Unclear and Present Danger

On this week’s episode of Unclear and Present Danger, Jamelle is joined by Nicole Hemmer, a professor of history at Vanderbilt University and co-host of the This Day in History podcast, to discuss the 1997 dystopian science-fiction film Gattaca, directed by Andrew Niccol and starring Ethan Hawke, Jude Law and Uma Thurman.
In Gattaca, Hawke plays Vincent Freeman, a natural-born human being in a world of people genetically-engineered for perfection. Freeman dreams of space travel but is barred from it because of a genetic defect — a heart condition. To circumvent the system, he assumes the identity of Jerome Morrow, a genetically superior but disabled man, using Jerome's blood and urine samples to pass as a “valid” for Gattaca, the elite space program. As Vincent gets closer to his mission launch, a murder investigation threatens to expose his deception, forcing him to navigate suspicion while proving that determination can triumph over genetic destiny.
You can find Gattaca to rent on Apple TV and Amazon.
Episodes come out every two weeks, so see us then when we discuss The X-Files Movie.
Sign up for our Patreon at patreon.com/unclearpod. We do two episodes every month on the political and military thrillers of the Cold War as well as a weekly show on politics.

On this week’s episode of the pod, Jamelle and John cover Michael Bay's 1998 asteroid movie Armageddon — the one where oil drillers, not astronauts, are sent to save the world. They discuss why it reads as the most right-wing film they've covered: a movie that valorizes blue-collar white masculinity and treats scientists and bureaucrats as obstacles, an opening sequence that prefigures 9/11, and a worldview that anticipates George W. Bush–era conservatism.
Also covered: the Michael Bay auteur-versus-slop debate, "space dementia," the movie's cynicism about government, and how impossible the physics actually is. Plus listener feedback and a look at what's ahead.
Next on the main feed (new episodes every two weeks): the other 1998 asteroid movie, Mimi Leder's Deep Impact, with Robert Duvall, Téa Leoni, Elijah Wood, Morgan Freeman, and Vanessa Redgrave.
Support the show at patreon.com/unclearpod — $5/month for roughly six episodes a month, including a weekly politics show and discussions of the political and military thrillers of the Cold War.
You can reach us for feedback at: unclearandpresentfeedback@fastmail.com.

On this week’s episode of Unclear and Present Danger, we watched Roland Emmerich’s attempt to bring Godzilla to Hollywood in the appropriately titled Godzilla. Ostensibly a film about the dangers of nuclear testing, Godzilla is a total mess, a miserable failure that deserves its poor reputation.
We talked about that deservedly poor reputation, as well as changing American perceptions of the military as the 1990s came to a close. Tune in!
In our next episode, we tackle Michael Bay’s masterpiece Armageddon, one of two movies that year about an asteroid hitting earth. And our Patreon, we watched two movies about the Nuremburg trials — from 2000 and 2025 — and talked about them. Listen to that episode, and more, at patreon.com/unclearpod.

On this week’s episode of Unclear and Present Danger, Jamelle and John are joined by Vinson Cunningham of the New Yorker to discuss Bulworth, the 1998 black comedy (no pun intended) written, directed by and starring Warren Beatty.
After working through their initial shock at the sheer weirdness of the film, Jamelle, John and Vinson explore its politics, its vision of American society, its critique of American media and the fact that the character of Bulworth is, himself, highly prescient. They also explore the strange racial politics of the film, as well as the extent to which it stands as a kind of modern parable.
This is a strange film folks! And we had a great time discussing it.
On our next episode, we will discuss Roland Emmerich’s 1998 disaster thriller Godzilla, something of a misbegotten attempt to Americanize the storied franchise. But there is a lot to talk about and we are looking forward to doing so.

On this week’s episode of Unclear and Present Danger, Jamelle and John watch the 1998 Lifetime film Oklahoma City: A Survivor’s Story, starring Kathy Baker as Priscilla Salyers, a real-life U.S. Customs employee who survived the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. The film follows the attack, Salyers's rescue, and her subsequent struggle with PTSD, as well as the way the tragedy shapes her family life (it is a Lifetime film after all). Notably, the movie avoids the political context of the attack, saying very little about Timothy McVeigh's motivations or the broader world of right-wing extremism from which he emerged.
That absence turns out to be pretty fruitful for the discussion. Jamelle and John use the film as a window into how the Oklahoma City bombing was being processed — and not processed — in the late 1990s, and trace how the political meaning of the attack was fought over in the moment. They also take up the broader question of historical memory and forgetfulness in America: how events that once felt defining gradually recede, and what that says about the country.
Episodes come out roughly every two weeks, so see us then for what is sure-to-be a fun episode on Warren Beatty’s Bulworth.
Also don’t forget our Patreon! We cover the films of the Cold War as well as do a weekly politics podcast. Sign up at patreon.com/unclearpod.
Our producer is Connor Lynch and our artwork is by Rachel Eck.