Optimism Vaccine

THIS WEEK: Pecker (1998), Cecil B. Demented (2000) and A Dirty Shame (2004) We're talking Minions and John Waters' late career attempt to recapture his degenerate underground aura... to varying degrees of success. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Monstrosity (1987), The Weirdo (1989) and Surgikill (1989) Milligan makes one last bid for fame and glory, as he moves to California to topple the Hollywood establishment. It doesn't go especially well, if you can believe it. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Hairspray (1988), Cry-Baby (1990) and Serial Mom (1994) Waters weathers the loss of his muse and becomes a true pop culture icon as we enter the 1990s. Also: Ponderosa. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Nightbirds (1970), The Body Beneath (1970) and The Rats Are Coming! The Werewolves Are Here! (1972) This week Andy boards the tube and crosses the Chunnel to lend a touch of American crass to the London film scene. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Female Trouble (1974), Desperate Living (1977) and Polyester (1981) Did John Waters predict the fame addiction that arose in the wake of social media? Absolutely. But his version was a lot more fun. Divine/Massey 2028! Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Torture Dungeon (1969), Fleshpot on 42nd Street (1972) and Blood (1973) This week we're looking at Milligan's most prolific period and his partnership with William Mishkin, as he abandons any arthouse ambitions for a slew of barely legible grindhouse cheapies. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Mondo Trasho (1969), Multiple Maniacs (1970) and Pink Flamingos (1972) We've decided that the best way to break up our Andy Milligan venture is by looking at a far more gleeful trash peddler. It's well past time that we dug into the Manson-obsessed cinematic underbelly of Baltimore and the inimitable John Waters. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Vapors (1965), Seeds AKA Seeds of Sin (1968) and The Ghastly Ones (1968) Steve has finally bullied us into covering his matinee idol, Andy Milligan. Does he live up to his reputation as one of the worst filmmakers in the history of the medium? Well, he's certainly one of the angriest. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Find the Lady (1976), Volunteers (1985) and Only the Lonely (1991) Remember these John Candy classics? We sure don't. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Class of 1984 (1982), Class of 1999 (1990) and Class of 1999 II: The Substitute (1994) This one goes out to the dads and grads. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Taffin (1988), Fatal Deviation (1998), Moving Target (2000) We're celebrating Jack's return from his homeland with some hard-hitting martial arts-ish action straight from the Emerald Isle. Does Ireland's version of Road House hold up? Is Pierce Brosnan the most beautiful man in the world? Can a half dozen Irish farm boys make a convincing Jean-Claude Van Damme tribute film? All will be...

THIS WEEK: Faces of Death (1978), Faces of Death II (1981), Faces of Death III (1985), Faces of Death IV (1990) and Faces of Death (2026) Here's something that no one asked for! Left to their own devices for one week, Steve and Miros voluntarily dove into the endless slog of banned clip compilations that make up Faces of Death. Let the record show, wasting our time on this dreck makes far more sen...

THIS WEEK: Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie (2025), Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2008) We're traveling (and time traveling) to the great white north circa 2008 to learn about the beauty of Canadian metal, friendship and Orbitz. Join us. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Out of Time (1988), Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death (1989) and Pizza Man (1991) Imagine a world without the insufferable intrusions of Club Random on your various social feeds. Imagine a world where douchebag pundit supreme Bill Maher had landed a gig as a harmless sitcom dad. We dare to imagine such a world. A world where hope is still alive. Donate to Palestinian Medical...

THIS WEEK: The Long Walk (2025) and The Running Man (2025) Do you remember Vietnam? Stephen King certainly does, and this week we're looking at two very faithful, very listless adaptations of his particular brand of social commentary. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Backdraft (1991), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Boyz n the Hood (1991) and JFK (1991) It's the awards recap you've all been waiting for! We're talking nominees, snubs, stars, smooches, and - of course - Dennis Miller. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: The Monster Squad (1987), Robocop 2 (1990) and Last Action Hero (1993) We're continuing our Tom Noonan retrospective by looking at some of his more prominent Hollywood roles. And once again, we were unable to prevent Steve from pivoting the discussion toward YA literature. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: What Happened Was... (1994), The Wife (1995) and The Shape of Something Squashed (2014) To celebrate the life of beloved character actor Tom Noonan, we decided to take a look at his directorial efforts, which proved to be a trio of incisive, underseen gems. Did we do them justice? No we did not. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: It Couldn't Happen Here (1987), Disorderlies (1987) and The Jerky Boys (1995) Strap in, sizzlechest, because The Fat Boys are back. I should probably work the Pet Shop Boys in here somehow, but that seems downright undignified. Anyhow, we're looking at the cinematic exploits of various Boys. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Lifeline (1997), Bullets Over Summer (1999) and Fulltime Killer (2001) We're back in Hong Kong, with a trio of films that showcase a changing industry in the wake of the transition from British to Chinese rule. This topic was selected by one of our most excellent patrons. You too can choose a topic or slate of films for us to cover. See the link below for details! Donate to Palestinian...

THIS WEEK: Big Money Hustlas (2000), Death Racers (2008) and Big Money Rustlas (2010) You may know ICP as the rapping leaders of a dubious "gang" of graps-loving clowns. You may even know them for their contributions to the science of magnetism. But did you know that they're also auteur filmmakers? Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Hologram Man (1995), Last Man Standing (1995) and Rage (1995) Sure, you've heard of white guy karate legend Jalal Merhi, but did you know that there was a completely unrelated Merhi who was silently pumping out high-octane DTV films by the dozen throughout the 1990s? It's time our audience got to know the name Joseph Merhi. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on P...

THIS WEEK: Nosferatu (2024), Dracula (2025) and Dracula (2025) Turns out this Dracula character is pretty hard to kill. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: The War of the Roses (1989), The Roses (2025) and War of the Worlds (2025) Bloodless incompetent regurgitation. I'm sure that's how some folks would describe our podcast, but that's just a reflection of the times we live in, baby! Let's talk about remakes. Again. Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimism Vaccine on Patreon

THIS WEEK: Tron (1982), Tron: Legacy (2010) and Tron: Ares (2025) Tron is back again, after a fifteen year slumber. Why? I guess they thought a purported sex pest could help to quell growing societal anxieties surrounding the economical sustenance of the working class being wholly subsumed by the irresponsible deployment of artificial intelligence? Donate to Palestinian Medical Aid Support Optimis...