Find all 22 songs featured in Pretend It's a City Soundtrack, listed by episode with scene descriptions. A series gets an Average Tomatometer when at least 50 percent of its seasons have a score. Lee presses her on this, becoming animated as he goes on about Jordan and Lebron and Kobe. I have been trying to make this movie [“Killers of the Flower Moon”] since March. Lebowitz, the author, humorist and raconteur, and Scorsese, the Academy Award-winning filmmaker, were speaking from their individual New York homes to discuss their latest collaboration, the documentary series “Pretend It’s a City.” They are longtime friends who, as they continue to wait out the coronavirus pandemic, have lately been unable to see much of each other or the city with which they are irrevocably associated. LEBOWITZ I did knock over the Queensboro Bridge. But it never even occurred to me that I would not have something to say. “Pretend it’s a city—where there are other people,” she pleads. Arts District Love Groove Music Festival Hosts Showcase for Female Artists These are edited excerpts from that conversation. “Pretend It’s a City” marks the second major Scorsese-Lebowitz collaboration. Toni Morrison, to whom the series is dedicated, appears in interview footage as does Spike Lee, who grills Lebowitz on her dislike of sports. LEBOWITZ I’m not sure it makes up for Robert Moses. It was after “Casino” came out. LEBOWITZ I’ve been eating outside. Sheâs not going to ditch Joe Camel because her main goals in life are âsmoking and plotting revenge.â. Wearing protective shoe coverings, Lebowitz towers over this massive representation of NYC like Gulliver in Lilliput. In a lot of the films I make, the types of actors I work with, the dialogue is like music — it’s the timing and the emphasis. The guy who’s in charge of that, the day we shot there, was in a panic the entire time. After working together on “Public Speaking,” what made you want to collaborate on another documentary project? Does the series feel different to you because of the pandemic? Of course, the Netflix series was initiated before the pandemic, and Lebowitz and Scorsese are supremely aware that it depicts a bustling, energized New York that now feels just out of reach — and which they both hope will return soon. I don’t get it. You’re not supposed to take it out from under there.” Well, I did, so how much is it? Netflix has released a trailer for "Pretend It's a City," Martin Scorsese's upcoming docuseries focusing on New York City writer Fran Lebowitz. Seems she loves Muhammad Ali and was at Ali-Frazier I, a fight Lee reveres. SCORSESE We always felt we should have topics. Nominated for Three NAACP Image Awards, Debuts Exclusive Music Video for Show Me Your Soul by Robert Glasper and Lalah Hathaway, On the Graceful Work of Composer Emile Mosseri, Book Excerpt: This is How You Make a Movie by Tim Grierson, Paramount+ Launches with New Shows, Deep Catalog. Luckily, I have managed to distill all human emotion into anger. Bring on series two! Obviously, I go to a lot more parties than Marty. LEBOWITZ Of course, you were not averse to hearing how much I loved it. Do you worry that New York won’t fully return to what it was before the pandemic? [Laughter.] Among the locations where you filmed Fran is at the Queens Museum, where we see her standing amid the Panorama of the City of New York, a highly detailed scale model that Robert Moses had built for the 1964 World’s Fair. How about, artists could live there? Scathing, curmudgeonly and sometimes tone-deaf - New York City’s star raconteur is the mood we need right now. I can easily recommend. And the rest, is the two of them... sitting and listening to each other... adoring New York City. The Netflix series âPretend Itâs A Cityâ reunites the New York duo for more of the same. I guess we met at a party, because where else would I have met him? We commiserated about how horrible we felt, how awful it was not to be doing that.”. MARTIN SCORSESE I really recall us talking the most at John Waters’s 50th birthday party. FRAN LEBOWITZ That’s because we’re old and we have many friendships. Occasionally, the film cuts to a still picture or a bit of historical footage of people like former NYC Mayor Abraham Beame, whose time in office coincided with the infamous NY Daily News headline âFord to City: Drop Dead.â Itâs during this time that Lebowitz plied her trade, writing pieces for Interview Magazine including a review of her co-starâs second feature film, 1972âs âBoxcar Bertha.â âI loved to write,â she tells Scorsese, âuntil the first time I had to write an assignment for money.