The Projection Booth Podcast Episode 787: Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds (1989)
Feb 18, 2026
01:27:10
We continue our Australian month with Spirits of the Air, Gremlins of the Clouds, the stark 1989 feature debut of Alex Proyas. Before The Crow or Dark City, Proyas delivered this sun-blasted sci-fi Western set in a post-apocalyptic desert where the wind blows and desert bakes.
A lone wanderer, Smith (Norman "The Norm" Boyd), emerges from the dunes and collides with siblings Felix and Betty Crabtree (Michael Lake and Melissa Davis), who survive on beans, religious fervor, and flying mania. Smith's arrival fractures their fragile world, igniting jealousy, spiritual dread, and Felix’s obsessive dream.
Cullen Gallagher and Rob Spencer join Mike to explore Proyas’s theological undercurrents, and the film’s singular place in late-’80s Australian cinema.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-projection-booth-podcast--5513239/support.
Become a supporter of The Projection Booth at http://www.patreon.com/projectionbooth
A lone wanderer, Smith (Norman "The Norm" Boyd), emerges from the dunes and collides with siblings Felix and Betty Crabtree (Michael Lake and Melissa Davis), who survive on beans, religious fervor, and flying mania. Smith's arrival fractures their fragile world, igniting jealousy, spiritual dread, and Felix’s obsessive dream.
Cullen Gallagher and Rob Spencer join Mike to explore Proyas’s theological undercurrents, and the film’s singular place in late-’80s Australian cinema.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-projection-booth-podcast--5513239/support.
Become a supporter of The Projection Booth at http://www.patreon.com/projectionbooth