Optimism Vaccine

THIS WEEK: The Protector (1985), Shakedown (1988) and McBain (1991)

Optimism Vaccine has a well documented love of New York sleaze, so it was only a matter of time before we discussed James Glickenhaus, and what may well be the most overlooked action film of the 1980s.

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THIS WEEK: Miami Blues (1990), Grosse Pointe Blank (1997) and The Big Bounce (2004)

We try our best to avoid discussing the inexplicable 2004 disaster that ended George Armitage's lengthy Hollywood tenure, The Big Bounce. Fortunately we had two far better films to distract us.

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THIS WEEK: In the Shadows (2010) and Scorched Earth (2024)

There's a common misconception that we only do this podcast to subject ourselves to the dumbest bullshit imaginable. Not true! Every once in a while we stumble upon greatness. Do you like Michael Mann? How about Robert Bresson? Maybe a little Jean-Pierre Melville? Fantastic. It's time you join the 4 or 5 other folks who have watched the Thomas Arslan's crime dramas. Thank us later.

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THIS WEEK: The Borderlands AKA Final Prayer (2013)

What was Cate Blanchett thinking signing on to this turkey? Will we ever see the Roth cut? Did I watch the wrong movie again? Esteemed critic Esther Rosenfield joins us to discuss a true undiscovered gem, swept away in the ebb of the found footage wave.

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THIS WEEK: Accident (2009), Limbo (2021), and Mad Fate (2023)

This time around, Jack let us watch the GOOD Soi Cheang movies. We're looking at a trio of films made with legendary cinematographer Siu-Keung Cheng under Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai's Wilkway Image production company. Has Soi Cheang grown into one of the most essential filmmakers in modern Hong Kong? Yes. But don't watch his movies on Tubi. Turns out they're still fucking up HK distribution in 2025.

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THIS WEEK: Basic Instinct (1992), Sliver (1993), and Jade (1995)

Forget the Whitman's. This year we got you an Eszterhas sampler for Valentine's Day. It isn't particularly sweet, but there's a lot of cream involved.

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THIS WEEK: The Visit (2015)

Motion Sickness welcomes back old friends as Aaron Casias of Hit Factory joins us to discuss the perpetually fascinating career of M. Night Shyamalan. I bet you all forgot that he made a Found Footage film, didn't you? We didn't forget. We never forget.

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THIS WEEK: Home Sweet Home (2005), Dog Bite Dog (2006), and Motorway (2012)

A generous patron's request brings us back to Hong Kong to look at a more contemporary side of the HK action-industrial complex via the films of Soi Cheung. Unfortunately, Jack has returned from his sabbatical, and decided he'd rather spend the week mired in the soapy melodrama of Cheung's early career. We vow to rectify this injustice very soon.

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THIS WEEK: Cloverfield (2008), Apollo 18 (2011) and The Devil Inside (2012)

Life has once again wrought havoc with our schedule, so before we debut the regular format of Motion Sickness, we're bringing you one more genre retrospective. It's a slate featuring some of the least essential films to emerge during the latter days of the format's theatrical viability! And also Cloverfield! What do these things have in common? Their marketing achieved far more notoriety than the films themselves. That's right, we're talking ad campaigns. Strap in.

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THIS WEEK: Local 58, Gemini Home Entertainment, The Mandela Catalogue and The Oldest View

We're leaving the dusty theater behind, as Motion Sickness looks at what the children and their dang internet have done to the found footage genre. Liminal spaces, analogue oddities, and alternate personages abound in the ever-evolving world of web horror.

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