â. There is no greater testament to how much I hate to cook than the fact I will sit outside in 28-degree weather, trying to eat with gloves on. Offscreen, Scorsese asks questions while warning her to watch out for the bridges spanning the East River. “Pretend It’s a City” passes quickly, but that’s more condemnation than praise. All these stores were closed and they had boards up. ‘Pretend It’s a City’ Review: Martin Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz Idly Stroll Through New York. It has a beautiful storyline. But in any event, I really haven’t gone out that much. Pretend It's a City is a tribute to two things Scorsese loves, Fran Lebowitz and New York City, and that affection is contagious for much, if not quite all, of its running time. Fran Lebowitz and Martin Scorsese Seek a Missing New York in ‘Pretend It’s a City’. Let me give you some ideas.” Because I remember it without tourists. âPretend Itâs A Cityâ is full of memorable stories and snapshots of a New York City long past. As the Pretend It's a City release date 2020 is coming close, a lot of people have been curious to know about the release time. SCORSESE I enjoyed making “Public Speaking.” I found it freeing, in terms of narrative. Eventually, we might be able to pull it back. This tv show is one of my favorite tv series last time. That is one thing that I’ve never worried about.”, Scorsese gently replied, “I had that impression.”. LEBOWITZ We shot it way before there was a virus. Their spirited interplay is a highlight of the series. When the virus happened, Marty said, “What should we do? LEBOWITZ Even though I’m not as Italian as you might imagine [laughs], Marty’s parents and a lot of my father’s relatives — all of whom were working-class Jews — have a lot of parallels that are very well-known. 'Pretend It's A City': Take An NYC Trip With Fran Lebowitz And Martin Scorsese The show features the humorist's conversations with Martin Scorsese on … Panorama of the City of New York. We edited sequences. SCORSESE I try to get that kind of freedom in my narrative films, but I very often am stuck to a plot. What was it like to shoot there? Your mileage may vary, but one thing that I think will grab everyoneâs attention is the pre-pandemic world of âPretend Itâs A City.â People are out and about, and that normalcy struck a very poignant chord. Scorsese is a very amusing co-conspirator, oftentimes letting his visuals serve as humorous accompaniment. That’s what a city is, even without a plague. Lebowitz and Scorsese spoke further about the making of “Pretend It’s a City” and the impact that the pandemic has had on them. Instead, Lebowitz explained: “I talked to Marty on the phone. Pretend It’s a City: why Fran Lebowitz has become the muse of the moment. We all need more Fran Lebowitz in our lives. 9. The punchline there is almost as amusing as her brutal takedown of the most evil of all MTA subway lines, the L train. “We haven’t priced it yet! Also, I would like to crawl around underneath the tables in the rare book room at the Strand and when I bring the things to the register and the guy goes, “Where did you find this?” It was under the table. I would like to eat at a restaurant. She’ll start on a topic, and then it’ll go off like a jazz riff into a thousand other places. A lot of the interviews in Pretend It’s a City … Metropolitan Transit Wander the New York City streets and fascinating mind of wry writer, humorist and raconteur Fran Lebowitz as she sits down with Martin Scorsese. I was surprised to learn from “Pretend It’s a City” that neither of you recall when you first met. Review by CrizyLee ★★★★½ . It’s not Paris. … And then they say, no we’re not. I really would like to know what she thinks, pretty much every day, as it’s happening. Ask questions and download or stream the entire soundtrack on Spotify, YouTube, iTunes, & Amazon. âI knew what talent was because I saw the lack of it in myself,â she says about her childhood days of playing cello poorly. Why, it’s the... 2. “It’s about being around Fran,” said Scorsese, who directed the series. You May Also Like. After the big protests in SoHo, I saw a reporter interviewing a woman who was a manager of one of the fancy stores there. Across its seven episodes, the director converses with the author about all manner of things that irritate and inspire her. Another is inside the Queens Museumâs Panorama of the City of New York, the gigantic geographical model commissioned by Robert Moses for the 1964 Worldâs Fair. I am worried about running out of money. SCORSESE First thing I would say is, please, to go to a restaurant. It must have thrown you off or something. Martin Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz, as seen in the new Netflix documentary series, “Pretend It’s a City,” are longtime friends. âEveryone had the idea that New York was cheap,â she says in episode three, correcting that mistake. It’s like having a trick thumb. What’s that 3D map of New York City Fran’s standing on you ask? “And then all of the movie lunatics glared at me, like I admitted to being illiterate.”, In previous years, when they were feeling especially energetic, Scorsese said with some audible melancholy, “We used to have one screening before midnight and then have another screening after.”, But this time, their annual custom had to be put on hold. Pretend It’s a City is now streaming on Netflix. âI could get better, but Iâd never be good.