I Need a Critic: One-Hundredth-Episode Edition

Summary

Critics at Large | The New Yorker

Episode: I Need a Critic: One-Hundredth-Episode Edition
Date: January 22, 2026
Hosts: Vinson Cunningham, Nomi Frye, Alexandra Schwartz
Special Guest: David Remnick

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Overview

For their momentous hundredth episode, the Critics at Large celebrate with cake, confetti, and—most importantly—their listeners. This special edition of their recurring “I Need a Critic” format focuses on listener-submitted cultural dilemmas. The panel dispenses advice on everything from building a teen’s record collection to bridging cultural boycotts, all while reflecting on the quirks and communal experiences of being a critic and a fan. Guest appearance from The New Yorker's editor David Remnick brings extra festivity and insight, and the episode closes with the critics posing their own dilemmas for the audience to solve.

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Key Discussion Points and Listener Questions

1. The Teen Record Collection Dilemma (04:48)

Listener: Andrea from the Hudson Valley
Question: What records should I add to my 12-year-old daughter’s new collection? She has Taylor Swift and even Huey Lewis, but what else?

• Nomi Frye shares her hands-off, discovery-driven approach:

  “If I push too hard towards something, my daughter will probably be like, ‘No, thank you.’ So I try to be a little hands off and just let her kind of explore on her own.” (05:24)

• Alex Schwartz suggests classic “starter pack” picks:

  “Definitely a Billie Holiday album, maybe Body and Soul. I would do Blonde on Blonde by Bob Dylan, for sure. Probably Blue by Joni Mitchell.” (07:00)

• Vinson Cunningham recommends using records as a chance to converse:

  “The sort of buying of records is just a great way to get into a rhythm of a certain kind of conversation… a one-for-one exchange that might formalize itself in the form of buying a record.” (07:29) He also notes contemporary picks, like Icelandic singer LÁLFA (Laufey):
  “She has this, like, silky way of bringing bossa nova into her music… there’s new music that comes out on vinyl.” (08:30)

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2. Getting Non-Readers to Read (09:21)

Listener: Maxwell from Washington State
Question: What book do you give someone who doesn’t read, to start them reading?

• Vinson Cunningham: "Memoir really does work well… I regret almost everything by Keith McNally." (10:04)

• Alex Schwartz: Endorses the audiobook, noting actor Richard E. Grant’s memorable reading style. (11:08)

• Nomi Frye: Advocates for short, accessible novels, suggesting Gwendoline Riley:

  “If you feel intimidated… pick a book that’s a relatively easy lift. I’m thinking about the novels of Gwendoline Riley… they’re all quite short, pretty sparse.” (11:21)

• Alex Schwartz (to Maxwell, about finding community):

  “I think you need some new friends. They are out there—join a book group...you deserve it, Maxwell.” (12:28)

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3. Special Guest: David Remnick Joins (13:10)

David Remnick arrives with cake, confetti, and two burning questions:

a) What to Watch in Espionage Entertainment? (14:19)

• David Remnick: Asks for spy/espionage TV recommendations.
• Vinson Cunningham: Praises HBO’s Task starring Mark Ruffalo:

  “Ruffalo—he’s had a horrible family tragedy. Now, he’s leading a small field office filled with pain… the pain is visceral. He drinks vodka every day out of a child's plastic cup.” (15:16)

• Panel: Affirms Task is a strong, character-driven recommendation.

b) How to Read in a Distracted World? (15:55)

• Alex Schwartz: Endorses Opal, a paid app for blocking distractions:

  “You can block various apps on your phone using Opal.” (16:21)

• Nomi Frye: Goes for social media “cleanses” (deleting Instagram for months):

  “That helped me read a lot more and concentrate.” (16:57)

• Vincent Cunningham: Mentions “Brick,” a gadget that physically disables apps. (17:07)

• Remnick: Jokes about reading during Knicks games, sound off.

• Vinson Cunningham: “I don’t think David Remnick needs to be more productive. Maybe you need to be on your phone a little bit.” (17:29)

• Panel: Reminds Remnick, and themselves, to enjoy and not self-flagellate.

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4. Naming Future Children (19:12)

Listener: Annie
Question: How do you choose a baby name with all the cultural baggage and trends attached?

