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Based on a novel from the early 19th century book by Jan Potocki, The Saragossa Manuscript (1965) tells the rather oblique tale of Alphonse Van Worden, a Walloon captain of the guard, and his circular adventures in the region of Zaragoza which is in modern day Spain.  Rob St. Mary and Samm Deighan join Mike to discuss Wojciech Has and the multilayered nature of The Saragossa Manuscript.

On this episode we are discussing Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 film Psycho. The film stars Janet Leigh as Marion Crane, an unmarried woman who’s in love with Sam Loomis (John Gavin), a man under the debt of his deceased father and living ex-wife. In a move of desperation, she sees an opportunity to change her circumstances and takes it in the form of 40,000 dollars. Christine Makepeace (The Feminine Critique) joins Mike to discuss Psycho and its legacy, sequels, Turkish remake and more. Alexandre Philippe, the director of 78/52, talks about his fascinating documentary which takes apart the famous Psycho shower scene.

Co-written by Chuck Vincent and Rick Marx, Roommates (1981) tells the tale of a trio of women trying to make their way in New York City. The film stars Samantha Fox as Billie, a former prostitute trying to make it in the straight world, Kelly Nichols as Sherry, a model from California with a drug problem, and Veronika Hart, as Joan, an aspiring actress from the Midwest. Heather Drain and Ashley West join Mike to discuss this harrowing adult film. Interviews include writer Rick Marx, cinematographer Larry Revene, and star Jane Hamilton (AKA Veronika Hart).

On this special episode of The Projection Booth, Mike talks with director Rüdiger Suchsland about his two documentaries; From Caligari to Hitler and Hitler’s Hollywood. The films trace the decline of Weimar cinema and the rise of propaganda as the national cinema of Germany during WWII.

We wrap up #Noirvember and our Philip Marlowe journey for the year with Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye (1973). Adapted by Leigh Brackett, one of the two main writers from Howard Hawks’s The Big Sleep, the film stars Elliott Gould as Philip Marlowe, a man now out of time with the world. Eric Cohen and Terry Frost join Mike to discuss Philip Marlowe’s place in the now and the Japanese mini-series of The Long Goodbye.

We continue our #Noirvember coverage with a discussion of The Big Sleep. The first proper Philip Marlowe book by Raymond Chandler, it was the second appearance of Marlowe on screen, this time portrayed by Humphrey Bogart. Terry Frost and Eric Cohen join Mike to discuss the pre-release version of Howard Hawks’s film, how Bogart portrayed Marlowe, and the 1978 re-interpretation of the source material by Michael Winner. Dahlia Schweitzer returns to The Projection Booth to discuss her upcoming book, L.A. Private Eyes.

We continue our #Noirvember2018 coverage with the first in a trio of Raymond Chandler adaptations — Edward Dymytrk’s Murder My Sweet. Based on the second of Chandler’s Philip Marlowe novels, Farewell My Lovely, the film stars Dick Powell “as you’ve never seen him before.” Terry Frost and Eric Cohen join Mike to discuss the 1944 film and the 1976 adaptation. Tom Williams, the author of A Mysterious Something in the Light; the Life of Raymond Chandler, provides insight on Chandler’s career in and out of Hollywood.

Directed by Brad Anderson and co-written by Anderson and Stephen Gevedon, Session 9 was released in 2001 and stars Peter Mullen as the head of a team of guys who are taking out the asbestos from a psychiatric institution. As the story unfolds we learn more about Gordon as well as one of the patients of the asylum whose story mirrors his. Axel Kohagen and Jedidiah Ayres join Mike to discuss the film, its five male leads, and madness.

Winner of the “Spirit of CUFF” award at the 2018 Chicago Underground Film Fest, Samira Elagoz’s Craigslist Allstars is a documentary in which the filmmaker meets with fifteen different strangers and allows their stories to unfold. Filmmaker Haley McCormick (D A N C E R) and writer Carol Borden (The Cultural Gutter) join Mike to discuss the film and the strange rituals in which men and women engage. Learn more at http://www.samiraelagoz.com

Released in 1985, the original Mr. Vampire was directed by Ricky Lau and stars Lam Ching-Ying as a Taoist priest who battles the forces of evil along with his two inept students. This became a blueprint for dozens of other films — some of them under the Mr. Vampire moniker and others not. We discuss the “official” Mr. Vampire movies as well as the unofficial entries, some copycat films, and many other jiangshi movies along the way. Samm Deighan (Daughters of Darkness) and El Goro (Talk without Rhythm) join Mike to battle the forces of evil. Get your sticky rice ready!