Television series
Pretend It's a City
Fran Lebowitz, the essayist and critic, holds court on New York City with unsparing wit and encyclopedic contempt. Martin Scorsese directs her rambling through Manhattan's contradictions—tourists, money, architecture, manners—while she dissects the city and herself with equal ferocity. Funny, acerbic, and utterly New York.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy a sharp, cranky talker who holds forth on everything from subway etiquette to the arts, and you'd happily spend half an hour in the company of a grumbling, witty curmudgeon.
Skip it if you want a plot, a structure or any real forward momentum, since this is a single sardonic voice riffing through its subjects and most episodes simply wander from one complaint to the next.
What it asks of you: Half an hour an episode, seven episodes, and steady attention to one person talking, with almost no visual variety, so it rewards listening more than watching.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Sour Grapes2016
A documentary about wine fraud with the tone of a dark comedy. Two men obsess over rare wines with the same vehement certainty Lebowitz brings to her opinions, and the film treats their absurdity with both humor and genuine intrigue.
But It's primarily about wine collecting, which may feel niche if you've never cared about wine. The fraud itself, while compelling, unfolds slowly.
The Toys That Made Us2017
Netflix's love letter to consumer culture and nostalgia, with the same affectionate ruthlessness Lebowitz applies to New York. Experts and creators dissect the objects that shaped us, finding genuine meaning in the ridiculous.
But Each episode focuses on a specific toy or brand. If you have no connection to the subject, the episode becomes a parade of trivia rather than revelation.
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet2020
Attenborough delivers sweeping observations about the natural world and human folly with the moral authority Lebowitz brings to urban life. A lifetime of witness compressed into urgent, eloquent commentary.
But It's fundamentally a climate doom sermon. The beauty doesn't lighten the bleakness, and some find that exhausting rather than motivating.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Pretend It's a City
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
My Architect: A Son's Journey2003
Both Lebowitz and Kahn were New Yorkers obsessed with how cities should look and feel. Both made stern pronouncements. The film asks whether great critics owe anything to the people around them.
Louis Kahn's son examines his father's towering legacy and absence, asking what we owe the dead and whether greatness excuses neglect. It's a portrait of New York's architectural obsession through personal grief.
But It's a three-hour meditation on architecture and masculinity. Long stretches have no narration. Patience and interest in buildings are non-negotiable.
More like this (7)
Schitt's Creek2015
A wealthy family loses everything and moves to a small town. Beneath the comedy sits real observation about class, manners, and what actually matters. The writing has Lebowitz's DNA: acerbic but generous.
But The first season is rough and relies on fish-out-of-water derision. You have to endure some meanness before the show develops a heart.
Los Espookys2019
A surreal comedy about aspiring horror-film makers in a fictional Latin American country. Deadpan, weird, and brimming with the kind of specific cultural observation and artistic snobbery Lebowitz loves.
But The humor is oblique and the plot deliberately scattered. Nothing conventional happens, which delights some and bores others.
The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst2015
A documentary about a billionaire possibly connected to multiple murders. Gripping, well-constructed, and deeply interested in how money and power warp character—themes Lebowitz has spent decades examining.
But True crime formats have been oversaturated since this aired. If you're tired of them, this won't change your mind, even if it's excellent.
Killers of the Flower Moon2023
Scorsese examines American greed, corruption, and casual brutality with the same unflinching eye he brings to Lebowitz's essays. A three-and-a-half-hour indictment of wealth and indifference.
But Its length is intentional and uncompromising. It moves like a lecture, not a thriller. Some find that punishing.
The Comeback2005
Lisa Kudrow plays a delusional actress pursuing irrelevance with complete seriousness. It's a savage comedy about ego, the entertainment industry, and how people lie to themselves—Lebowitz territory entirely.
But Secondhand embarrassment is the fuel. If that makes you deeply uncomfortable rather than amused, you'll struggle to finish an episode.
La Haine1995
Both documents are unsentimental, precise observations of cities and the people trapped in them. Both refuse to simplify or comfort.
A black-and-white French film following three young men in the banlieue for a day of mounting tension. It observes class, police violence, and urban rage with Lebowitz's same acerbic eye, but through a wholly different culture.
But Subtitled, in French. The pacing is deliberate and the ending brutal. It's a political film first, entertainment second.
Halt and Catch Fire2014
Both are fascinated by how people become obsessed with their work, and both refuse to judge that obsession sentimentally. Both love the texture of effort and thought.
A drama about the computer revolution in 1980s Texas that treats its characters—ambitious, flawed, obsessive—with real intelligence. The dialogue crackles with specificity, and it cares about how people work and think.
But It's slow, especially early on. There's no main character to root for, and the tech industry details will either grip or bore depending on your patience for specificity.
People
Cast
Production
- Fran LebowitzExecutive Producer
- Josh PorterExecutive Producer
- Martin ScorseseExecutive Producer
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