that, but I will also tell you that I don't know what this says about me, but I was like, I didn't even actually connect the dots that it was the same person until like much later in the film. I think there's a moment, maybe in the film, I don't even think it clicked because there's like a moment in the film where they say like something about a twin sister or whatever, and I don't even think it clicked at that moment for some reason. It wasn't until much later that I was like, oh shit, she's actually playing both characters.

Kris 12:24

Whoops, not unlike Mia Goth and Pearl.

Sean 12:27

Yeah, very true. Very, very true. Incredible performance for sure, 100%. And I think if you're someone that you know really likes a good, like ghosty story, creepy story, if you like murder mysteries, I think if you just like genuinely creepy stories, this is probably gonna be your movie. If you're into like creep show, you know what I mean? I feel like this can get into that vibe. If you're if you're into that kind of thing, I think really I can't really think of a reason to not watch this movie, to be honest with you. It it's it is a bit of a slow burn, I guess. Like it it's kind of a slow burn, but it's it starts off really, really strong. And I feel like even though it's a slower burn, it keeps your attention throughout the film. So I don't know what more you can really ask for.

Kris 13:12

I know exactly what you can ask for. And this is not me disparaging the film in any way. I think this movie has a great ending, but I also think I wanted a little bit more from it. I wanted a little bit more catharsis, I wanted to go a little bit further. Again, restraint was such a good word that's used because this movie really stops just short of satisfying us. And while the ending works for sure, I don't think this movie is gonna fully satisfy viewers who are looking for constant scares, high body count, extreme action in the sleigh by sleigh, it's more interested in that tension, right? That mood and dread versus just pure escalation.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

Yeah.

Kris 13:54

So if you're someone who does like to take a you know a simmer or a slow burn, sure, you got it. This is gonna be wonderful for you. But if you feel like you need something that you don't have to concentrate on because something is constantly changing and grabbing your attention, then this probably is not the golden ticket for you. But I can't wait to see how the nuance in this story actually compares into its scoring. But before we actually rate the film,

The Gore Score

Kris 14:20

Sean, how about the gore score?

Sean 14:22

I think there is, you know, there is blood in this movie. There is some gore in this movie. It's not completely goreless, so it's not without, you know, it's you know, its fair share of of blood and guts and whatnot, what have you. It's not a lot, there's just not a lot of it. And even though this one is earning a low gore score overall, I think it's far from making it a bore. You know what I mean? So it's a low gore score, but it's not boring.

Kris 14:46

A low gore score, but not a boar score.

Sean 14:48

That's

The Animal Report

Sean 14:49

right.

Kris 14:49

It's fair. Okay. What about the animal report?

Sean 14:51

The animal report is safe. There's nothing that really you have to be worried about in this movie.

Kris 14:55

All right, let's go ahead and get into our ratings

Scoring

Kris 14:58

oddity from 2024. Was it a hack or slash?

Sean 15:02

Well, I feel like I've already said a lot about this movie just in the couple minutes of us talking about the, you know, spoiler-free discussion of this film. So if you don't know by now, I really enjoyed this movie. I think if you're looking for a horror movie that understands that, you know, real fear isn't just about the loud jump scares every five minutes. It's about dread. It's that thick, suffocating kind of crawl under your skin, dread. It builds that very, very well. Everyone knows that I'm a big fan of that kind of feeling in movies. And wow, I think this movie really does know how to weaponize the tension, and it's built so well in some of these scenes that it feels like it's slowly tightening this noose around your nerves. And I think the, you know, we talked about the cold open already. The cold open to this movie is one of my favorite cold opens in horror history right now. Like, I'm just there's it's in the top for sure. I don't know if that's top five, top ten, but it's up there, and it sets the tone for this movie so perfectly, it's eerie, there's some paranoia, there's anxiety, it's deeply uncomfortable in literally the best way possible. Plus, it doesn't hurt that, you know, I'm a sucker for a good ghost story. And hell, even even a murder mystery and oddity, I think, scratches that itch with with its cold, bony fingers. And sure, the story can feel simple at times, and you may be even able to spot a few turns coming down the hallway before they happen, but the execution is what elevates this thing so well. It's proof that really a straightforward story can still feel masterfully crafted when every creepy detail is really just dialed in perfectly. And I think, you know, there's not much else that we haven't said, to be honest with you. The cinematography is very well done. That atmosphere that you're talking about, Chris, is dripping with menace. The sound design deserves credit for doing literally the supernatural equivalent of breathing directly onto your neck and making the little hairs stand up. I think everything in this movie, every sound feels intentional. The movie doesn't just build suspense, it literally furnishes the entire house. And by the end of it, I was like halfway just grinning, like someone who definitely should not be like trusted near these whatever like cursed wooden mannequins that we're getting. It's just a a wild, wild time. And so for me, Oddity was really a refreshing horror film, and I think it was just done so well that it can't really be anything other than a slash for me.

