Thrilled to join my friends in the Losers Lounge NYC for a weekend long tribute to REM & The Replacements. I am singing every night and am honored to be on stage with so many great artists. Join us at Joe's Pub in NYC! In the meantime, I am prepping by enjoying this absolute delight of an EP...

My favorite living playwright, interviewed. A must read.

I feel like people continue to sleep on Lynne Ramsey's YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE, which uses the ubiquity & impunity of organized, elite sexual abuse as a traumatic trigger. It is one of the great films of this time, and Joaquin Phoenix is incredible as usual. Demands a (re)watch.

Friends, I am very excited to share that I will be singing a song with NYC legends Joe McGinty & The Losers Lounge at all six of their upcoming shows, taking place February 19-21 at Joe's Pub, featuring the music of R.E.M. & The Replacements. Get Your Tickets 👇 bit.ly/LosersREMvMats

In honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day, I am sharing a sketch of my ideas from 2013, grappling with what I consider to be the most important film ever made, Claude Lanzmann's SHOAH.

Rest in Power to Margaret Ross of The Cookies, an amazing singer whose voice graced some of the best pop records of the 1960s. I got to see her sing when she joined my friends in The Losers Lounge for a tune, and it was a thrill. So sorry to learn of her passing.

Absolute MUST SEE in NYC… so thrilled this is happening!!

THE NAME OF THIS BAND IS R.E.M. — A speed run through the career of the band that changed my life. Because the band did not directly participate in this book, a lot of the material and insights came from researching publicly available materials with which, as a lifelong fan, I am familiar.

R.I.P. to Uncle Floyd, who brought decades of hilarity & joy to so many. I was lucky to host him as part of a film Q&A back in 2022, & it remains a highlight-- just get out of the way, let the talent shine, & try to stop laughing. There will truly never be another one like him, a true original. ♥️

Cocteau Twins Stereolab Sleater-Kinney Alvvays Joanna Newsom

Great night at Film at Lincoln Center at the New York Jewish Film Festival for a screening of SAPIRO V FORD, which features an outstanding performance (in a documentary!) by my friend Ben Shenkman. Sold out crowd & great experience. Congrats to the festival & film teams on a terrific event!

Packed house at MoMA today for the restoration of Russ Meyer’s VIXEN! Nothing like some reactionary politics tethered to a pervy fetish gaze under the mask of sexual liberation on a Friday afternoon! The restoration looks incredible and has completely reframed Meyer’s project for me—

I love this so so much.

Awesome night at MoMA seeing the STUNNING new restoration of Michael Almereyda’s NADJA, screening as part of MoMA’s To Save & Project program. I remember seeing it in 1995 in Washington, DC and being enamored with its low budget delights. Tonight, it looked and sounded better than ever!

VERA, OR FAITH- I loved this? A look inside the mind of a girl on the spectrum, living through dark, turbulent times in America, told through the lens of her obsession with languge (a nod to her Nabokovian roots) and her privileged, leftist NYC family dynamics. Dark & delightful, just what I needed.

FATEFUL HOURS: THE COLLAPSE OF THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC-First read of 2026 completed, and once again, Volker Ullrich brings forth urgent lessons from the past. The history of our time is not yet written, nothing yet to happen is determined— we still have time & the responsibility to act. And so, we must.

Nancy: … and now, let’s see who Vecna *really* is! *pulls off mask* The Whole Gang (in unison): Former Stranger Things cast member Sean Astin?! Astin: and I would have gotten away with it if it weren’t for you meddling kids!

My 2025 in reading... a light year in terms of numbers, but favs include WE DO NOT PART (& HUMAN ACTS, which are a pair in my thinking), PLAYWORLD, YOU DREAMED OF EMPIRES, & Olga Tokarczuk's THE EMPUSIUM, which was fun. I'll read more this year now that other things have calmed down a little...

It was the thrill of a lifetime to host Rob Reiner at the 2016 Montclair Film Festival. He was one of the filmmakers who shaped my youth, who defined the movies of the 1980s. I won't ever forget the pleasure his films delivered, to our shared love of the movies, to my childhood.

My 2¢- THERE WILL BE BLOOD is a masterpiece. Paul Dano is playing a fraud who uses religious hysteria to maintain his hold on a small, superstitious community, but he is small time, a huckster, who is up against an actual sociopath who has his own con. Their dynamic = America. Both actors incredible

‘Tis The Season for… My Top 5 Christmas Movies! Fanny & Alexander Eyes Wide Shut Black Christmas A Christmas Tale Rare Exports Enjoy! 🎄🎅❄️

Oh nothing, just prepping Thanksgiving dinner while listening to Sam Cooke destroy an audience on this album which is, to my thinking, the greatest live performance ever captured on record. Goosebumps and literal tears... Good lord...

