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.
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.
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Follow Alex Heeney on Bluesky, Twitter and Instagram.
An AI-generated transcript for the episode is available on Apple Podcasts.
