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A Very Good Year — Film History
A Very Good Year

“Fun City Cinema” hosts Jason Bailey and Mike Hull proudly present “A Very Good Year,” a podcast with a simple premise: each week we invite a guest (filmmakers and actors, critics and historians, comedians and musicians) who loves movies, and ask them to select their favorite year of movies. Some pick a year from their movie-going past; some go deep into film history. Whichever the case, we spend (about) an hour talking about that year: we ask them to share their top five films of the year, and tell us why they love them; we look at the year’s news headlines, award winners, and box office champions; and we finish with a lightning round, where we talk about as many films as possible in as few minutes as possible.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Copyright: © Michael Hull

Latest Episodes:

1977 with Jordan Hoffman Jul 02, 2023

Show notes

Beloved film critic and niche culture aficionado Jordan Hoffman was wise enough to call dibs quite some time ago on not only one of the great years of the ‘70s, but great movie years, period—a game-changing 12 months for the movies, thanks to a pair of sci-fi smashes, a modest romantic comedy, and a big movie with a bigger soundtrack. Come for the high-profile flicks, stay for the tales of Jordan’s charming New Jersey youth! (Sponsored by MUBI.)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1982 with Jen Chaney Jun 25, 2023

Show notes

"Vulture" TV critic and author Jen Chaney was, like us, a young and deeply impressionable moviegoer in the year of our Lord 1982, when the Spielberg double-tap of "E.T." and "Poltergeist" lit up our dreams and haunted our nightmares. We talk all about both of those movies, as well as the sex comedies, sci-fi bummers, and romantic comedies that made '82 feel like, really and truly, the first year of '80s moviemaking. (Sponsored by MUBI).

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1962 with Stephen Farber and Michael McClellan Jun 18, 2023

Show notes

We've never attempted a two-guest show before, but we think you'll agree that it was kind of essential here, since legendary film critic and historian Stephen Farber and former theatre executive and CARA member Michael McClellan collaborated on a perfect book for our purposes: “Cinema ’62: The Greatest Year at the Movies,” in which they write all about why 1962 was a peak year for film, with a high standard of quality that has not been equaled since. They join us to make their case, which includes literary adaptations, cult classics, and lots of juicy roles for women. (Sponsored by MUBI.)

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2004 with Hunter Harris Jun 11, 2023

Show notes

Pop culture expert, Substacker extraordinaire, and fellow flyover country escapee Hunter Harris joins Jason and Mike to talk about the Year of our Lord 2004, in which Marty and Leo re-teamed, Julia Roberts said some really dirty words, and Tom Cruise chastised Jamie Foxx for being a bad son.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1972 with Judy Becker Jun 03, 2023

Show notes

We’ve welcomed critics, authors, actors, directors, and on and on—but this week, we welcome our very first production designer, and Judy Becker is one of the greats. Her credits include “Carol,” "I’m Not There,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” and “American Hustle,” for which she was nominated for the Academy Award. (She’s also the latest subject of the “Filmcraft” series at the Metrograph Theater here in New York City, beginning on June 3rd.) She picked one of the all-time great years, 1972, and walks us through it with the eye of not only a film lover but a film craftsperson.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1960 with Alexandre O. Philippe May 28, 2023

Show notes

Alexandre O. Philippe has funneled his life-long cinematic obsessions into movies of his own, directing such documentary treats as “78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene,” “Memory: The Origins of Alien,” “Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on the Exorcist,” and the new “Lynch/Oz” (out Friday 6/2). He made an entire movie about “Psycho,” so it’s not toooo surprising that he picked 1960 - but his picks also showcase the wide, eclectic variety of that year’s cinema.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Special Announcement May 27, 2023

Show notes

We're now on Substack, and you can get more of the show for just a few bucks a month. Let's talk about it!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1933 with Megan Abbott May 21, 2023

Show notes

We welcome Film Twitter's favorite crime novelist, the Edgar Award-winning, New York Times-bestselling Megan Abbott, author of the new and spectacular "Beware the Woman." She joins us to walk through her favorite year of classic cinema: 1933, the end of the Pre-Code era, when women could be bad and men could be horny and movies could kinda-sorta reflect contemporary life candidly, for the last time for a long time.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2011 with Kristen Meinzer May 14, 2023

Show notes

Kristen Meinzer was already a movie podcaster during her very good year, 2011 - when she noticed a trend of women behaving badly in mainstream movies that still makes her happy. The feisty co-host host of "Movie Therapy with Rafer & Kristen" and "By the Book" (and contributor to NPR's "Pop Culture Happy Hour") also offers up alternate takes on some of Jason's 2011 favorites, and joins us for our usual eye-rolling at the year's Oscar winners.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1996 with Sergio Muñoz May 07, 2023

Show notes

When Jason was at SXSW, you didn't think we’d still be running episodes from that trip two months later, did you? Well, while he was there, he stopped by the University of Austin to chat with our pal Sergio Muñoz, who is a grad student in Film Production there; he’s also the host of the 300-plus episode strong “Esta-Okay” film podcast, where he reviews new releases and film festivals, AND he's an award winning filmmaker to boot. Join us as we talk about 1996, when we were in college and he was NOT EVEN BORN YET.

Sponsored by MUBI.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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