Kris 17:37

You know, Sean, how do you even follow that? Quite frankly. I feel like I can just retweet, quote, ditto everything that you said. This movie works so well as a tight, atmospheric, supernatural, almost horror. It has a fantastic opening that delivers so much dread that I don't think I've ever fully appreciated that kind of sensation in a movie. The opening alone, like you said, it's such a strong cloak. I don't know if it's like my top cold open of all time. I can think of a few others that I prefer. But what it does do is immediately gives this movie an identity and it sets up this impossible choice that I kept thinking about the longer the movie went on. I also think the movie earns its recommendations, right? Through that atmosphere, that visual style, and there's a level of comedy and also antiquities and oddities and cursed objects that I think is so charming and makes this movie even funnier. And it's not trying to be a comedy, to be clear, but there's little doses of it. There's it's almost like fine punctuation or garnish to what the rest of this movie has to offer, and that gives it enough personality to really stand apart from other recent horror films that we've gotten. What I will say, and this is not a huge discredit, our antagonist is for me predictable. It doesn't break the movie, but it's our antagonist is not unique, they're not interesting because of it. They are interesting perhaps because they're recognizable, and I think it represents a very ordinary and almost pathetic kind of evil. And I think when you have all of that, and then the ending that you get, it's tough because I almost wanted something a little bit more intense. And I get why we didn't have it, but what I do appreciate is the promise of pain that we get in the third act of this film. I wish we could have seen more punishment, but the implication itself feels like it's enough to satiate and kind of hold me over for a bit. So even with that little dose of frustration, this movie still gives me tension, it still gives me beautiful cinematography, incredible performances, a great opening, chemistry where I wasn't even really expecting there to be enough cast members in this film to have that kind of chemistry. And it also has just enough justice to keep me a little bit satisfied. So, with that, it's a slash. And while we have locked in our scores for Oddity to be a universal slash, we still have more to say out of this film. So we're gonna step away from the cursed objects and all that good stuff for a quick break before we get back. Crack open that spoiler's done. See you in a day.

A Word From Our Sponsor

SPEAKER_01 20:34

This episode of After Slash is sponsored by Dustin's Oddities and Furios, the IT shop specializing in gust collectibles, haunted heirlooms, and wooden mannequins with a standing reputation for emotional damage. Looking to brighten up your home with an object that stands at you from the hallway all night? Then come on down and browse our selection of possessed mirrors whispering music boxes and chairs that move just enough to ruin your marriage. The toxic Free Purchase comes with a slash stats guarantee. If the item doesn't psychologically unravel you within 30 days, it's probably not sees oddities and curiosity because nothing says interior design like unresolved trauma and an unexplained figure in the dark.

Welcome to the Spoiler Zone

Kris 21:35

Welcome back, folks. From here on out, we're getting fully into spoilers for Oddity, which has earned a universal slash. So now is the time to pause if you haven't seen the movie just yet. But if you're staying with us, let's walk through every strange object that we got, every bad choice that we got, every terrible relationship that we

The Slay by Slay

Kris 21:53

got, and this week's sleigh by sleigh.

Sean 21:55

Yeah, let's get into it because it's interesting with this sleigh by sleigh, the kills in Oddity. They're not about massive gore or over-the-top splatter. They're all about the tension, the anticipation, and really the payoff. And I think every death feels like it's lurking in the room long before it actually happens, which makes the violence hit a little bit harder when it does kind of finally arrive. And it's even to a point where like we don't even always see the violence. We may see the aftermath or we may cut away right when it's about to happen, but it still feels just as effective in a lot of moments. So let's go over the literally six deaths that we get in this movie, starting with Danny, Odello, Timmons. Literally Danny in the open. We know shit's about to go down. We don't get to come back to that scene for a little bit, but literally getting bludgeoned to death by Ivan with the hammer by the orders of her own husband. In you what like what I think is really great is like we can talk about the scene, which is like arguably one of the best scenes in the movie, but the kill itself, I think what's really interesting and what I really liked about it was you have the moment where you know it's about to happen, but instead of actually seeing it go down, you get this almost like still frame, like almost like because she has the camera that's like taking pictures every like however many like seconds or minutes or whatever throughout the entire open. And it's almost like we're getting that moment of like we get the snapshot of be right before and like seconds afterwards, and there's blood all in the tent.

Kris 23:38

I loved that so much. It also leaves so much more to the imagination. And Danny, sweet, sweet, sweet Danny. I didn't need to see her go the way that she did. What I appreciate is one, she's toggling through that camera, and suddenly she sees someone in the picture. Holy shit, there it is. James Wan simply never. But and then cuts from the person approaching the illuminated yellow tent. Hard cut to the aftermath. The blood is smeared inside. And this person who we later learn as Ivan is just sitting there reflecting, yeah, basking in the deed that was done. That was terrible, but also it was composed so well. It was memorable, even though it wasn't over the top or ingratuitous.

