Emissaries from the Void
Emissaries from the Void examines cinema that is odd, obscure, oblique, or opaque, with an eye toward theming. The tone is casual but thoughtful, and commonly analyzes content through feminist and leftist lenses, but there are plenty of jokes and silliness as well. Our goal is to make media literacy accessible for films that often defy easy explanation. Surreality, expressionism, absurdism, dream logic, Layers of Artifice, the uncanny, allegory, and occult themes are all common features of the void, and we invite you to explore it with us. Lose yourself, find yourself, transform yourself in cinema’s mirror, but be warned: When you open yourself up to change, you can never be sure where you'll end up…
Listen on:
Episodes
Saturday Jun 14, 2025
Saturday Jun 14, 2025
Little Man (2006) –
Psychotic comedy, ostensibly incredible special effects that are nonetheless deeply off-putting, racial satire, Orphan (2009), the egotism of parenthood, earnestness vs absurdity, restraint and pacing for impact, Molly Shannon,
CW: Sexual assault and pervasive rape jokes
Outro Music is Arcadia by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio
Saturday Jun 07, 2025
Saturday Jun 07, 2025
A Short Story (2022) —
Transience, puss in boots, wisdom from weirdos, love for mankind, memory loss noodles, living within suffering, we all have a pile of dirt, love languages, love vs obsession, loving someone is a contract to lose them
Saturday May 31, 2025
Saturday May 31, 2025
Cosmic horror, a dreamy slasher, one must imagine the tall man horny, Chekov's tuning fork, Hermes, Anunnaki, dream logic, unexplained Dune references, death denialism, sleep paralysis, recursive ending
Outro Music is Arcadia by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio
Saturday May 24, 2025
Saturday May 17, 2025
Saturday May 17, 2025
I Saw the TV Glow (2024) –
Queer horror, trans tragedy, we all live in The Midnight Realm, denial of closure, rock bottom, the acceleration of time, self-actualization is the start of the journey, The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus, probably dead is scarier than definitely dead, dying to oneself, comparison to World’s Fair, primordial gender, familial abuse overtones, color theory, non-hostile imprisonment
CW: Parental abuse, self-harm, mental health issues
Outro Music is Arcadia by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio
Saturday May 10, 2025
Saturday May 10, 2025
Class of 1984 (1982) —
Unofficial Escape from New York prequel, neo-nazi teens, Straw Dogs, ephebiphobia, fascists are poser cowards, authorities enable fascists
CW: Violence, SA
Saturday May 03, 2025
Saturday May 03, 2025
We’re All Going to the World’s Fair (2021) –
ARGs and roleplaying, parasocial relationship dynamics and dangers, curated personas, ambiguous supernatural elements, all up on the rollercoaster, It Follows, why we scare ourselves, neuroplasticity, Jungian shadow work, opening the door to change
CW: Unreality, mental health
Outro Music is Arcadia by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio
Monday Apr 28, 2025
Monday Apr 28, 2025
Your intrepid heroes find themselves lost in a strange land between the TV screen and reality. Will they overcome and find their way back home? What can they learn along the way?
Saturday Apr 19, 2025