• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Seventh Row

A place to think deeply about movies

  • Archives
    • Browse Articles
    • Review Index
    • Interview Index
  • Podcast
    • Seventh Row Podcast
    • Abortion on Film
    • Creative Nonfiction Podcast
    • Women at Cannes
    • Sundance 2023
    • The Joachim Trier Audio Commentaries
    • 21st Folio
    • Seventh Row on other podcasts
  • Ebooks
    • Mike Leigh
    • Call Me by Your Name
    • Céline Sciamma
    • Kelly Reichardt
    • Joanna Hogg
    • Andrew Haigh
    • Lynne Ramsay
    • Joachim Trier
    • Subjectives realities (Nonfiction film)
    • Documentary Masters
    • Fiction Directors
  • Shop
  • Join Reel Ruminators

Seventh Row Editors / March 14, 2025

Ep. 163 Joan Micklin Silver’s Chilly Scenes of Winter and Crossing Delancey (feat. Lindsay Pugh)

On the podcast, Alex is joined by Woman in Revolt Editor-in-Chief Lindsay Pugh to discuss the pioneering director Joan Micklin Silver’s biggest hit (Crossing Delancey) and her biggest flop (the great Chilly Scenes of Winter). Both films have recently been restored by Criterion.

Listen on apple podcasts listen on spotify

Stills from Joan Micklin Silver's films, from top to bottom, Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979) and Crossing Delancey (1988), which we discuss on the podcast.
Stills from Joan Micklin Silver’s films, from top to bottom, Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979) and Crossing Delancey (1988), which we discuss on the podcast.

Today, we’re celebrating pioneering American director Joan Micklin Silver by looking at her biggest flop, the excellent Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979), and her biggest hit, Crossing Delancey (1988). Although both films are over 35 years old, they mostly still read as very modern. They could almost be set today. We discuss why, and the few things that do stick out as time capsules.

Today on the podcast, Woman in Revolt Editor-in-Chief Lindsay Pugh joins Alex Heeney to discuss why we love Joan Micklin Silver, why her films have aged so well (and the few things that haven’t), and what makes her such a great filmmaker both as a visual stylist and a modern storyteller. We also discuss the great Peter Riegert who stars in both films.

Micklin Silver wrote and directed movies when very few women, and indeed, American women, were. Elaine May’s A New Leaf came a few years before Silver’s first feature, but Silver pre-dated filmmakers like Claudia Weill, Nora Ephron, Gillian Armstrong, and more.

Show Notes on Joan Micklin Silver

Read Alex’s review of the Criterion Collection restoration of Chilly Scenes of Winter

Discover the history of women directors at the Cannes Film Festival

Listen to the Women at Cannes Podcast Season

Check out the Beyond the Sight & Sound Poll, which includes Joan Micklin Silver’s films

View Alex Heeney’s Beyond the Sight & Sound Ballot

Related episodes to Joan Micklin Silver feat. Lindsay Pugh

Ep. 155: Halina Reijn’s Babygirl

Ep. 119: Mike Leigh’s Naked (in 4K!)

Ep. 90: A Chantal Akerman Mother’s Day: Jeanne Dielman and Les Rendez-vous d’Anna

Podcast Credits

This episode was edited, produced, and recorded by Alex Heeney.

Follow Seventh Row on Twitter, Bluesky and Instagram. Read our articles at seventh-row.com.

Follow Alex Heeney on Bluesky, Twitter and Instagram. 

An AI-generated transcript for the episode is available on Apple Podcasts.

Filed Under: Podcasts Tagged With: Alex Heeney podcast, Film Classics podcast, Lindsay Pugh podcast, Restorations, Women Directors

« Older Post
What to see at MOMI’s 2025 First Look Festival
Newer Post »
Interview: Philippe Lesage on Comme le feu (Who by Fire)

Footer

Support Seventh Row

  • Film Adventurer Membership
  • Cinephile Membership
  • Ebooks
  • Donate
  • Merchandise
  • Institutional Subscriptions
  • Workshops & Masterclasses
  • Shop

Connect with Us

  • Podcast
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Browse

  • Interview Index by Job Title
  • Interview Index by Last Name
  • Seventh Row Podcast
  • Directors We Love
  • Films We Love

Join our newsletter

  • Join our free newsletter
  • Get the premium newsletter (become a member)

Featured Ebooks on Directors

  • Joachim Trier
  • Joanna Hogg
  • Céline Sciamma
  • Kelly Reichardt
  • Lynne Ramsay
  • Mike Leigh
  • Andrew Haigh

© 2025 · Seventh Row

  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Contribute
  • Contact
  • My Account