• Nomi Frye: Values names pronounced the same across languages:

  “I wanted the name to be pronounced the same in every place and language… For some reason, that universality was really kind of like, I wanted it to be easy for her.” (19:57)

• Alex Schwartz: Chose “Benjamin” for tradition; notes that even unique names can become generational trends:

  “There’s always a category of distinctive names… and then it just turns out, that’s the name of the generation.” (22:07)

• Vinson Cunningham: Likes names that reflect a personal moment in the parent’s life:

  “The name has to inspire that same rush of affection and gratitude and, importantly, memory. My younger daughter’s name, Luz, means light. I named her at a time when I really wanted a light in my life.” (23:02)

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5. Not Liking What Everyone Else Loves (24:40)

Listener: Emily from Vermont
Question: The world adored Die My Love, but Emily found it heavy-handed. Are there cultural moments where you’re out of step with consensus?

• Nomi Frye:

  “I am with you, my friend. You will never walk alone as far as it concerns me and the movie Die my Love. Absolutely unmoved.” (25:39) “I do believe in my taste. …just like on a visceral level. And just be proud of that. Your taste is what creates you, partly.” (26:13)

• Vincent Cunningham: Recently felt this with the band Geese’s album Getting Killed:

  “I listen to it… okay… but there is a consensus around this album I can’t feel my way into. …I've learned a new facet of my own taste in this negative way.” (27:38)

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6. Reading in a Second Language (29:05)

Listener: Elsa
Question: How do you fall in love with reading in a foreign language? It feels like work, not pleasure.

• Alex Schwartz: Validates the difficulty:

  “I love speaking French… but I don’t love reading in French… I feel like I’m reading through basically, like, Vaseline, fogged glasses.” (29:03)

• Vinson Cunningham: Recommends poetry in the new language:

  “One lyric poem might take you a long time, but every time you do that, you’re learning.” (30:17)

• Nomi Frye: Suggests scheduled, “choreographic” reading:

  “It’s okay if something needs to be a little bit of homework… not necessarily fun, but useful.” (30:43)

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7. The Road Trip Playlist Conflict (31:37)

Listener: Isa
Question: My partner and I have totally different musical tastes. Any advice for road trips? Songs, playlists, even audiobooks or podcasts?

• Vinson Cunningham: Turn it into a creative, collaborative challenge:

  “Making the playlist is an answer to the question, what does Bad Bunny have to do with Taylor Swift? …Start with three for you, three for him, and find songs in the conversational air between your songs and his.” (33:07)

• Alex Schwartz: Suggests pivoting to shared podcasts, specifically What Went Wrong (about movie mishaps then movies themselves):

  “Look for some movies that you’ve both seen, and it could become like a kind of playlist as you drive.” (34:45)

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8. Europe Boycotting American Culture (35:49)

Listener: Astrid from Copenhagen
Question: With friends and neighbors boycotting American products and culture due to politics, how do we fall back in love? Do you miss Europe as much as we miss you?

• All: Express deep longing and regret over the rift:

  “We miss you, Astrid. I think we miss you to the extent of, like, wanting to move in with you.” – Nomi Frye (37:13)

• Nomi Frye: Recommends Linklater’s Before Sunrise trilogy:

  “A loving depiction of the love and compassion… between the American protagonist and the French protagonist.” (37:30)

• Vinson Cunningham: Suggests reading Henry James’s The Ambassadors:

  “The sort of change in perception that overcomes an interested and open American upon reaching Europe… a kind of diplomacy of the heart.” (38:43)

• Alex Schwartz: Recommends facing American energy head-on with Marty Supreme:

  “A hustler who only cares for himself, who’s like, in many ways the worst aspect of the society, but… also the best aspect of the society. …Brush up against that absolute, frenetic…American energy.” (39:11)

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Special Segment: Critics Need Critics

In a twist, the hosts pose their own dilemmas for listeners’ advice (41:16):

• Vinson Cunningham: How do parents fit all the art and culture they want to engage with into the short hours after a child’s bedtime? (41:57)
• Alex Schwartz: What great art or literature about sports should she dive into next? (43:11)
• Nomi Frye: Is there a book/movie/album out there that offers both relaxation/comfort and intellectual enrichment? (43:51)

“Help us, help us.” – Alex Schwartz (41:32)

Listeners are invited to send responses to [e-mail] (subject line: Critics).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On making it to Episode 100:

  “It’s not every day that a podcast celebrates its hundredth episode.” – Nomi Frye (02:09)

• On naming children:

  “You want the name to be as much of a, I don’t know, carrier of hope and joy as the child is.” – Vincent Cunningham (23:02)

• On not loving the consensus pick:

  “Be proud of your own taste. …Your taste is what creates you partly.” – Nomi Frye (26:13)

• On art as bridgework in partnerships:

  “The playlist that you make is…a syllabus of your joint enjoyments. It’s going to make you and him better.” – Vincent Cunningham (33:07)

