Todd Solondz's disowned debut finally gets its day. Fear, Anxiety & Depression (1989) follows Ira Ellis (Solondz), a bespectacled, self-deluding playwright adrift in the last gasp of the East Village art scene — too busy pining after a performance artist named Junk to notice the woman who actually loves him.
Mike Sullivan and David Rodgers join Mike to dig into the film Solondz famously begged a friend not to rent, examining what makes it both a fascinating time capsule of downtown New York bohemia and an unmistakable preview of the tragicomic sensibility that would eventually produce Happiness and Welcome to the Dollhouse. They also make the case for why this orphaned debut — unavailable on any legitimate platform since its 1990 VHS release — deserves a proper restoration and re-release.
Special Guest: David Atkins Guest Co-Hosts: Andras Jones, David Rodgers
Emir Kusturica’s Arizona Dream (1993) drifts between deadpan comedy and waking dream, a film where ambition, escape, and American myth collide at odd angles. Written by David Atkins and directed by Emir Kusturica, the film features Johnny Depp as Axel, stranded between New York routine and Arctic fantasia after his cousin (Vincent Gallo) drags him west to Arizona. There, Axel falls into orbit around his Uncle Leo (Jerry Lewis) and the Stalkers--mother and daughter played by Faye Dunaway and Lili Taylor--each chasing a private version of freedom.
Mike, joined by co-hosts Andras Jones and David Rodgers, unpacks how Arizona Dream bends tone and narrative into something closer to folklore than plot, balancing melancholy against absurdity. The conversation explores Kusturica’s outsider view of America, the film’s uneasy relationship with realism, and the way dreams--Inuit or otherwise--function as both refuge and trap. Mike also talks with screenwriter David Atkins about shaping the script, collaborating with Kusturica, and navigating a studio-era release that never quite knew what to do with a movie this strange.
Special Guests: Toddy Walters, Jason McHugh Guest Co-Hosts: David Rodgers, Brad Jones
We’re confronting some of our biggest fears and learning that maybe what we’re running from... maybe we’re just running from ourselves. Yes, of course, we’re talking about Orgazmo. Released in 1997, the film was directed by and stars Trey Parker who plays Joe Young, a Mormon on his mission in the big bad city of Los Angeles where he happens upon a porn shoot and gets recruited to play an adult superhero, the titular Orgazmo.
David Rodgers and Brad Jones join Mike to discuss the movie while actress Toddy Walters and producer Jason McHugh talk about the making of Orgazmo (as well as the other early Parker/Stone films).
Special Guest: Orçun Behram Guest Co-Hosts: David Rodgers, Mark Begley
On this special episode of The Projection Booth we're looking at the 2019 film from director Orçun Behram, The Antenna. The film stars Ihsan Önal as Mehnet, a overseer of an apartment building in Turkey. We begin the film on the day when a new satellite dish is being installed that is part of a new era for the country where the government can now broadcast directly to its citizens’ televisions. Let’s just say that this isn’t the utopia that was promised.
David Rodgers and Mark Begley join Mike to discuss the the film which will play in select theaters starting October 2, 2020 and on VOD starting October 20, 2020.
Special Guests: Mermaid Cindy, John Athanason Guest Co-Hosts: Carol Borden, David Rodgers
Released in the United States as The Lure, Agnieszka Smoczynska's 2015 film Corki Dancingu is the story of two mermaids, Golden (Michalina Olszanska) and Silver (Marta Mazurek), who join the world of humans as singers at a dinner club. To say the least, the have a little trouble fitting in.
Carol Borden (The Cultural Gutter) and David Rodgers (Bingecast) join Mike to discuss this modern take on Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid and Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's Ondine. Guests include John Athanason of Weeki Wachee State Park as well as a real life mermaid!
Special Guests: Mary Harron, Guinevere Turner, Roberta Hanley Guest Co-Hosts: David RodgersPaula Guthat
Based on the controversial book by Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho (2000) tells the tale of Wall Street's Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale), his murderous rampage, and the world of the late 1980s Manhattan.
The episode features interviews with one of the original screenwriters, Roberta Hanley, along with the film's director, Mary Harron and co-screenwriter / actress Guinevere Turner.
Music:
"Psycho Killer" - Talking Heads
"In the Air Tonight" - Phil Collins
"This Must Be the Place" - Miles Fisher
"Devil Inside" - INXS
"Psycho" - Eddie Noack
"Hip to Be Square" - Huey Lewis & The News
Guest Co-Hosts: Mike Sullivan, David Rodgers
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