A Very Good Year

Jason and Mike return to your feed for a special occasion: today’s release of Jason’s new book “Gandolfini: Jim, Tony, and the Life of a Legend.” They discuss the book — its origins, aims, and outcomes — and Jason shares his own top five Jame Gandolfini performances. Plus: subject-appropriate riffs on headlines and the lightning round, and Mike spills on his favorite Gandolfini performance as well...

On the first episode of our film-by-film rundown of Danny Peary’s beloved 1986 movie guide, we are joined by Vulture TV critic and longtime friend Roxana Hadadi, who explains her personal, familial connection to Francis Ford Coppola’s 1974 Oscar-winner, and joins in a spirited discussion of the picture’s virtues, flaws, and reputation. Subscribe to the new show at: https://pod.link/1274489817 To w...

Hello cult leaders and self-loathing playwrights and all the ships at sea and welcome to A Very Good Year. As you probably know by now we are retiring this show and coming back in 2025 with a whole new show, Guide for the Film Fanatic , this Sunday! The show is based on a film-by-film run through of Danny Peary's seminal 1986 book of the same name, where one of our fabulous guests picks a film and...

Hello hunny bunnies and Presidential assassins and all the ships at sea and welcome to A Very Good Year. As you probably know by now we are retiring this show and coming back in 2025 with a whole new show. In the meantime we're revisiting some of our favorite guests and favorite movies by decade. This week we're looking back at the 1990s, objectively a great decade for movies and a very formative...

Hello alien dogs and Sta-Puft Marshmallow Men and all the ships at sea. By now everyone knows we're retiring A Very Good Year after more than 100 episodes and coming back with an all new show for 2025. In the meantime we're revisiting some of our favorite guests and favorite movies by decade. This week it's the 1980s, a stretch of time that is not commonly considered a golden age for Hollywood. We...

Hello New Hollywood hippies and malaise monkeys and all the ships at sea and welcome to A Very Good Year. If you’ve been listening you know we’re retiring A Very Good Year and coming back with a whole new show for 2025. In the meantime we’re looking back at the past 100 episodes by revisiting some of our favorite guests and our favorite movies by decade.  This episode is massive, but it’s the...

As you MUST know by now we are retiring A Very Good Year after 2 very good years of the show and over 100 episodes (if you count the bonuses, and why not?). There will be an all new show starting in 2025 with an incredible guest list, tons of great movies, and a bunch of new bonus features available. But before we do that we're looking back on A Very Good Year with some highlight shows. This week...

In what has become an annual tradition, we welcome back our good friend, New York Times film critic Alissa Wilkinson, to look back at the movie year we just finished — without the benefit of hindsight! Hear Alissa and Mike geek out about “Eno,” our conversation on the first-person camera of “Nickel Boys,” everyone falling for “Anora,” and more.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo...

After 2 years and 100 episodes we're retiring A Very Good Year and coming back in 2025 with a whole new show. In the meantime we're looking back at some of our favorite guests and favorite movies, by decade. In this episode we're looking at a decade that some people consider a dead zone: the 1950s. As you'll hear it was a great decade for movies. Ever heard of a guy named Hitchcock? I rest my case...

After two years and 100 episodes we're taking a look back at A Very Good Year with highlights from some of our favorite guests. In this episode we're going way back to the 1940s, we're getting into some of the classics and a few pictures that might not be on your radar. This episode features Stephanie Crawford, Jill Blake, Stephanie Zacharek, April Wolfe, Raquel Stetcher and recent Pulitzer Prize...

Hello, and welcome to the wrap party. After two years and 100 episodes we're taking a look back at A Very Good Year with highlights from some of our favorite guests. In this episode we're going way back to the 20s & 30s, we're getting into silents, talkies, and the transition. We cover the big names everyone knows and get into some hidden gems that have been buried deep in the vault. "He Who G...