Sean 24:26

Yeah. It was definitely one of the stronger kills in the movie. We do get some other deaths throughout the movie leading up, like the next two that we get are kind of like things that we see either aftermath or hear about. So we'll start with Olin Bule, who is a character that we see in the open, right? Olen Boole is that kind of creepy dude that shows up at the door at Danny's house, and he's got like the one weird, like I don't know if you call it a glass eye or just like some kind of like weird eye patch type thing with no pigment, super creepy looking. But we see Olin Boole, the aftermath, as Declan is kind of like wandering through the the psych ward or wherever they're at at the hospital, and and his skull is crushed. His skull is literally crushed, or something happened because his like it looks like his brains and pieces are all over the floor.

Kris 25:20

Sir, he was obliterated completely. You got Michael Myers curb stomping this man.

SPEAKER_02 25:32

For sure.

Kris 25:34

The viscera on there. Listen, Sean, I know that you haven't played Baldur's Gate 3. No, but there is so much blood, gore, goops, innards, things that should be in the body that are outside the body, just in piles. And there's a specific area, a specific uh dungeon in act two that is absolutely painful to get through. Like it's such a pain in the ass. But there are mounds of gore in Oregon that are just called viscera. And that's what I felt like looking at Olin's remains, just viscera.

Sean 26:08

Oh man. It yeah, it is actually brutal. It's one of the biggest gore moments that you get in the film. And we later like figure out, we piece it together that Darcy was at the hand of this using that like wooden mannequin thing that you know was gifted to her by some witch or something. Like that wooden man that we see in the towards the end of the movie, that is the like uh it almost reminds me of you know, in the cabinet where he sends a doctor, sends his sleepwalker around. It's kind of like that, only this guy's made of wood. It's almost like if you did that to Pinocchio, you know, and Pinocchio went around killing people in some weird, creepy way.

Kris 26:46

We're still pending a Pinocchio Puneverse movie, so watch out.

Sean 26:49

We are, and it looks creepy, so we're excited for that. But yeah, so we later find out that Darcy and this wooden man are behind the skull crushing episode, Olin's Untimely Demise. So that was an intense kill. And then we later also learn that Declan dies from, I think was mentioned as a heart attack, which is where Ted gets the uh glass eye that Olin had, where he ends up gifting to Darcy because Darcy wanted that glass eye, because we now know that she has some kind of psychic powers where she can kind of like see things through people's possessions. That is where the story starts to take off again.

Kris 27:26

If it wasn't for his hubris, he could have gotten away with it if it wasn't for that pesky twin sister in the glass eye. Because had he respected her enough to not want to fuck around and find out with her psychic touch, he was such a scientific man who's very logic and reasoned and believes everything can be explained.

Sean 27:46

Right.

Kris 27:46

Were it not for that, she never would have known.

Sean 27:49

Yeah, that is true. He messed up, he got ahead of himself, he got a little too cocky, he thought like he had the answers for everything, and you know, he didn't. He didn't have the answer for everything, unfortunately, for himself. That was interesting how Declan died. And then as we progress through the film, we end up getting to a point where we do have to also say goodbye to the other sister in Darcy. She ends up like falling through that trapdoor at the top of the landing up there and severely injuring herself. She's literally dying on the floor, bleeding out throughout a long, a long moment in the movie. I think the back of her head probably got smashed when she hit the floor through the trapdoor. But how unfortunate that was. But let me tell you, before she died, she fucked some shit up.

Kris 28:35

She was fucking shit up, dragging that man for filth. I love her so much. And I was really hoping that something would have gone wrong with his plan or that she would have pulled through in some way because she was such a presence. She was a powerhouse in this movie.

Sean 28:50

Yeah, 100%. There's a lot of foreshadowing in this movie, too. Like, we get like in the very beginning, we get eyes on that, on that trapdoor, if you will, early on. What's really interesting is that this is also like a if you actually think of like what why like why you might be wondering like why there is a trapdoor at all in this movie. And it's not that like Ted put that in there to intentionally kill somebody, because essentially we had Danny messing around with it at the beginning of the movie as they were getting ready to like settle into this house. So, what this house actually is is a converted barn. So if you think of it, this is a very old building. It's an actually a very old historic building in Ireland, and it is a converted barn. So if you actually look at what it is, it makes a whole lot of sense. You have the little courtyard opening, you go into what there's now like their house, and it's the bottom section of the barn, is where the living room area is, and then you have that overhang, which is where you usually keep all the haystacks, and the trapdoor is probably to either get a ladder up there or also drop some haystacks down, you know. So it told make makes total sense.

Kris 29:54

You're talking about the barn of it all, and all it makes me think of is Friday the 13th, part three. There's a lot of barn action in that movie.

Sean 30:02

You know, there's a lot of barn action in a lot of horror movies. It's just a good place. This is just a more modernized barn, that's all.

Kris 30:08

Yet again, yeah, Halloween five. We're back at it again, two weeks in a row.

Sean 30:13

Halloween five. We had some barn action in critters just recently. You know, we there's a lot of barn action going on for sure.

Kris 30:20

Oh, 100%. I'm there with you. Holy crap. This, even

Spoiler Zone

Kris 30:26

just like the set design for this, stunning. It makes me want to rent an Airbnb that is a converted barn, quite frankly.