• On international rifts and longing:

  “We want to be where you are for us over here at Critics At Large HQ. You know, much love to Europe.” – Alex Schwartz (37:20)

• On the heart of criticism:

  “We help you, we hope. Now we need your help.” – Alex Schwartz (41:34)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:48] — Advice for a tween's first record collection
• [09:21] — How to get non-readers into reading
• [13:10] — David Remnick joins: cake, confetti, TV requests, and attention spans
• [19:12] — How to choose a baby name
• [24:40] — Not liking “must-see” culture
• [29:05] — The challenge of reading in a second language
• [31:37] — The ultimate road trip playlist dilemma
• [35:49] — Europe–America culture rifts: can arts reconnect us?
• [41:16] — Critics turn to listeners for advice

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Tone & Style

The conversation is affectionate, self-deprecating, and inviting—full of both erudition and warmth. The critics mix pragmatic advice with deeper reflections on taste, art, and the mysteries of culture, always keeping the listener in mind. Their banter celebrates both dissent and shared obsession, and the episode foregrounds community in art and criticism.

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Takeaway

This centennial episode is both a celebration of the show's ongoing dialogue with its listeners and a deft miniature of what makes the show special: critical generosity, curiosity, and delight in pop culture and the arts—and in each other.

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For more, listen to full episodes of Critics at Large at newyorker.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

Transcript

[Nomi Frye]

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[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah, of course. Oh, I'm going in.

[Nomi Frye]

I'm a little scared.

[Alex Schwartz]

Okay.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay. Ah.

[Alex Schwartz]

Okay.

[Nomi Frye]

I guess I'll try popping mine.

[Alex Schwartz]

Pop your popper.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay. Okay. Here we go.

[Alex Schwartz]

Here we go. You can do it. So satisfying.

[Nomi Frye]

There we go. It's a hundredth episode.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yay. This is Critics at Large, a podcast from the New Yorker. I'm Vincent Cunningham.

[Alex Schwartz]

I'm Alex Schwartz.

[Nomi Frye]

And I'm Nomi Frye. Each week on this show, we make sense of what's happening and the culture right now and how we got here. It's not every day that a podcast celebrates its hundredth episode.

[Alex Schwartz]

For us, it's only one day.

[Nomi Frye]

It's only one day today. And it's that day is today.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Unreal.

[Nomi Frye]

Our celebratory cake is, you know, it's got a dusting.

[Vincent Cunningham]

It's got a dusting.

[Nomi Frye]

It's got a dusting of confetti.

[Alex Schwartz]

It's simply covered in confetti.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, my goodness.

[Alex Schwartz]

What a festive day.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Confetti, baby.

[Alex Schwartz]

And listeners, we couldn't do it without you. You are the best in the game.

[Nomi Frye]

We spent kind of a long time thinking about how we wanted to celebrate. And in the end, we decided that, you know, what makes this show really work is our listeners and the fact that they keep, you keep tuning in. And so we wanted to share this celebration with you. And one of our favorite ways to do that has become our beloved Dare I say I Need a Critic episodes. So here's what we're up to in this very special installment of I Need a Critic. You guys have been great. You've been sending us questions about various cultural dilemmas. And so today we're going to hear what you guys sent in. We're going to give you hopefully some satisfactory answers to those questions. But we're going to be flipping the script a little bit and stick around to the end of the episode to see what we mean by that. You guys, my friends, my fellow critics, Vincent and Alex, are you guys feeling all ready to advise our beautiful listeners?

[Alex Schwartz]

Oh, yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

The state is kind of a productive emptiness. Right. I'm just, I've cleared my head.

[Nomi Frye]

Right.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I'm just ready to call on every, every piece of artistic feeling knowledge that has ever entered my body.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay. I love touch with it.

[Alex Schwartz]

I'm more than ready.

[Nomi Frye]

I love that. He was born ready. Exactly.

[Vincent Cunningham]

That's the thing.

[Nomi Frye]

He was born read. And moreover, we were all born ready. So that's today on Critics at Large. I need a critic. Okay, you guys, we have a bunch of voicemails and we're going to be taking turns as we always do, sharing these with the group. Who among us wants to start?

[Vincent Cunningham]

I'm happy to start.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, Vincent, go. Go right ahead. Let's jump in.

[Vincent Cunningham]

All right, here's Andrea with a great and we love kids on the show with a great kid related question.

