mike@projection-booth.com mike@projection-booth.com

April 25, 2017

Episode 320: eXistenZ (1999)

Special Guest: Ernest Mathijs
Guest Co-Hosts: Jessica Kramer, Dustin Kramer

eXistenZ, the 1999 film from writer/director David Cronenberg stars Jennifer Jason Leigh as Allegra Geller, a game designer who has been marked for death by a faction known as the “Realists”. After an assassination attempt she escapes with her ineffectual bodyguard, a PR nerd named Ted Pikull played by Jude Law. The pair eventually test out Allegra’s new game, eXistenZ, in order to make sure her biomass game pod is still functional. From there the film traverses many layers of game play, making viewers question what’s real and what’s part of play.

Dustin & Jessica Kramer of the Popcorn Poops podcast join Mike to discuss existentialism, Sigmund Freud, Philip K. Dick, The Matrix, and more.

Download Episode Now:

Links:
Buy eXistenZ on DVD
Buy the eXistenZ novelization by "John Luther Novak" (AKA Christopher Priest)
Buy the eXistenZ soundtrack by Howard Shore
Buy The Cinema of David Cronenberg: From Baron of Blood to Cultural Hero Buy The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldrich by Philip K. Dick
Buy The Days of Perky Pat by Philip K. Dick
Listen to the Popcorn Poops podcast

Music:
"TranscendenZ By Pilgrlmage" - Howard Shore
"Freedom of Choice" - DEVO

Watch:


2 comments:

  1. All the rambling about Cronenberg misrepresenting video games and video game culture really undermined what should have been a very interesting episode.

    ReplyDelete