Sean 30:35

Yeah, it would be kind of cool, definitely. So we have Darcy's untimely demise through all that. We then get to Ivan's demise, which we, you know, we I think this is where it could have, I think this is where you were like, we want to see a little bit more between Ivan and Ted. Ivan's was very interesting. I think, you know, at one point I thought like maybe he we were gonna see him die by the wooden dude, and then it didn't happen, but he ended up getting, uh, he wakes up in the hospital, and you know, Dr. Ted is there to make sure that he's okay, but you know, Dr. Ted's got to cover his tracks, so he can't have this guy like, you know, getting any words out or or anything like that. He's talking nonsense, he wants to confess, all this stuff. So he's gotta let out that one dude that just seems like Hannibal Lecter throughout the whole movie. You keep flashing to this guy that's like chewing on his own leather like face strap or whatever, and then finally they let him out. These are the moments that are they're not like jump scares because they're not trying to get you with like these really large spikes in sound or anything like that. But it's just these moments, and even if you watch some of Damian McCarthy's short films, he does this really well where like you know that something is happening, you know you saw the door creep open, then it sits on Ivan's eyes, and he you know that like when it the camera turns to the next shot or frame, it's gonna be this dude. But did anyone necessarily expect this dude to be creeping up on this dude's foot? No, and so when you flash to that, it's almost like it still gets you a little bit. You're like, oh, what is this dude doing? And then you're like, Is he is he gonna do it? And he does do it. He takes a bite out of this dude's foot, and so we know that he got eaten alive from the foot up.

Kris 32:18

You know, he really took a bite out of this man's foot like Scruff McGruff takes a bite out of crime. Okay, absolutely fucking terrible. People are too comfortable with feet. I think we need less fondness for feet in horror, quite frankly. Between this and Lee Cronin's the mummy with the toe lickins, nah, I'm good. I am opting out of feet. I want a foot-free 2026 from here on out.

Sean 32:44

It's toe licking good.

Kris 32:46

Oh no, no, no, no, no, no. Burn it in fire.

Sean 32:50

I just, for some reason, you know, the the grossness of like, you know, you not liking feet and all that stuff. I'm just thinking of like what Ren and Stimpy would do in these moments. And they'd probably close in on a nasty foot that has like these weird hairs and like weird moldy jam, and then there'll be like a tongue that's like lathering it up and eating it, and you're just sitting in that close-up moment. That's what Ren and Stimpy would do to us as kids.

Kris 33:14

This is exactly why. I mean, I watched Ren and Stimpy, but when I got a little bit more aware of myself, I stopped watching Ren and Stimpy specifically because they were too comfortable being fucking disgusting. Yeah. I'm also talking about disgusting in the ways that they were a little bit more adult than they should have been for a children's cartoon. Licking feet is right up their alley.

Sean 33:34

100%. I don't know why that popped in my head, but it did. Yeah, it shows you where I'm at for sure. And so we it brings us to our last kill, and that is Dr. Ted Timmons. We all wanted it to happen. Uh, you know, it presumably does happen, you know, based on the backstory that we get of this bell boy from this cursed bellboy bell, desk bell, saved by the bell. I mean, we know he presumably dies, but I get it. Like, we wanted to probably see it, right? We want that confirmation.

Kris 34:02

I do appreciate that he is so comfortable in his own disbelief. He's like, Yeah, see, of course nothing's gonna happen to me. And then we see this entity, this ghoul, this ghost that he cannot perceive, who's right next to him. We lost a lot of great women in this film, and by a lot, I mean two, one actress who played two, but he was just such a bastard. He needed his up and sticking.

Sean 34:28

I'm not mad at it. I think it's still like it it fits to the theme of what they committed to doing in this movie. And you know, when I said it in the beginning, I meant it. It is that restraint, like it's all the way from the beginning to the very end, is really flexing that muscle of being like just being like flexing that restraint, and you know, it could give us more, but it didn't. And I think like it's another one of those where it's not even like necessarily meant to be this giant jump scare, but it's still like, even though you know it's happening, it goes to it and it still gets you a little bit because he keeps going back and forth, and there's nothing around him, there's nothing, and then finally you see the entity, you know, behind him lurking around and ready to go. What's really interesting is with this bell, I mean, this is another thing that shows up in Hokum, this little bell. So stay tuned to like how that connects to Hokum. But that's just what I love about this movie is that you have a lot of really cool things that Damien does that makes like if you're someone that enjoys his films and you watch and you've you've watched all of his films, you can start connecting these little pieces together. And so, like, that ties into I think one of the strongest production elements in in this movie in Oddity, and that's the atmosphere. It's the movie that understands that you know horror isn't always about what you see, it's also about like it what you feel, it's about what the film convinces you might, you know, convinces you that might be maybe hiding just outside of the frame, every room in this house. You had described it as cold and empty. It makes you feel all of this, but in this almost wrong in a way that makes you kind of like scan the background like you're trying to survive the movie yourself. And so it does all that really well. There's so much to like visually that this movie does really well from the atmosphere to the cinematography to the sound that we've been talking about. But I'm curious, like, what stood out to you?