[Alex Schwartz]

Hi, critics, this is Andrea from the Hudson Valley. And my question today involves my daughter. She just turned 12 at the end of last year and was gifted a record player and some records to get her tween to teen musical education going. I remember 12 being the beginning of my music loving life. And so my question is, what would you recommend that we add to help start her collection? She's already got Taylor Swift covered and some joker gave her Huey Lewis and the news. So it's pretty wide open. Congratulations on episode 100. Looking forward to the next hundred. Thanks. Love this.

[Nomi Frye]

Thank you for this, Andrea. I myself have. I've spoken about her in the past. I have a daughter. She's a little bit older than yours. She's 14. She also has a record player. I guess my advice would be, just from personal experience, would be to be hands off. Kind of like one thing we like to do and that she really enjoys and maybe your daughter will enjoy too, is just going to record stores. Um, it's become a family pastime for us to just go and just visit, you know, record stores or even junk stores, which often have records or old CDs, and just kind of let our daughter seek out what looks exciting to her. Um, I recall my own experiences of kind of like something looking cool and picking it up. And then even if that particular thing didn't end up being something I loved, it led me to something else. And I know that if I push too hard towards something, my daughter will probably be like, no, that's. No, thank you. And so, like I said, I try to be a little hands off and just let her kind of explore on her own and see what she picks up, but provide her with the opportunity to do so by, you know, going to a store and just kind of, like, looking around.

[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah, I'm not afraid to be bold here.

[Nomi Frye]

Yes.

[Alex Schwartz]

While that is very sage advice, I don't think there's anything wrong with just leaving a little stack of records and saying maybe. And that's nice, too. I think what I would do is, like, a little starter pack of definitely a Billie Holiday album, maybe Body and Soul. I would do Blonde on Blonde by Bob Dylan, for sure. Probably Blue by Joni Mitchell. Just one of, like, maybe those three voices begin.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah, I think that's great. I love that. And sort of just having things around, I think is big. I would also say that this thing, the sort of buying of records is just a great way to get into a rhythm of a certain kind of conversation. My oldest daughter is also older than your daughter, Andrea. But when she was in high school, probably around 12, was when I started to ask her, just like, what are you listening to these days? And it was like, kind of the most adult conversation that we would have. I'd be like, hey, what are you listening to? What are people? You know? And so you can get into this, like, sort of one for one exchange that then might kind of formalize itself in the form of buying a record. We talked about this. We talked about That I will say that my 12 year old neith Sophia shout out to you. Sophia loves the Icelandic singer. I think you say it like loivi.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, right, it's spelled.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Spelled L, A, L, Fay.

[Nomi Frye]

Yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

She's got a really beautiful voice and I think the kids are into her and she has this like really silky way of sort of bringing bossa nova into her music. It's a really interesting music. That's something that jumps to mind. And I think also the whole thing about like, you know, oh, I buy records is to say like, this is not just an outdated activity. There are new, there's new music that comes out on vinyl. And so if it can be one old, one new one, mine, one yours, that might be a way to sort of establish a lifelong correspondence through songs, which is like, has been a really fruitful part of many of my favorite relationships.

[Nomi Frye]

I love that.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Andrea, good luck.

[Nomi Frye]

Yeah.

[Alex Schwartz]

Onward, upward.

[Nomi Frye]

Onward and upward. Alex, do you want to go next?

[Alex Schwartz]

Yep. Here we go from Maxwell. Let's hear it.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Hi, it's Maxwell from Washington State. I often get to the end of a really good book where I'm in tears thinking this book is so incredible.

[Nomi Frye]

And I automatically reach for my phone.

[Vincent Cunningham]

To text somebody about the experience and I realize no one cares because no one reads. It's kind of like when you go on a really wonderful vacation by yourself and you see a sunset and you're like, oh my God.

[David Remnick]

I kind of wish I'd brought at.

[Alex Schwartz]

Least one friend to come see this.

[Vincent Cunningham]

With me so I could share it. I was wondering, critics, what book do you give to people who don't read at all to start them reading? I've been giving people I'm glad my mom died because it's a complicated book written simply.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, that's a good one.

[Vincent Cunningham]

But I don't know if everyone wants to read something that sad. What book do you use? Thank you so much. Great question and really thought provoking. I will say that. I mean to your point, I think that memoir really does work well because you can pitch it really easily in terms of a personality. Emilieux a time period this year I feel like the thing that I've recommended most to readers and non readers alike is I regret almost everything.

[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

By Keith McNally.

[Alex Schwartz]

Oh, just listen to the audiobook of that.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah, the restaurateur Keith McNally, famous for running Balthazar and other fine concerns. It's really, it's a tough and self indicting but also really funny and erudite memoir which I believe many people would get things from. And I just think that's the kind of book that I think of when I think of sort of, like, widening the pool of my recommendations.