â We also hear about being voted âclass witâ before ultimately getting kicked out of high school. Has the pandemic ever made you feel more vulnerable or aware of your own fragility? It doesn’t matter what the initial emotion is: It could be despair, sadness, fear — basically I experience it as anger. LEBOWITZ I have lived in New York long enough to know that it will not stay the way it is now. Let’s try that. I’ll never eat outside. My feeling if someone doesn’t agree with me is, OK, you’re wrong. [Laughter.]. Pretend It's a City is a 2021 seven-part documentary series directed by Martin Scorsese featuring interviews and conversations between Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz. About Tomatometer. Now people think it has some more lyrical, metaphorical meaning. Watch the trailer for ‘Pretend It’s a City’ a new Martin Scorsese documentary following Fran Lebowitz around her native New York, discussing everything from subways to Times Square. Pretend It's a City is a tribute to two things Scorsese loves, Fran Lebowitz and New York City, and that affection is contagious for much, if not quite all, of its running time. While he does, the film shows Lee at that memorable Knicks game where he heckled an unstoppable Reggie Miller from courtside. Her friendship with Scorsese goes back to the many parties they attended together as young […] In the United Kingdom, Pretend It's a City - Season 1 became one of the highest-grossed Biography tv series. Martin Scorsese’s limited series Pretend It’s a City (Netflix, 2021) presents Fran Lebowitz as a woman rife with contradictions: a misanthropic party animal, a normcore style icon, and a miserable neurotic who might somehow be the happiest bastard in Manhattan. But because there’s so many years and so many people. How about, let’s not have rent that’s $190,000 a month? LEBOWITZ You mean, am I worried about running out of things to say? It made you realize that if only Robert Moses had done everything in miniature, we wouldn’t hate Robert Moses. The big difference is, the food is better in Italians’ houses. That last event facilitated the move to Manhattan, where Lebowitz lived in a crappy apartment in a more expensive neighborhood than the people she hung out with back then. Why It’s Essential Quarantine Viewing: Look, we could all use a distraction right now, and Pretend It’s a City is like a balm for the soul. There is not a square foot of New York City, a square foot, that’s the same as it was when I came here in 1970. Read his answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here. Watch Pretend It's a City - Season 1 (2021) using Stremio. Pretend it’s a city!” The people who have seen it since then — an agent of mine said, “Oh, it’s a love letter to New York.” Before the virus, it was me complaining about New York. We don’t have to be on top of the news. Yet despite all this, sheâs still a sports agnostic. It’s a state of anxiety and tension. Cultural Affairs 32m The mysteries of talent are scrutinized as Fran looks at the peril of writing, the joy of Motown... 3. LEBOWITZ It makes me feel angrier. Nothing that Lebowitz says in it does more than provoke, and that’s a reflex that fades with overuse. Soul! I’ve grown old, and out, in a way. Scorsese sets the jumping off points and Lebowitz leaps with often hilarious, reckless abandon. Pretend It’s a City’s title references how much less authentic New York has become with people staring into their smartphones, among other sins. And I proved him right. Across its seven episodes, the director converses with the author about all manner of things that irritate and inspire her. Max Weiss is the editor-in-chief of Baltimore and a film and pop culture critic. As she explained: “I don’t care whether people agree with me or not. A week later, something else changed. How about that? I don’t remember how many days we shot this but I’m confident that it was an infinitesimal amount compared to how much time it took him to edit. SCORSESE We liked the Jewish food better. You can’t think what to do with SoHo without tourists? Had this past New Year’s Eve been a normal one, Fran Lebowitz and Martin Scorsese would have spent it as they usually do: with each other and a few close friends, in the screening room in Scorsese’s office, watching a classic movie like “Vertigo” or “A Matter of Life and Death.”