Episode 159 - Sleepwalkers

[AndyReichel 16]

Here's that expletive-laden song that officer Andy was singing in the car. I thought it was made up gibberish, but my Canadian wife informed me that it's a real song, and she grew up with it playing in the house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAp7FvZ5Opw

[asorini 2]

[...] I started thinking about it in terms of the vampire narrative. I wrote a kind of lengthy post about the history of the vampire narrative and how it correlates to the hagiographical accounts of virgin saints' lives in the Vampire's Kiss thread. I won't repeat it all here, but basically, the bite is a metaphor for sex. [...]

 

The vampire narrative adopted this formula. [...]

 

Now, I don't think King was thinking about this tradition or the history of the vampire narrative when he wrote this. More likely, he was following the pattern set out by a hundred plus years of western vampire tradition.

 

Regarding the relationship to the vampire narrative: I think that King has taken the vampire narrative and flipped it on it's head. In fact, all the well-known aspects of the vampire legends apply equally well to sleepwalkers, EXCEPT OPPOSITE!

 

For example:

• Vampires can't be seen in mirrors; sleepwalkers can ONLY BE SEEN IN MIRRORS!
  
• What's the opposite of a wooden stake through the heart? Answer: A cat scratch on the back.
  
• Vampires transform into bats; sleepwalkers transform INTO CATS!
  
• The vampire bat's preferred mode of transportation is flight, whereas sleepwalkers prefer to drive a Trans Am.
  
• Vampires must be explicitly invited into the home of their victim; sleepwalkers invite their victim into their home, then give the victim a flower, and then tell the victim to leave.
  
• Vampires use "glamouring" to hypnotize their victims, sleepwalkers just hit on them at the movie theater.
  

 

Pretty convincing evidence that sleepwalkers are vampire opposites if you ask me!

[sycasey 2.0 2301]

Here's that expletive-laden song that officer Andy was singing in the car. I thought it was made up gibberish, but my Canadian wife informed me that it's a real song, and she grew up with it playing in the house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAp7FvZ5Opw

 

I thought Canadians were supposed to be polite and mild-mannered. What's with all the profanity?

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

 

I thought Canadians were supposed to be polite and mild-mannered. What's with all the profanity?

No, we're animals. That myth has been propagated to discourage immigration.

[Cameron H. 23786]

 

No, we're animals. That myth has been propagated to discourage immigration.

 

[tomspanks 9039]

No, we're animals. That myth has been propagated to discourage immigration.

 

Why would politeness discourage immigration? Wouldn't it actually appeal to potential immigrants?

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

 

Why would politeness discourage immigration? Wouldn't it actually appeal to potential immigrants?

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Even scarier - an Australian PLAYING a Canadian (like me).

[IMAHUGEHDTGMFAN 1837]

 

I thought Canadians were supposed to be polite and mild-mannered. What's with all the profanity?

 

There is a NSFW curseword in the video

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSD-ujgqqIA

[joel_rosenbaum 1269]

One thing that caught my attention about this movie is that it was the first of seven Stephen King adaptations that Garris would direct. From my cursory research, Garris is the only director besides Rob Reiner (Stand By Me, Misery) who has directed more than one King adpatation. And while Reiner understandably got more than one bite at the apple, I can't fully understand why Garris did. I do remember the Stand being well-received at the time, and Garris has gone on to have a reasonably successful career, but putting him at the helm of such a major adaptation must have meant that King (or someone) loved Sleepwalkers. Maybe someone can dig up a reference for this.

[jorvackian 2]

There is an entertainment precedent for June's theory that perhaps as Sleepwalkers the characters are not Mother and Son, but perhaps just buddies or co-workers. I present exhibit A - the sitcom THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN - in which the aliens appear as a family, but are different ages and are not related. This will be known in future episodes as the THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN defense.

 

Or it really is incest.

[Thrillhouse88 32]

This was an all time classic episode for me. I've listened to it like 5 times since last Friday.

[ElieB 238]

There is an entertainment precedent for June's theory that perhaps as Sleepwalkers the characters are not Mother and Son, but perhaps just buddies or co-workers. I present exhibit A - the sitcom THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN - in which the aliens appear as a family, but are different ages and are not related. This will be known in future episodes as the THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN defense.

 

Or it really is incest.

Nailed it. We're with you June.

 

[FisterRoboto 7499]

This was an all time classic episode for me. I've listened to it like 5 times since last Friday.

Totally agree! I didn't totally enjoy watching the movie like I do with some of the others that are enjoyably bad watches, but everything about the ep was fucking wonderful. I love the change-up in the dynamic of studio eps; I love any time June is able to make it (although I'm 100% understanding of why she's had to be out a bunch over the last year or so); and I am SO happy that LL is finally on an ep. It all just turned into the perfect storm of amazingness.

[IMAHUGEHDTGMFAN 1837]

There is an entertainment precedent for June's theory that perhaps as Sleepwalkers the characters are not Mother and Son, but perhaps just buddies or co-workers. I present exhibit A - the sitcom THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN - in which the aliens appear as a family, but are different ages and are not related. This will be known in future episodes as the THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN defense.

 

 

And much like June's Sleepwalkers theory, the THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN aliens kept the family pretext as their "inside joke"

[NathanGordon 1096]

Randomly came across this Sleepwalkers poster from Ghana:

 

[IMAHUGEHDTGMFAN 1837]

Randomly came across this Sleepwalkers poster from Ghana:

 

 

 

[ElieB 238]

Hahaha that is fannnnntastic artwork. I especially like how her right foot is just a cat's face.

[emdawg 0]

This episode reminded me of watching Children of the Corn. There's a scene in Children of the Corn that literally made me cry laughing because of the ridiculous CGI. Please do this movie for your podcast. It would be awesome.