[Alex Schwartz]

I think that's a great recommendation. Just a little shout out for the audio version read by the actor Richard E. Grant, who pronounced restaurant, restaurant, restaurant as if it had never stopped being a French word. Wonderful.

[Nomi Frye]

Another suggestion to your friend, and just in general, is, why don't you. If you feel intimidated, if you feel like. Not necessarily, like, turned on by reading, immediately pick up a book that's a relatively easy lift in terms of, like, its, like, length and heft. For instance, I'm thinking about the novels of Gwendolyn Riley, this British writer whose novels. She's written seven novels by now. They're all quite short. They're all pretty sparse. I'm now reading her new novel, set to come out, I think, in a couple months. It's called Palm House. And I'm racing through it because it's like an easy lift on the level of, like, it's 200 pages. It's like the font is pretty large. You know, the pages are quite sparse. But it's amazing. She's an amazing writer and something like that. Something like that. Which is like, okay, here, you can do this.

[Vincent Cunningham]

You know, I've been meaning to get into her book. So that's a good.

[Nomi Frye]

That's great. Thank you. I really. I was just reading it on the subway here, and I was like, ugh, this is awesome.

[Alex Schwartz]

Maxwell, I have one other thing to say to you, and this is gonna be a bit of a, you know, a cold bath, as it were. I think you need some new friends. I'm not saying get rid of the old ones, but listen, people are reading. They are. And people are actually very vocal and passionate about reading. Look at Goodreads. Look at what's going on there. Look at the hype, the arguments, the controversy. They're out there. Join a book group. Go to where the readers are. You deserve it, Maxwell. Okay, I hear a rumbling.

[Nomi Frye]

Do we have a very special guest? Am I hearing a very special surprise guest at the door? Who could it be? We literally don't know.

[Alex Schwartz]

We have no idea. I know we sound like we're staging it, but we really don't know.

[Nomi Frye]

No, no, we really don't know.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I don't know if we.

[Nomi Frye]

It's Mr. David Robkins. I heard there would be Kate right here.

[David Remnick]

There's cake.

[Alex Schwartz]

There's cake.

[Nomi Frye]

There's cake.

[David Remnick]

I didn't come to see you.

[Alex Schwartz]

There was confetti there's confetti.

[Nomi Frye]

There's cake. There's even water. There's a carota.

[Alex Schwartz]

Even water. It's incredible. All right.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay.

[Alex Schwartz]

David remnick.

[Nomi Frye]

We have Mr. David remnick. I'm so happy to be here for the very first time.

[David Remnick]

Mazel tov. A hundred episodes. I came down to congratulate you.

[Nomi Frye]

Thank you very much.

[Alex Schwartz]

Thank you.

[David Remnick]

This is great.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Mm.

[David Remnick]

This cake. This do our. And I feel that people listening should get a full description of this.

[Alex Schwartz]

Well, it has a fine picture of our logo on it.

[David Remnick]

Is that what that's called?

[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Should we eat it? Now that David's here, Should we have a slime?

[David Remnick]

Why do you think I came?

[Alex Schwartz]

That's right.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Well, we were saving it. We knew not what for.

[Nomi Frye]

It is we will need to clear Vincent.

[David Remnick]

By all means.

[Nomi Frye]

The confetti.

[David Remnick]

Yeah, you don't want to eat confetti. It's less delicious than one might imagine.

[Nomi Frye]

And I believe, David, you are here not just to help us celebrate.

[David Remnick]

Oh, I've been prepped, my friend.

[Nomi Frye]

But maybe you have a question to share with us, because this is the I Need a Critic episode, so I.

[David Remnick]

Do need a critic. So I have two issues.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay.

[David Remnick]

One is a poppier one. As you know, my ultimate escapism is anything that has chyrons in the bottom where you see. You'll see the Eiffel Tower, but that's not enough to tell you where you are, and then it'll say Paris, comma, France.

[Nomi Frye]

Right?

[Alex Schwartz]

You like being treated like a fool. Okay.

[David Remnick]

Nothing better. I heard that Netflix has a Ben Affleck, Matt Damon thing, and they're wearing cop vests.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I can't wait.

[David Remnick]

I am so in. Well, I want to know. In my area. Spies, espionage, that kind of thing. Give me a suggestion.

[Alex Schwartz]

I feel like you're so ahead of me, David. I don't even know what I'm going to do here.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Have you seen Mark Revolo as an ex priest now alcoholic? No. In Task. Ooh.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, no.

[David Remnick]

People keep telling me Task is great. This is hbo.

