Episode 107: Scream Queen

The Hopscotch Friday Podcast

Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street is a horror film documentary with a lot to say.

Focusing on the experience of actor Mark Patton, who starred as Jesse in A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, it explores the impact on the actor of the gay panic response to the homoerotic themes and imagery of the film.

Patton's candid and pained reflections on homophobia in Hollywood, and the wider world, in the era of AIDS and religious lobbyists targeting gay rights, form the spine of this emotional film.

Directors Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen also features the contrast of 'Freddy fans' who mock the perceived gay content of the film with advocates reclaiming both Freddy's Revenge, and Mark Patton, as an icon for queer cinema.

Stevie and Emmet discuss the film and the emotional highs and lows of this sensitive subject matter.

Also:

• Stevie's piece Strangeberries as featured in Polly Borland's Wundergym exhibition
• Emmet recommends listening to Tear Them Apart, with Paul M Yellovich and co-host Beasts of Burden/Blackwood creator Evan Dorkin, and their recent whistle-stop tour of the Friday the 13th franchise
• Emmet and Tim Molloy have an 'ecological horror story' featured in The Hierograph, which has a Kickstarter campaign
• Scream, Queen! is available to view on Shudder and on DVD from Umbrella Entertainment in Australia.