Dawsferatu's House of Horrors

     Published to great controversy in 1969, Anton Szandor LaVey’s grimoire The Satanic Bible is a collection of essays and observations extolling the virtues of selfishness and instinct. The text is foundational to LaVeyan Satanism, containing, as it does, the central tenets and dogma of his philosophical project. But despite The Satanic Bible ’s sordid reputation, it reads more like a Twitter PUA’s guide to tricking a weird goth girl into bed than it does a sequel to the Kitab al-Azif . Anton Szandor LaVey, the high priest of Satanism himself      Nevertheless, LaVey does manage to include some interesting anthropological insights regarding the persistence of the religious instinct, even in the face of psychoanalysis. From pages 52-53 of The Satanic Bible : Modern man has come a long way; he has become disenchanted with the nonsensical dogmas of past religions. We are living in an enlightened age. Psychiatry has made great strides in enlightening man abo...

    Following the release of Ryan Coogler’s 2018 blockbuster Black Panther , many publications--popular and academic alike--heralded it as a decade defining film. From Time : “The Revolutionary Power of Black Panther ”; from Esquire : “Why Black Panther Is History in the Making”; from The New York Times : “Why Black Panther Is a Defining Moment for Black America”; the list goes on. Indeed, Black Panther ’s cultural impact was quite impressive. In the months that followed its debut, dozens of celebrities were seen flashing the “Wakanda Forever” salute popularized by the film up and down Sunset Boulevard, Walmarts the world over struggled to keep T’Challa action figures in stock, and children and manchildren alike were united in their collective worship of a man in black polyester catsuit. Black Panther mania came to a head at that year’s Oscar’s, where the film was nominated for Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Sound Mixing, Best So...

    Full disclosure: I haven't seen The Conjuring since sometime around 2015, and I haven't re-watched The Conjuring 2 since it first came out in theaters. I've also only done cursory research into the case The Conjuring 3 is purportedly based on, so what follows relies almost solely on my admittedly spotty memory and Wikipedia tinged conjecture.     The tent pole Conjuring films--that is, The Conjuring , The Conjuring 2 , and now, The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It --each open with Ed and Lorraine Warren investigating a supernatural occurrence of some description. If memory serves, The Conjuring begins with the duo removing the Annabel doll from a young couple's home; The Conjuring 2 with Ed and Lorraine poking around Amityville. Both of these scenes serve to 1). (re)introduce the Warrens to the audience and 2). establish the thematic concerns of the installment. Neither of these scenes is integral to the movie's A plot. (I think Valak or whatever th...