[Nomi Frye]

I believe it's hbo.

[David Remnick]

Yeah, it is hbo.

[Nomi Frye]

I haven't seen it, but I heard it's really.

[Vincent Cunningham]

It's hbo, Max. It is.

[David Remnick]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

And Ruffalo, he's had a horrible family tragedy.

[David Remnick]

You have to have that.

[Vincent Cunningham]

And now he's leading a small field office of dubiously prepared, filled with pain. I mean, the pain is visceral. He drinks vodka every day out of a plastic. A child's plastic cup.

[Nomi Frye]

Not a child's plastic cup.

[Alex Schwartz]

His Daughter walks out to. It's very sad.

[Nomi Frye]

That's a little over determined.

[Vincent Cunningham]

It's sad. But he still has a priestly, otherworldly aura. And thinking that he's solving a group of small time home invasions, finds himself in the middle of a large drug related conspiracy. You will love it, David Remnant.

[David Remnick]

I am in. Okay. All right. So that was my one question. The other thing's much more serious. We are, all of us, all four of us, professional readers and yet if I don't take my phone and put it in another room, it's trouble. So how do you. In this attention economy, in this attention frittered world, how do you manage?

[Alex Schwartz]

Well, I have a little thing called Opal.

[David Remnick]

What is that?

[Alex Schwartz]

It's an app. Charges a hefty fee, but a fee I'm happy to pay because you can block various apps on your phone using Opal.

[David Remnick]

Does it take your child out of the apartment too?

[Alex Schwartz]

That costs a lot more money.

[Vincent Cunningham]

They got it. But it's a.

[Alex Schwartz]

Would that it were so simple. Yeah.

[Nomi Frye]

So what.

[David Remnick]

What do you. What do you guys do?

[Nomi Frye]

So the only thing that's worked for me so far is just deactivate my Instagram at certain points. I haven't done it in a while, but the last time I was off for like four months. So I just was not on Instagram at all.

[David Remnick]

Like a cleanse?

[Nomi Frye]

Like a cleanse.

[David Remnick]

A full colonic.

[Nomi Frye]

Yes. And that helped me read a lot more and concentrate. I've heard good things about Brick.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I've got a bunch of friends who like, you know.

[Nomi Frye]

Yeah, you put it. People have it on the refrigerator, say it's a physical thing and you beep disables your. Whatever apps you tell it to disable. And then you actually have to go and touch it. I guess I don't have it, but that's my understanding.

[Alex Schwartz]

Let's get Brick. Let's try Brick.

[Nomi Frye]

Yes.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I also wanna say for the record.

[David Remnick]

I'm making it to work.

[Vincent Cunningham]

This is all great, and I love the sort of puritan work ethic of this conversation, but can I just say for the record that I don't think David Remnick of all people, needs to be more productive. Maybe you need to be on your.

[David Remnick]

Phone a little bit, David, you got.

[Vincent Cunningham]

A lot of jobs.

[David Remnick]

I've learned how. And this is gonna upset you. I've learned how to do some of my weekend reading with the Nick game on and the sound off. There's one person in this room will not fault me for that.

[Alex Schwartz]

Oh yeah.

[Nomi Frye]

Mr. Mr. Vincent Cundy.

[Vincent Cunningham]

This is when we text, is when we're both.

[Alex Schwartz]

We're both doing this. Remember, you deserve to enjoy yourself.

[David Remnick]

Do I?

[Alex Schwartz]

Yes.

[David Remnick]

Thank you.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Get a couple swipes in there.

[Nomi Frye]

You've earned it. You've earned it.

[Vincent Cunningham]

We love you, man.

[Alex Schwartz]

Love you. It's a delightful.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Thank you.

[Nomi Frye]

Thank you so much.

[Alex Schwartz]

Come back anytime, Dan.

[David Remnick]

This is fun.

[Nomi Frye]

Take care. You have more questions, and wouldn't you know it, we have more answers. Critics at large from the New Yorker will be right back.

[David Remnick]

Right now, we are living through some of the most tumultuous political times our country has ever known. I'm David Remnick, and each week on the New Yorker Radio Hour, I'll try to make sense of what's happening alongside politicians and thinkers like Cory Booker, Nancy Pelosi, Liz Cheney, Tim Waltz, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Newt Gingrich, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Charlamagne, tha God, and so many more. That's all in the New Yorker Radio Hour, wherever you listen to podcasts.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, Vincent, do you want to share another?

[Vincent Cunningham]

I got one. I got one.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I got something from a listener named Annie. I think this is a constantly pressing human problem. Annie.

