Pretend It’s A City, 2021, only 7 episodes, one season.
This is a bit of an odd duck, because it really depends on whether you like, or are entertained by Fran Lebowitz. Martin Scorsese directed, and is also featured, but really it’s all about Fran Lebowitz, and then it’s really mostly about New York and then mostly Manhattan. So it’s super, super specific, and if that flavor is not for you, then you are very unlikely to derive anything from it.
All that said, I enjoyed it immensely... but then again, I’ve always liked Fran Lebowitz, whenever I’ve seen her (on Bill Maher’s shows, for example). She is witty, she’s a true iconoclast and a non-BS kind of person, obviously she’s unconventional in her lifestyle, an unapolotetic progressive and part of the LBTQ community, but for all that, she’s not a PC-shibboleth type person.
The insight she provides into the past, and her thoughts and observations borne from a lifetime of experience are pretty invaluable, IMHO.
If you are up for a bit of New York Manhattan-centric narration with a very interesting personality, then you might really enjoy it.
However, it’s very hard for me to give it a ranking, because I’m so cognizant of how this is a very narrow spectrum of viewers for whom it’s suitable. I’m afraid that for large numbers of people it’s going to be a big “what in the world is this all about?”. Btw. I’m not passing judgment either way, horses for courses. If you’re here for Scorsese, then I’m afraid this is not the ticket - he really is a very minor element here.
So my ranking is going to be a double:
For fans of hard core New York Jewish iconoclast slightly past beat generation wits: 9 stars out of 10.
For folks for whom that world is a big “WHUT?” - skip, avoid, don’t waste your time.
This is a bit of an odd duck, because it really depends on whether you like, or are entertained by Fran Lebowitz. Martin Scorsese directed, and is also featured, but really it’s all about Fran Lebowitz, and then it’s really mostly about New York and then mostly Manhattan. So it’s super, super specific, and if that flavor is not for you, then you are very unlikely to derive anything from it.
All that said, I enjoyed it immensely... but then again, I’ve always liked Fran Lebowitz, whenever I’ve seen her (on Bill Maher’s shows, for example). She is witty, she’s a true iconoclast and a non-BS kind of person, obviously she’s unconventional in her lifestyle, an unapolotetic progressive and part of the LBTQ community, but for all that, she’s not a PC-shibboleth type person.
The insight she provides into the past, and her thoughts and observations borne from a lifetime of experience are pretty invaluable, IMHO.
If you are up for a bit of New York Manhattan-centric narration with a very interesting personality, then you might really enjoy it.
However, it’s very hard for me to give it a ranking, because I’m so cognizant of how this is a very narrow spectrum of viewers for whom it’s suitable. I’m afraid that for large numbers of people it’s going to be a big “what in the world is this all about?”. Btw. I’m not passing judgment either way, horses for courses. If you’re here for Scorsese, then I’m afraid this is not the ticket - he really is a very minor element here.
So my ranking is going to be a double:
For fans of hard core New York Jewish iconoclast slightly past beat generation wits: 9 stars out of 10.
For folks for whom that world is a big “WHUT?” - skip, avoid, don’t waste your time.