Kris 36:20

You know, it's gonna be something that makes me feel like we just swap roles tonight because yes, there's a lot here to really feature like in Soak Your Eyes in. There is so much visually that stands out. But for me, one of the shining things was the score and the soundtrack. Specifically the song that bookends the movie, well, with the title card and then with the ending, and it talks about being on your own and being left alone. That's one thing. I love when an older, more vintage song really does a number and plays a part in a modern tale. But the other thing was specifically the music in the opening scene.

SPEAKER_02 37:03

Yeah.

Kris 37:03

And Danny talks about how her husband is gonna be home soon. Olin reveals that he knows her husband works nights, which is holy shit. Fucking chilling. It goes back to Urban Legend. I think if you've seen Urban Legend, you're gonna see this shit a mile away. So like you're not really caught off guard by Olin, but the delivery and the way the music drops with that and like kind of swells, it shifts in a way that like really accentuates the gravity of that. And then you see the look in her eyes when she's calculating this, it's so good.

Sean 37:41

Yeah, it is like the score adds a lot of like amazing vibes to this movie and the feelings, and that it's also the sound design and the sound effects that this movie does really well because there's just those subtle moments, like from that scene to other scenes, like you know, when when you know, there's like this moment where I think even in that scene where Olin is saying through the door that like there's someone in the house, and then there's like this pause, but you hear some like shuffling or some creaking in the back of the house somewhere, and that's when she kind of like Danny kind of looks, but kind of dismisses it and gets back to the conversation. Like, there's every little thing that this movie did from sound, not just the score, which is incredible, but even just the little details like the footsteps, the creaks, the knocks, the breathing, all of that stuff was done very, very masterfully, and it really helped to add a lot of depth and and elevated the tension, the suspense, and the creepiness and the fear in this movie.

Kris 38:39

Which is exactly why that's one of the best scenes in the entire film. Genuinely, you see his face staring at her and warning her. And this movie immediately forces you into a thrust exercise, right?

SPEAKER_02 38:52

Yeah.

Kris 38:52

He he says, You left this door open behind you, someone slipped inside. That for me is one of the scariest moments in the entire movie because it gives you this oh no, this sinking feeling. She's already inside this place that she thought was safe, and here she is confronted with this idea where there is probably danger right outside her door. And of course, they pick someone with a glass eye who is a patient at her husband's job or a former patient. And so when you have this, it immediately puts you on the defense, and you're like, ah, okay, there is someone who may be unstable outside my door. But that person is not a danger to you. They're actually pointing out just how much peril you're in. And it really, again, it goes back to the gas station attendant in Urban Legend when he's trying to bet uh uh to warn her that there's somebody in the backseat. And because she thinks he's just some creepy guy, she doesn't give him the time of day. She runs, she leaves, and all of a sudden the killer's in her back seat. I love this though, because this whole scene takes that same memory of a woman being warned about a hidden danger, but it makes it feel more intimate because at this time it's not in a public place, it's not in her car, it's not in a gas station, it's in her home. And that makes it feel way more like a violation than anything.

Sean 40:18

100%, yeah. It's it's yeah, dude. It's it's that whole that whole thing was just genuinely a lot of mixed feelings. I remember one, I think from what we're talking about, I think that you know, from an urban legend standpoint, that it's a very familiar setup for sure. But I think what what adds to it on top of what you're saying is that it is also the fact that this is you know, it's adding into this like backcountry of Ireland. It's a little bit older looking, it's a little darker, like you said, a little bit more isolated. It's not like it's a little bit of a different vibe. It adds that that kind of layer of that kind of Irish folklore urban legend kind of vibe to it that's a little bit fresh. But yeah, I just remember like living in that scene, and it's no less effective watching it a second time than it is watching it the first time. And I just remember like thinking to myself, like, what would I do in this moment? Am I letting this guy in? And I'm at first I'm like, There's no fucking way I'm letting this guy in, there's no way. And then you go through these mixed, mixed emotions where you know you're saying there's no way that she should ever let this guy in. And then, you know, she says she's gonna call the cops, and he's like, Yeah, call the cops. That's a great idea. Call the cops, and then you're like, Fuck, man, should I let this guy in? And she goes through that too, and you're feeling all that with her, you're feeling all that with her throughout the entire scene, and she even goes to kind of do it, and then you know, he starts acting a little bit interesting, and so she kind of second guesses herself. And I think it's that whole moment that leads to the title card, which I think is perfectly placed, and it's just so well executed, that whole moment right there. And we don't even get back to that moment until like later on when Darcy ends up getting a little bit of glimpse and into like Olin's eye, you know, when she gets and recovers the eye and does the seance and stuff, and kind of we cut back to that eventually.

Kris 42:13

Yeah, I love that we have such a pause, it's like a very pregnant pause between getting the hand to the door and turning the key all the way to figuring out what actually happens of Danny. Yeah, and I actually love it because it gives a little bit of levity and lightness and air to it. Obviously, we jump forward a year. Her husband's moved on, and the second you recognize that he's moved on, you're like, okay, this guy's clearly in on it. This guy's a document dozen on investigation discovery.