[Alex Schwartz]

Hi, critics. My question for you is how should one choose a baby name? I hope this isn't too personal, but I wondered, since you're all parents, what cultural considerations came into your decision making process? I'm not pregnant, but I hope to be someday. And I'm so puzzled when I consider what I'd name a child since there's so much historical and cultural and trend baggage tied to names. So I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thank you.

[Nomi Frye]

I love this question. We had a list, but we were kind of like, we didn't have, like, a clear winner of a name before our daughter was born. And as we were in the hospital, we were still kind of debating it, but by the time we had to leave the hospital, which because this is America, was like, you know, 11 hours after I gave birth. I'm exaggerating, but it was like, boot, you're out of here. Like, crawling out. So all of which is to say this is a question that befuddled me as well. And I, you know, I didn't really know. For me, one of the guiding principles, and this maybe has to do with my own feelings about my name, is that I wanted the name to be pronounced the same in every place and language. My name is Nomi, even though I pronounce it Nomi, even though it's written with an A, because I'm from Israel originally. And that's how the name is pronounced. But I understand that is very confusing. You know, it looks like it would be pronounced Naomi or Naomi for me, that uniformity. And my daughter's name is Nina. And so I liked that. It was like, it was a Russian name, it was a Spanish name. It can be a Hebrew name. It's, you know, it's an Anglo, a Saxon name, you know, and it's the same in every. That was really. For some reason, that universality was really kind of like, I wanted it to be easy for her. And another thing is, I think, like, the vibes of a name are maybe more important than, you know, actually, this is named after, like, a particular character I love or. Although that's lovely as well. I didn't have that. The vibes of Nina for me, and I'm not sure exactly why that is. Felt very like 1970s Upper West Side. And it seemed to me something that I kind of like, for whatever reason, kind of like, built me culturally, even though I didn't grow up in the 70s on the upper west side. And so I like that sense of it.

[Alex Schwartz]

Feeling and vibes are important. I went with a traditional name. My son's name is Benjamin. I mean, basically, we chose the most Ashkenazi name we could possibly have. I liked the kind of classic biblical names that have meanings, that are attached to characters, that all have meanings in the Hebrew language. I went for that. One thing I will say about names that I find so endlessly fascinating from a cultural perspective is there's always probably a little category of distinctive names that seem so distinctive. And the parents are like, this is a really standout name. And then it just turns out that's the name of the generation. A dear friend of mine, her daughter is named Sylvie, and I ran into someone a few months later who proudly told me her daughter's name was Sylvie. And I said, I know a Sylvie. And her face fell, you know, and now I know a bunch of Sylvie's. So do what you like, listener. Do what you like. Do what sounds good and feels good. Yeah, do what works for you. Don't fall into family pressures and this and that. That's what I would say. I don't know. Vincent, what about you?

[Vincent Cunningham]

Well, I've always been really attracted to the idea, which, like, comes up in the Old Testament all the time, which is like something's happening in the life of the parent and they name the child something that sort of is almost like a marker in time. It's kind of a solipsistic Idea, but it really is about, like, the child's arrival, how the parent interprets it. And we all know this because when we speak about our children, the joy that, you know, we think about the child. And this rush of associations come. And I say this only to say that you have to like how it sounds, because I think the name has to inspire that same rush of affection and gratitude and importantly, memory. Every time this happened with my firstborn, you know, I always wanted to have a kid with a sort of New Yorky name. Madison Avenue in Harlem is one of my favorite. You know, the little correspondence between Madison and Fifth Avenue is one of my favorite places. I just wanted to think about that. My younger daughter's name, Luz L U Z means light. And I named her at a time when I really wanted a light in my life. And I think about those things, you know, I think about myself as like a young city walker all the time. When I say Madison, I think about this, like, great light every time I say Lou. So it's like you want the name to be as much of a, I don't know, carrier of hope and joy as the child is. And so that's really about your own ear.

[Alex Schwartz]

Yep. Okay, I'm queuing us up.

[Nomi Frye]

Go ahead, Alex.

[Alex Schwartz]

Here we go. From Emily. Hi, my name is Emily and I live in Vermont. Recently I watched the movie Die My Love and I absolutely hated the movie. I was completely unmoved and felt like I was being sort of beaten over the head with a hammer. I found it really heavy handed. I've been thinking a lot about the movie and I wanted to know if there's ever been a time when the world has embraced a movie and you have found yourself on the outside thinking, man, I really don't enjoy that at all. And what that made you feel about yourself and your sort of relationship to the rest of the culture. Really, really love your show and appreciate your perspectives and thoughtfulness. Thanks. Nomi is absolutely grinning. She's grinning and cackling. Okay.