. View All Pretend It's a City News . I can’t take a chance, either. There’s a few that I’m missing a great deal. The Netflix series “Pretend It’s A City” reunites the New York duo for more of the same. With Fran Lebowitz, Martin Scorsese, Michael Alexis Palmer, Alec Baldwin. It’s no longer home for me, certainly. So, if the first episode hooks you, this is worth binge-watching. In the meantime, “Pretend It’s a City” offers a tantalizing snapshot of New York in full bloom, along with Lebowitz’s lively and unapologetic commentary on what it means to live there. After hearing that the train line had been shut down for hours due to âa bad smell,â Lebowitz asks how much worse could it smell than usual. He runs the blogs Big Media Vandalism and Tales of Odienary Madness. SCORSESE That was the only time that I ever yelled “Action!” I don’t know what possessed me. Health and the wellness racket take a beating in episode five where Lebowitz, a lifelong smoker, points out that everything that is good for you feels or tastes terrible. The Players. I don’t mean old in the sense that we don’t remember things, because I believe we both have perfect memories. LEBOWITZ No, no, no, there’s no comparison. A follow-up to Scorsese’s 2010 nonfiction film “Public Speaking,” “Pretend It’s a City” (which Scorsese also directed) chronicles the acerbic Lebowitz in interviews, live appearances and strolls through New York as she shares stories about her life and insights about the city’s constant evolution in recent decades. The series is divided into fanciful chapters like “Cultural Affairs” and “Department of Sports & Health.” How did you settle on these subjects? ... It’s inappropriately appropriate, funny and somewhat beautiful. LEBOWITZ We’re not journalists. Odie "Odienator" Henderson has spent over 33 years working in Information Technology. The limited series titled Pretend It's a City will feature Fran Lebowitz and Martin Scorsese. âYou are the only person who argues with me more than my family,â Lebowitz tells Lee. Pretend It’s a City 1. Scorsese grew up in Manhattan, of course, and for much of the film, the two hold court in a few standard locations. Ask questions and download or stream the entire soundtrack on Spotify, YouTube, iTunes, & … I’d like a running commentary — not all the time, but one that I can dip in and out of during the day. And thereâs a great shot of the two stars of this film simultaneously looking through the round windows of two old-fashioned doors, cautious expressions on their faces. I thought of the title, “Pretend It’s a City,” when New York was packed with morons who would stand in the middle of the sidewalk. Looking back, what Lebowitz and Scorsese seem to miss most, aside from maybe hanging in person, is dining out. Scorsese sets the jumping off points and Lebowitz leaps with often hilarious, reckless abandon. Scorsese is the recipient of many of his leading ladyâs stories and monologues. The title comes from the advice Lebowitz says sheâd give people coming to New York City, a place she moved to from Morristown, New Jersey in 1969. I can! How did the pandemic affect the making of this series? So I said, “Let’s just stop it.". I have been locked in and working on FaceTime. Thereâs the tale of music legend, Charles Mingus stopping mid-performance to chase Lebowitz down 7th Avenue over a perceived infraction. Many users have been wondering what time does Pretend It's a City release on Netflix. That’s why Marty made so many movies and Fran wrote so few books. A similar, bittersweet air hangs over the seven-part series, which Netflix will release on Friday. She has that. Scorsese mixes these one-on-ones with clips from audience Q&Aâs, prior Lebowitz interviews with people like David Letterman and scenes of the humorist walking down the street. I thought I was going to pass out from giggling myself. MaxSpace Arts & Culture. SCORSESE I actually don’t know where I belong on the island. Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel, Mr. Pretend It’s a City 30m Meet Fran Lebowitz and join her on her rambles as she muses about deadly distractions, Times... 