SPEAKER_02 42:44

Yeah, for sure.

Kris 42:45

When we end up in Odello's Oddities with Darcy, wow, what a great concept, first of all. The name is great, the branding is great, the cursed item selection is great. I love that she even warns him before recognizing who he is that don't even think about stealing from me because every item in here is cursed, curses uh are lifted at the time of purchase. She just has so much personality and she honestly wins this movie because of that. And it grounds itself in this dark humor and weirdness without making it feel completely silly. It's whimsical but not silly. So when you get her in that humor, and then this is when he delivers the glass eye, and you later see her touching it. Yeah, you get to see Danny's final moments with Olin's perspective.

SPEAKER_02 43:38

Right.

Kris 43:38

That is such a creepy way to for her to actually learn about her sister's fate.

Sean 43:43

Yeah. It and that is, you know, if it's not the open, like that is probably the runner up of like the best scene in the movie because you have that moment where you go back to that, and it's almost like you're just taken right back to the tension because it's creepy. Be, you know, she's now like kind of you see that Danny's like in the house. She's trying to, she's creeped out, she's kind of listening around. She may be hearing things, she's maybe not. She's a little bit creeped out. She's got the tent, you know, she goes over to the camera. We know that something's gonna be on the camera. As soon as we go back to the camera, and we may have forgotten about it for a while, right? And we come back to that scene and she goes for the camera. We're like, oh no. We know this camera was taking snapshots every however long. We're gonna see something. It doesn't help, it doesn't prevent us from from feeling it in that moment because she takes the camera in the tent, zips it up, and starts going through the pictures. And what does she fucking find? A creepy ass motherfucker in uh a mask that looks very similar to I feel like Hush, but um I thought Jabba walkies. Yeah, so but super creepy just standing in front of the tent like that. And she did such a great job selling the emotion of being genuinely fucking frightened in that moment and just feeling like whatever, like I couldn't even imagine, like, oh my god, I should have let the guy in, I should have left the house. Now I'm stuck in this tent, he's gone, the door's shut, whatever the hell it is, like it's a whole thing. And oh my god. And then she's like, I'm what am I gonna do? I either stay in here or I'm gonna open the tent and figure it out. And she opens the tent, she's looking around, and you're expecting like to open the tent and see someone right away. You're expecting to see someone down the hall. You don't see any of that at first, and then as at the moment you're like, okay, she's not seeing anything, she's gonna have to step out of the tent to see something. What the fuck happens? This dude like lurks from the back or something like that, and his head like comes down, really eerie-like, and that right there was fucking genuinely fucking creepy.

Kris 45:42

And again, I don't know the full creative process behind this, but I feel like that whole sequence is such a great concept of like I have this idea in my brain and I have to make a movie, and then the rest of the movie is born from that idea.

Sean 45:56

Yeah, for sure. It's uh it's such a great scene for sure. And then there's a lot of like really great scenes that build a lot of dread in this movie. I love like when when Yana is trying to talk to Ted and tell him that she's been seeing Danny's ghost that he's dismissing, you know what I mean? And then there's those flashback moments of what she actually saw with Danny showing up in the camera and realizing that that picture was taken, you know, recently, but then also seeing her in the hallway. Like, there's some creepy shit going on in this house. Not a bad ghost, but some creepy shit, you know?

Kris 46:32

Yeah, not a bad ghost at all. But Danny for sure knew that they were fucking around because obviously Ted had her her killed because I mean, unlike what Yana said, they were in fact a thing. Because he was already plotting. But can we just take a moment? Ladies and gentlemen, they's and thems, if you have a co-worker that you're flirting with and your co-worker's legal spouse was murdered in their house, and within a year you're shacked up with them. No, no, you're either in on it or you're an idiot. Don't fucking do that. You're probably gonna be next on the list. If they would kill for you, they would still kill you.

Sean 47:20

That's true. It's a good advice for sure. Luckily, Yana did like the the right thing and figured out a way that she was ejecting out of that house, left, got out of there, and said, I ain't coming back. Um, so good for her. She's like, I'm not dealing with she's like, I'm I she didn't cut off ties immediately, but she definitely did say, like, I can't believe you're even going back to that house. And so she kind of like cut ties at that moment, kind of, I guess. I don't know, but she did get out of there, so good for Yana. She did get herself out of there. It was never really about her, which is probably why she was able to escape.

Kris 47:53

It was never about her, but she also knew better. And I'm sorry, again, especially if this isn't just a coworker, and I may have positioned this even from like a the perspective of the advice of you're kind of flirting with, but it's like a very safe relationship. No, if you're already fucking around and then your person's spouse mysteriously dies, absolutely not. You have no business being there, nor should you continue seeing them, dating them, etc. Absolutely not. Can we just talk for a minute of the scene where Darcy confronts Ted?

SPEAKER_02 48:27

Oh, yeah.