👀

Big birthday today! I am now Double Nickels On The Dime years old! I can now drive 55, because I have no other choice!

New Volker Ullrich & NO ONE TOLD ME? Who are you people? Are we even friends? Extremely disappointed in all humans & algorithms alike. This is an INSTAPURCHASE!

Guys, did you hear? After no negotiation, there *might* be a VOTE which will likely kill the ACA & fund the ongoing destruction of our institutions. See? Everyone is working together & governing! This is what we all want! Senate votes to point to in a year! Great job! I live for wins like this!

Beautiful night with the NY Phil, featuring Joshua Bell playing Thomas de Hartmann’s Violin Concerto, composed for Ukraine in 1943 during the Nazi occupation. Dalia Stasevska conducted beautifully, including a new piece by composer Bohdana Frolyak & Benjamin Britten’s Sinfonia da Requiem. 👏

OUT TODAY: Hüsker Dü Live in 1985, at the absolute peak of their power. 40 years ago I was 14. Now? In awe. I can’t believe this exists. Thank you to @numerogroup.bsky.social for delivering the live album of my dreams from one of the most important bands of my life.💥

New post up, looking at this year’s Montclair Film Festival, my podcast obsession, Wet Leg, and a great series of novels. Give a read & thanks!

Congrats to NJ Governor elect Mikie Sherill. I look forward to continuing to work with you to support the art of film and filmmaking in New Jersey!

DYING 🥰

So much still to do, and this is the least of it, but the least of it still needs doing. #Vote

Halloween 2025 is... THE BAGMAN Episode of BETTER CALL SAUL! Or should I say Better Call Ol(iver)? Oliver loved the show and picked his costume… hats off to Jessica for making it great! #HappyHalloween 🎃💀👻🧛‍♂️🧟‍♂️

Now that my kids are older and deciding on their own #Halloween costumes, a look back at the glories of the past... 🧵

Tonight, we open the 14th annual Montclair Film Festival, my 11th at Montclair Film as Artistic Director. I am so incredibly proud of our entire team for all of the hard work you put in to make everything we do possible. THANK YOU! I am honored to be your collaborator.

Excited to share this news for December! The @montclairfilm.bsky.social Festival starts on Friday, we open The Bellevue Cinema on Saturday, & now excited to announce our December fundraiser featuring Stephen Colbert & Conan O'Brien on December 7th at NJPAC in Newark! Grab tix & see you there!

Congrats to Craig Taborn on winning a MacArthur Grant. In college, I was in a small jazz ensemble for a mercifully (for him) brief period of time with Craig, who was such a gifted player, music majors would sit outside of his rehearsal studio door to listen. He is also a lovely man. Congrats, sir!

Congrats to László Krasznahorkai for winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature! Film folks will know his works as having been adapted by Béla Tarr (most notably SATANTANGO)... a great writer, much deserved!

New post up at The Back Row Manifesto, #9 in my series on anti-fascist films that I am calling "No Authority". This time, I am looking at Paul Thomas Anderson's must-see new film, ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. Please give a read after you've seen the movie and thanks so much!

About to experience VistaVision for the first time at this ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER screening with my boys*… excited for a unique family cinematic experience! *One of them vetoed any photos. 👎

Announcing the full slate of the 2025 Montclair Film Festival! 

Highlights? That’s all we have! Visit Montclairfilm.org for the complete lineup!

Our 2025 @montclairfilm.bsky.social Festival Guides have arrived! And that can only mean one thing… full program announcement incoming! 😉

Great night enjoying a fantastic set by Music For Enophiles, playing the music of Brian Eno ... Never miss them, and they never miss!

New post up on my site The Back Row Manifesto, #7 in my Scrapbook series, wherein I take my personal interests personally. Give a read and subscribe if you are inclined. Thanks!

The Concert In Central Park, but now, and it's Fugazi.

As an actor, Robert Redford was a defining artist of the 1960s & 70s. As a filmmaker, he was a master of control & tension. As an environmentalist and advocate, he was a powerful voice for change. But as the founder of Sundance, he radically transformed the film industry forever. A great man. #RIP

Valentine’s Day plans sorted. Thank you Jessica for being my Valentine & sharing my love for the work of Wallace Shawn. ❤️

Proud to announce the Opening, Closing, and Centerpiece Films of the 2025 @montclairfilm.bsky.social Festival! The 14th annual festival takes October 17-26, hope you can join us in Montclair, NJ! Much more to come... thank you to @thr.com for sharing our news! #MFF25

Incredible show tonight from Nine Inch Nails in NYC. My favorite live band only gets better. Especially loved the set with Boys Noize which reimagined some of my favs… As always, don’t miss them.

It is an absolute CURSE of the modern age of film.