The Hunger (1997)
The Hunger is a British/Canadian television horror anthology series, co-produced by Scott Free Productions, Telescene Film Group Productions and the Canadian pay-TV channel The Movie Network. Though it shares a title with the feature film The Hunger the series has no direct plot or character connection to the film, and was created by Jeff Fazio. Originally shown on the Sci Fi Channel in the UK, The Movie Network in Canada and Showtime in the US, the series was broadcast from 1997 to 2000, and is internally organized into two seasons. Each episode was based around an independent story introduced by the host; Terence Stamp hosted each episode for the first season, and was replaced in the second season by David Bowie. Stories tended to focus on themes of self-destructive desire and obsession, with a strong component of soft-core erotica; popular tropes for the stories included cannibalism, vampires, sex, and poison.
-
Episode 1 - Sanctuary
Release Date: 1999-09-10When a young drifter (Giovanni Ribisi) arrives at a disused prison seeking help having been shot earlier that day, he sees that it is owned by a famously disturbed artist, Julian Priest (David Bowie), who has one final masterpiece on his mind.
-
Episode 2 - Skin Deep
Release Date: 1999-09-10A young woman seeking a female partner meets Roxanna, an erotic dancer, at a nightclub and they begin an affair. This leads to new experiences of pleasure and pain as well as flirting with death. But when will the flirtation turn serious
-
Episode 3 - Dream Sentinel
Release Date: 1999-09-10Based on The Sixth Sentinel by Poppy Z Brite, this is the story of a lap dancer wishes for nothing more than to forget her troubled past but the ghost of a killer haunts her and, oddly, wishes to protect her. What, however, will he want in return.
-
Episode 4 - And She Laughed
Release Date: 1999-10-03In this homage to Repulsion, Jane (Jennifer Beals) thinks that she's having trouble with a Peeping Tom and that the police could help but when she sees a pair of eyes staring at her through the letterbox and begins having nightmares, her mental health crumbles.
-
Episode 5 - Nunc Dimittis
Release Date: 1999-10-10The loyal servant of an elderly princess reveals to his mistress that he is dying and may only have a number of days left so she makes one final request - that he find his own replacement amongst the drifters in the city.
-
Episode 6 - Week Woman
Release Date: 1999-10-17When an illegal immigrant is threatened with deportation and is offered a marriage of convenience by his partner's lesbian friend, he accepts. Soon, though, he finds that her personality changes week-by-week, from housewife to dominatrix...to killer?
-
Episode 7 - Night Bloomer
Release Date: 1999-10-24An ambitious marketing executive is finding that his work is suffering and that his manager is stifling his ideas until, that is, he meets an attractive woman who offers to change his life for the better and all with one little seed.
-
Episode 8 - The Diarist
Release Date: 1999-10-31Merriam is a witch whose heart was recently broken and she uses her magic for vengeance. Laurissa, though, is also a witch and sets about learning white magic with which to protect Merriam's ex-lover, leading to a battle for his life between the two witches.
-
Episode 9 - Sin Seer
Release Date: 1999-11-07Mano is a young man who has a unique gift - he can look into people's eyes and see their darkest secrets. For years, he has avoided eye contact with people but, for even longer, he has avoided mirrors...but what should happen if he looked into one.
-
Episode 10 - Triangle in Steel
Release Date: 1999-11-14A young man joins a riveting team constructing a new bridge but when he becomes obsessed with the wife of the team's leader. But in a job that requires the trust of those around him when working at great heights, will anyone be there to catch him should he fall
-
Episode 11 - Brass
Release Date: 1999-11-21When a young man inherits an ornate mirror following the death of his Satanist father, he finds that it reveals his father's attempted use of black arts. As the dead man's son continues his father's work, he puts the lives of those around him in danger, particularly when he forges a link to Hell through the power of the mirror.
-
Episode 12 - Replacements
Release Date: 1999-11-28A doctor becomes determined to find out what is happening to the women in his town, after they appear to be turning against the men and becoming obsessed with something unknown.
-
Episode 13 - I'm Very Dangerous Tonight
Release Date: 2000-01-02The stunning red dress from Season One - I'm Dangerous Tonight - is back for this episode, in which Henry buys his wife, Sarah, the dress only for her to prove irresistible to others, including Henry's father.
-
Episode 14 - Wrath of God
Release Date: 2000-01-09An apartment block is the focus of a series of murders mostly of gay men and this attracts the attentions of a man (Anthony Michael Hall) who claims to be a student of all things evil. But when he visits the landlord of the building, are acts of evil really on his mind.
-
Episode 15 - Bottle of Smoke
Release Date: 2000-01-16When an elderly woman, who traveled widely in her youth, dies, she leaves her possessions to her young niece, which includes a bottle of smoke that promises the ultimate in sexual fulfillment. But such pleasure comes at a price.
-
Episode 16 - The Perfect Couple
Release Date: 2000-01-23A modern day cupid arranges for two people to come together and believes them to be the perfect match. Four years later, though, he revisits them to see how they fared and finds their relationship is troubled. Was his mistake just that...or is his poor matchmaking deliberate?
-
Episode 17 - The Sacred Fire
Release Date: 2000-01-30Luann is a kind and generous woman who volunteers to help the homeless find food and shelter but when she meets Nick, who lives on the street, he warns her that there are street people who are aliens in disguise, intent on killing humans.
-
Episode 18 - Approaching Desdemona
Release Date: 2000-02-06In a story that will be familiar to many Internet users, a couple's life together deteriorates when he finds an adult website that offers bizarre sexual fantasies.
-
Episode 19 - The Seductress
Release Date: 2000-02-13When a novelist reads a suicide note from a former lover, she begins an affair with a mysterious man, but their romance is not all it seems and the boundaries between reality and fiction appear to fall away.
-
Episode 20 - Double (aka Beyond Any Measure)
Release Date: 2000-02-20The myth of the Doppelganger has lasted for centuries and receives a modern updating here as two identical women meet but realise the differences between them are in their personalities - one is normal whilst the other is plagued by nightmares. Their meeting, however, results in a battle for their souls.
-
Episode 21 - Falling Man
Release Date: 2000-02-27An architect meets a beautiful woman who encourages him to take risks with his designs and the building that he creates becomes the most successful of his career. But how far will this woman go to ensure the design stays unique.
-
Episode 22 - The Suction Method
Release Date: 2000-03-05Carpet cleaning may not have been the most terrifying of events before now but when middle-aged Max celebrates after having his wife leave town on business, she books Redemptive Cleaners to come in her absence, who have an most unique method of dealing with errant husbands.