Kris 48:28

She confronts him, he asks why would he kill her? And she says, Because you asked him to. She is dragging him, she's cutting straight through the lie, but she's also just saying you could have all you had to tell her was the truth. She would have cried, but she would have been there, it would have been okay. It makes his choice even more disgusting because he had options. He just chose the worst possible option. And then it cuts into this reveal of what this conversation looked like. And Ivan's like, have you considered just divorcing her?

SPEAKER_02 49:01

Yeah.

Kris 49:02

And of course, he's so narcissistic. He's centering himself so much, she loves me, she'll never get over me. Oh fuck off. A perfect encapsulation of him and every other dime a dozen shitty husband on investigation discovery that ends their wives' lives because they couldn't imagine a world in which someone moves on from them. Even in this situation, he is putting himself as a center of attention and he is pretending to have a moral boundary by saying, Oh, I just want her dead. I don't want her to be sexually assaulted. Come on now. And I've even Ivan even checks him. He's like, Well, if it does come to that, I don't want her hurt, just dead.

Sean 49:42

Also, that whole dialogue was ridiculous. I mean, he Ted obviously a douchebag for the whole thing. Like, obviously, we know he could have just cut ties and that would have been fine. But no, he has to, he has to be that kind of narcissistic piece of shit where he has to have her killed. Um, he wants, he doesn't think that she can get over him. He also doesn't want to lose any option of getting that house, so he has to have that house, so there's that selfish point. But then, like, the whole thought process of Ivan being like, well, like you could it's like he was asking those things because he wanted to sexually assault her. That's what it really felt like. Ivan is just a creepy dude in general, and so that whole dialogue was absolutely wild to me.

Kris 50:23

It reminded me of Family Guy and Stewie saying, It's not so much that I want to kill Lois, I just want her not to be alive anymore.

SPEAKER_02 50:33

Yeah, exactly.

Kris 50:34

That's exactly what it is.

SPEAKER_02 50:36

Yeah, what are we talking about here?

Kris 50:37

What are we talking about here? And again, I just stand on the business that Ted is a real son of a bitch. He's a son of a bitch, and he ruined the lives of two fantastic women. We had Darcy, who brings grief, control, anger, weirdness, and comedy to the movie. Danny, who seemed to have genuinely loved her husband, and then you had this wet noodle Ted, who just thinks that nobody could possibly ever move on from get the fuck out of here.

Sean 51:06

Terrible, absolutely terrible.

Kris 51:08

I hate that man. Not all men, but that one for sure.

Sean 51:11

That one for sure. You know, a character that I think plays a huge menacing role in this film is literally that wooden man. Because for much of the movie, this dude isn't doing anything, it's just a wooden object carved at like a man that's you know, maybe like a witch's totem of sorts, right? Like some kind of weird ritualistic thing that we find because you know, we find later that you know Darcy has little items and trinkets and things that with in the holes in the back of his head and stuff, and uses him to come to life for that or see things. But what a presence that this thing has. It is fucking creepy from the moment it is on screen. And every time you know that the camera's gonna go back to it, you're anticipating it to be creepy, and it genuinely is. And the moments where it's like doing even creepier things, like when it's looking straight up at Yana from the top of the stairs, like, what in the holy hell is that? And then when it comes to life, of course, just also genuinely creepy, but man, that thing was menacing.

Kris 52:15

I got no strings to hold me down, and that's all I can think of every single time I saw him walking around.

Sean 52:21

It was so creepy. We talked a lot about Carolyn Bracken playing Danny and Darcy. I we talked about me not even putting that two, those two things together. I mean, listen, when you look at it now, you could tell that it, you know, the face is similar for sure. I just don't, I think they just did like she did such a good job portraying two different personalities, two different characters, two different looks that like I was just lost in the two different characters, and I really just didn't put them together. I was just invested in their in their moments.

Kris 52:54

When did you put it together?

Sean 52:56

Literally towards the end of the movie. Like I recognize it now that I heard that, but I think at the moment I was like, they're sisters, but I didn't get the identical twin thing and piece it together that they would be the same person. I don't know why. I'm telling you, I don't know why it didn't click a register in my head. Maybe in my subconscious it did, and it just didn't click for me because I was so in like in the movie. I don't know. Um, but nonetheless, Carolyn Bracken did an incredible job. It speaks to the work that she does do in playing these two different, very different personalities. They're not even close to the same personality.

Kris 53:32

No, I also just love that you say I was too in the movie. It's giving I lost the forest through the trees.

Sean 53:38

Listen, I don't know. I was invested in uh everything that was happening around me except for that moment, but it was masterfully done, one of the standout performances for sure. I also want to say one of the things that really ties this movie to the universe, if you will, of Damien McCarthy is the character of Olin Boole with the one eye glass eye thing. Because if you want, you can actually go check out on YouTube a short film. It's five minutes by Damien McCarthy. It's called How Olen Lost His Eye, and it's a little bit of backstory. It shows this character of Olin as a kid, and it's a really great tension-building five-minute short film, and will explain just exactly how this dude lost his eye. And it's funny that this character shows up in Oddity out of nowhere.

Kris 54:28

Do we think Cotton Eyed Joe is related to glass-eyed Olen?