2. But I said to Marty, “I think we should ignore it.”, SCORSESE We tried it. LEBOWITZ I did not destroy it, I just knocked it over. It is a funny guidebook of a New Yorker. Filming Locations for “Pretend It’s a City” from Martin Scorsese & Fran Lebowitz 1. Pretend It’s a City is now streaming on Netflix. All 22 songs featured in Pretend It's a City Season 1 Soundtrack, listed by episode with scene descriptions. The day the pandemic is over — there’s no longer any risk of the coronavirus and we can all return to our usual lives — what’s the first thing you do? The reporter said to her, “What are you going to do?” And she said, “There’s nothing we can do until the tourists come back.” I yelled at the TV and I said, “Really? LEBOWITZ There’s a difference for sure. The series was filmed before the pandemic shut down much of New York. I don’t understand how you can sit there and the fumes from the buses come in. A good deal of “Pretend It’s a City” is essentially just Scorsese sitting and listening... adoring Fran. Now it’s very chic. It is a show about New York, but even more than that, it’s about Fran Lebowitz. It makes me feel angry because this didn’t have to happen at all. The primary one is the Players, a Gramercy Park social club founded in the 19th century by actor (and brother of John Wilkes Booth) Edwin Booth. “And I said, ‘What’s a camera negative?’” Lebowitz recalled in a group video call with Scorsese on Tuesday. Do either of you worry that Fran is a finite resource and you will eventually exhaust her supply of wit? I grew up downtown when it was pretty tough in that area. Meet the Author. Every two days, they say we’re going. At times, Scorsese laughs so hard at Lebowitzâs commentary that I feared he would literally collapse. LEBOWITZ Of course I am the world’s most digressive speaker, but what you’re really seeing at work is editing. Pretend It's a City is a tribute to two things Scorsese loves, Fran Lebowitz and New York City, and that affection is contagious for much, if not quite all, of its running time. And I would yell at them: “Move! The end credits also provide a closing zinger surrounded by an appropriately chosen piece of music. But primarily, it’s about being around Fran. LEBOWITZ I am plot-free, so no problem. Between conversations and talks with an audience, Fran Lebowitz walks through New York City and her fears of Times Square, her mortal distractions and subway art. It was OK, and then a week later, the city changed again. The series was released on January 8, 2021 on Netflix. No matter how many pet peeves she hasâand there are manyâI never tired of hearing them. In the meantime, “Pretend It’s a City” offers a tantalizing snapshot of New York in full bloom, along with Lebowitz’s lively and unapologetic commentary on what it means to live there. Whether pointing out the irony of art auctions (âpeople applauded the priceâ  but not the painting) or mocking her horrific luck with real estate, Fran Lebowitzâs delivery is masterful. This is a very funny production, though I suspect it will play best amongst the denizens of the city Lebowitz loves. When Lebowitz recounts her time as a taxi driver in a profession full of men with cigars who hated her inclusion, the screen cuts to footage of the cab ride in âAfter Hours.â After a story about Leonardo DiCaprio giving Lebowitz a vape pen as a cigarette substitute, Scorsese cuts to an onscreen disclaimer he reads about Leo not endorsing vaping. ”I have lived in New York long enough to know that it will not stay the way it is now,” said Lebowitz, who moved to the city in 1970. Pretend It’s a City is also a study in friendship; the Oscar-winning director’s love and admiration for his friend shine throughout. No. But I’d like to point out, there were many things wrong with it before. Ten years ago, Martin Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz collaborated on âPublic Speaking,â a documentary film where the author espoused her philosophies. S1, Ep2 8 Jan. 2021 Pretend It’s a City is a raconteur’s walking tour — talking tour, really — of New York. Each installment runs around 30 minutes, offering up just enough to leave you looking forward to the next. The year they got together to see “Barry Lyndon,” they watched a rare, high-quality print made from the director Stanley Kubrick’s original camera negative. Also read: 10 of the best Martin Scorsese movies to watch on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video The Netflix series, featuring Lebowitz and directed by Scorsese, offers acerbic commentary and a sense of yearning for a pre-pandemic metropolis. But this is hardly a high-concept show. SCORSESE By the way, it is magnificent, that model. It’s just there. What can we do?” At the height of the shutdown, I went out walking around the city, and Marty sent Ellen Kuras [the director of photography on “Pretend It’s a City”], and what she filmed was incredibly beautiful. Fran Lebowitz yells at you. “Pretend it’s a city!” *** Cultural critic Fran Lebowitz made her streaming show debut last month with Netflix’s “Pretend It’s a City.” The seven-episode documentary series is directed by her longtime friend Martin Scorsese.