Mac Welch is an actor, cartoonist, filmmaker, and podcaster, but more importantly, he’s been friends with Jason and Mike nearly as long as they’ve been friends with each other. Join us as we talk about the movies we all saw together in 2000, AND ALSO where we’ll be taking the show as we reformat for our next season. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Author, historian, and professor Kevin M. Kruse joins us to walk through the very eventful year — historically and cinematically — of 1974, including the take-no-prisoners energy of “Foxy Brown,” the grimy perfection of “The Taking of Pelham 123,” and a double-barreled shotgun blast of Mel Brooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Film and television critic, author, and essayist Kristen Lopez joins us to discuss her book “But Have You Read the Book,” the TWO books she’s working on next, and the movies of 1996, from the teen-girl dream of ‘Romeo + Juliet” to the drive-in pleasures of “From Dusk Till Dawn” to the hilarity of “The Birdcage.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Screenwriter (“Heathers,” “Demolition Man,” “Batman Returns”) and encyclopedic cinephile Daniel Waters joins us to discuss 2008—a key year for him as a filmmaker and film lover, thanks to the likes of “Synecdoche, New York,” “Love Exposure,” and “The Dark Knight.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Catherine Stebbins is intimately acquainted with the year of 1930 - because it was the subject of the most recent of her year-by-year movie ‘zines, which makes her an ideal (and overdue) guest. Join us as she discusses the nutty “King of Jazz,” the heartbreaking “City Girl,” the sublime “People on Sunday,” and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Abby Olcese’s new book “Films for All Seasons” walks the reader through “the church year at the movies,” finding unexpected movies to tie in to the liturgical calendar; she joins us to explore the calendar year of 2018, including “Bad Times at the El Royale,” “First Reformed,” and “Eighth Grade.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Film critic, editor, and intrepid festival traveler Beatrice Loayza joins us for another probing look into the oft-dismissed 1950s—this time 1958, as we look at a Hitchcock classic (“Vertigo”), a pre-New Wave banger (“Elevator to the Gallows”), a hard-hitting social drama (“The Defiant Ones”), and more.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Charles Taylor is the author of one of our fave film books, “Opening Wednesday at a Theater or Drive-In Near You,” so he joins us to discuss the “hinge year” of 1966, which included late films from old masters (“El Dorado”), manifestos from provocateurs (“Masculine-Feminine”), and electric shocks from cinematic wild men (“Tokyo Drifter”). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information...

Screenwriter (and former film critic and podcaster) April Wolfe joins us to talk up the postwar pleasures of 1947, so bring your nun’s habits (“Black Narcissus”), femme fatales (“Out of the Past”) and questionable Irish accents (“The Lady from Shanghai”). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TV critic, author, podcaster, and television writer Emily St. James is the co-author (along with previous guest Noel Murray) of the book “LOST: Back to the Island” (out Tuesday), so she joins us to geek out with Mike over that show and discuss the unusual offerings of the very odd year of 2020, including “Wolfwalkers,” “Da 5 Bloods,” and “The Empty Man.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privac...

 “Empire” magazine editor Nick de Semlyen’s most recent book, “The Last Action Heroes,” is a delightful history of ‘80s and ‘90s action cinema, so he joins us to discuss 1993, from the blistering action of “Demolition Man” to the action satire of “Hot Shots! Part Deux” to the pointed inaction of “The Remains of the Day.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Author, filmmaker, and “Gaslit Nation” host Andrea Chalupa joins us to discuss 1984—an appropriate year for an Orwell scholar—in advance of the release of her new graphic novel “In the Shadow of Stalin.” Listen in as she gives much love to “Amadeus,” “Once Upon a Time in America,” and, of course, “1984.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Film historian, podcaster, and Cine Journeys co-founder Jill Blake joins us to walk through the post-war euphoria and darkness of 1945, including “I Know Where I’m Going,” “Brief Encounter,” and “Leave Her to Heaven.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Independent filmmaker Zach Clark joins us in advance of the release of his new film “The Becomers” for a look at some of the most delightfully insane movies of 1972, including the stylized mayhem of “Female Prisoner #701: Scorpion,” the melodrama of “The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant,” and the total decadence of “Pink Flamingos.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.