“As you see, we’re flying over an island. A city. A particular city. And this is a story of a number of people, and a story also of the city itself.” That’s from the opening voice-over of the 1948 movie The Naked City, which was a very big deal when it was made, because it was a rare studio film that was shot entirely, lock stock and barrel, on the streets of New York City. You see, the American motion picture industry began in New York, at the end of the 19th century – Thomas Edison and other early innovators had their...
Latest episodes
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1 h 09
Jason & Mike in A Very Good Year
Hello “Fun City Cinema” subscribers - long time no see! The show is still on hiatus, as your hosts Jason Bailey and Mike Hull have been working very hard on “A Very Good Year,” a n…
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2 min
Our new show - A Very Good Year
“Fun City Cinema” hosts Jason Bailey and Mike Hull proudly present “A Very Good Year,” a new podcast with a simple premise: each week we invite a guest (filmmakers and actors, crit…
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17 min
Bonus Time: Born to Win
Heads up: Jason and Mike were lucky enough to contribute an audio commentary to Fun City Editions’ new Blu-ray of “Born to Win,” one of the great unsung gems of early ‘70s fun city…
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1 h 05
The Deuce
How two New York classics captured the essence of Times Square then – and what they tell us about it now. No two films capture the urban grime and desperate time of New York City i…
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1 h 10
Keep America Great
How a riot in Manhattan reconfigured a New York exploitation classic – and American politics for half a century.John G. Avildsen’s 1970 New York drama was originally titled The Gap…
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1 h 06
Subway Stories
One of the mainstays of NYC cinema is the subway, which serves as an immediate visual cue to not only the city’s setting, but its mood. But the subway is also, conveniently for dra…
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1 h 04
Judge, Jury, and Executioner (Part Two)
The 1974 Charles Bronson vehicle Death Wish is far from the best New York movie of the era – but it may be the most influential. Its story of a mild-mannered upper-class Manhattan…
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56 min
Judge, Jury, and Executioner (Part One)
The 1974 Charles Bronson vehicle “Death Wish” is far from the best New York movie of the era – but it may be the most influential. Its story of a mild-mannered upper-class Manhatta…
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59 min
Tribute in Light
When the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center fell on September 11, 2001, New York City was changed forever: its skyline, its people, its mood. And its films were changed as well…
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20 min
MARK YOUR CALENDERS
A quick hello from Jason and Mike, with a few brief words about our upcoming second season (starting 8/31), Mike's new documentary 'Betrayal at Attica' (now streaming on HBO Max),…
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54 min
Lost in New York
We thought it would be fun to do a nice, light Christmas episode, focusing on one of the many beloved Gotham holiday movies. Just take it easy for an episode, right? Kinda phone it…
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60 min
No Wave Women
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, a combination of factors – including low rents in abandoned neighborhoods, new and more affordable technology, a cross-pollination of media, and…
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1 h 14
Starring the NYPD
How the New York cop movies of the 1970s sculpted (and whitewashed) the public perception of the NYPD The New York movie and the New York cop movie are inextricably intertwined – s…
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1 h 18
Fight the Power - B-side
We're pleased to present our very first bonus episode, in which we talk a bit about making "Fight the Power," expand on some of the themes within it, preview our next installment,…
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1 h 16
Fight The Power
Spike Lee’s 1989 film “Do the Right Thing,” shot on location in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, is now considered not only a classic of modern cinema, but a clarion call to social justice, fre…
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4 min
Sneak Peek: Fight the Power
Our first episode drops this week, so we wanted to give you a taste of what’s to come. “Fight the Power” tells the story of Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing,” now considered not onl…
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5 min
Introducing Fun City Cinema
New York City is one of the most important and recognizable locations in motion pictures – like a character itself, as countless films and filmmakers have tiresomely insisted. And…