Sean 54:33

Yeah, I don't know, it's a stretch, but you never know. Two different dudes from two different barns. But I think that's really cool as like a connection, and there's other connections too, like this movie and caveat, which was from 2020. Caveat and this film were actually filmed in the exact same location. So the exact same place. You wouldn't tell. You go watch caveat and you watch this, they don't look like the same place. Maybe it's a different section of this. It's the historic Bantry House in West Cork, Ireland, is where this was all filmed. He knew the people that own the property, so he was able to actually be able to film there twice, which is pretty lucky. This converted barn section inspired him to do a whole nother movie in Oddity, which is really cool. So there's that connection there between caveat and oddity, but there's there's this connection with just the little trinkets that are showing from different films that show up in all of Damien's films. So, like in caveat, there's you know, without giving any way, there's this really evil, crazy looking bunny doll that you know plays an instrument. And so in this movie, if you look at Odello's oddities, there is a creepy little bunny sitting on the shelf in the shop, a little connection there.

Kris 55:46

It really is like the Warren's cabinet of curiosities and haunted shit.

Sean 55:52

That's what I'm saying, and so it's really funny because Damian McCarthy, I was just like diving really deep into this, and this dude collects weird things like this. He literally collects these weird items and he uses them in his films. So, like he actually collects some of this stuff, and I don't know what he gauges off of it. I he, you know, he if he says that he thinks that there's a story there, he'll buy it and he'll collect it. And they're just the oddest looking, weirdest off-putting little trinkets. Um, makes me kind of like wanna collect these weird things myself, you know, and have some fun.

Kris 56:28

But Sean, I think we have talked about this and talked about having a little antique YouTube channel.

Sean 56:35

We should go out there and find these weird things, man. They're out there, there's really creepy looking shit.

Kris 56:39

Yeah, up where you are in like not South Florida, I guarantee you there's a million things up there. St. Augustine, we could go.

Sean 56:46

For sure, there's gotta be stuff up there for sure.

Kris 56:51

Now, one thing that I hope does not carry over into his other films is the lack of satisfaction I had with Ted not dying on screen at the end. Oh, we'll see what happens in Holcomb or where we see his other movies. But that's the one thing that when I walk away from this movie when it's all said and done, damn, I just wish I got a little bit more against Ted. And again, that's saying a lot because this movie's actually really great, and I still get why we didn't do it. It's it's only a very small issue, but damn, he's just so smug that I I just want the satisfaction of seeing him vanquished.

Sean 57:28

Yeah, it's really the that's really the one thing that you could latch on to because I honestly don't know if there's a lot of bad things to say about this movie. I know there will be people out there that say that it was predictable. There'll be people out there that say like it wasn't that complex of a story. And in in reality, folks, it isn't. It isn't that complex, but it's just done really, really well and it's genuinely executed in a way that does make the hairs tingle a little bit, you know? It does build that kind of tension and suspense. But you're right, Chris. I think like if there's something that you can take away from this movie that you just wanted a little bit more from, it would be the fact that you want a little bit more of a satisfying end in seeing Ted's demise. We know it was hinted at, but like it would have been cool to see him actually die.

Kris 58:11

But I will say that you've done enough legwork, Sean, to make me still interested enough to re-watch this movie after watching Holcomb and Caveat. So I think when I see the rest of Damien McCarthy's filmography, I will want to go back and watch this movie again, Ted be damned, just to be able to appreciate his universe a little bit more.

Sean 58:32

Yeah, and I think that's where I'm at too. Like I've seen this movie twice. I just recently watched caveat because I had somebody tell me that they thought caveat was better than Hokum. And I will say, in my opinion, it was not better than Hokum, but it was still a good story. So I I just recently watched caveat and I recently watched Hokum in theaters, and I gotta say, I loved all the movies. I like the little connections, I like that they're in the same universe, and so I think for like similar to you, is like I would be down to watch all of these movies back to back. I think it would be really fun and just try that once Hokum is maybe available to stream or something like that.

Kris 59:12

Well, we'll see what happens when it becomes available to stream, and we'll see what happens when we review Hokum next week on

Toodles

Kris 59:18

the show. But for now, this brings our final score for Oddity to Universal Slash. And listen, for a movie so focused on grief, guilt, on the danger of keeping the wrong things hidden, this one I think still gives us plenty to unpack from its haunted object and oddities mechanics to the way that Damien McCarthy even keeps turning enclosed faces into moral pressure cookies.

Sean 59:42

Yeah, I think if you want to find out what's maybe lurking on our camera reel and kind of get some extra insight into the show, just consider supporting the show and visit patreon.com slash hackerslash because honestly, this is where you can enjoy a lot more of the show. You'll be able to enjoy bonus content with early access, you can enjoy the extended episodes with our B sides, you can enjoy movie nominations and really be a part of what we watch next. And of course, what we love are those live shows.

Kris 1:00:12

We'll see you next time, folks, and remember, there's nothing that can't be explained.

Sean 1:00:16

Yeah, the one good thing about working in a place like this is that no one really asks any questions.