[Nomi Frye]

I'm not gonna be a huge bitch, but I will say, Emily, that I am with you. I am with you, my friend. And yeah, I mean, you will never walk alone as far as it concerns me and the movie. Die my Love. Yes, absolutely unmoved. That's all I'll say. I don't know what my co hosts felt about the movie or if they've seen it.

[Alex Schwartz]

Didn't see it.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I didn't see it. Okay, well, so it's only on this one.

[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah. Alienated by the press tour I'll put that out there.

[Nomi Frye]

But I do know the feeling of, like, thinking at least that you're not in step with the rest of the culture. And it's a lonely feeling. It's a weird feeling when, you know, you watch a movie or you read a book or whatever it is, and you feel like, how is this possible? How is this possible? I remember it happened to me with Carol, with Todd Haynes. Carol, which everybody loved. And I had read the Price of Salt, the Patricia Highsmith book that it was based on, and I loved the Price of Salt. And then I saw the movie and it was like, okay, this is. I get why people are liking this. But it's like, it's not like the book. You know, it's not nearly as good. And I remember feeling. Yeah, quite lonely about that. And I think I even, like, wrote about the movie. And, you know, it feels alienating. But at the same time, there's, like, a sense sometimes, like a sense of pride that I feel. I do. I am very unbelieving in myself often. But I do believe in my taste. Like, I do know what I like, and not, like, just, like, on a visceral level. And just be proud of that. Be proud of your own. Of your own taste. Just like it's you. Your taste is what creates you partly. And so that's. It's fine. It's fine. You have my blessing, especially because I agree with you about that movie.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah, I'm in the middle of this, and it's still a negotiation with me, because music definitely works on us over time. But the band Geese, I knew you.

[Alex Schwartz]

Were about to say that even before you said it. I knew it was coming.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Really. I mean, I usually like, you know, the people that like that album are people whose opinions I really admire often. But their 2025 album, Getting Killed, which has some bangers on it. I like this song called Half Real, but there's this song on it that's on. Everybody's like, this is my favorite song of the year, All Pays du Cocaine. I don't know how to say things that are French in origin, but I listen to it. I'm like, okay. You know, it's got a sound that maybe isn't totally native to my ears. And this album, I've listened to it about five times. I really try to get into albums, but I'm just kind of like, there is a consensus around this album getting Killed that I can't feel my way into yet. And it is isolating. But it's also to Nomi's point. A reminder of. Usually when that happens, those are the moments when I can locate something new in my own taste. It's like, I don't like it because, boom. And often I will. I've learned a new facet of my own taste through in this negative way.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, I am gonna go to a question that I'm curious about. I feel like Alex, at least, will have kind of, like, an interesting answer to this.

[Alex Schwartz]

Let's hear it.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, this is from Elsa.

[Alex Schwartz]

Hello, critics. I am an American living abroad in Hamburg, Germany, and want to deepen my language skills by reading in German. But when I try, I just can't get into a book the same way I can in English. I lose focus and then interest and pick up the book less and less as reading becomes a chore. I need a critic. What are your experiences with reading in foreign languages? How do you three fall in love with the difficult and unfamiliar? What a wonderful question. Ugh. You know what I do have? I mean, I can just speak from personal experience. You're absolutely right. So I love speaking French. I love speaking French. I love listening to French. I love living in French. I don't love reading in French for the exact same reasons that Elsa says. You know, I feel that there's. I feel like I'm reading through basically, like, Vaseline, fogged glasses, and the deep pleasure, even in difficulty English texts of wrestling, of mentally wrestling. It's slower. It's more arduous, all of those things. Elsa, it's okay if you're lazy, and if you need to persist, persist.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I would also say that right now I'm embarking on some Portuguese language study, and the answer for me is poetry.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, okay.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Because this issue of sort of diminishing abilities as you go along is kind of solved with poetry. One lyric poem might take you a long time to totally figure out, but every time you do that, you're learning, because poetry is the art that takes every word and brings along with it all of its former uses, all of its associations, and then it's over for a little while, and then you can get to work on a new poem another day.

[Nomi Frye]

And I will say, too, just to wrap this up, is that some things can be a choreography, like, we don't need to. And it's okay if something needs to be a little bit of homework, you know, and you say, okay, twice a week, I'm gonna set aside an hour and sit down and read in German, and I'm not gonna, like, melt into the book as I would in English. And I'm not gonna, like, necessarily understand all the double meanings and whatever, but I'm just gonna practice. Then just set that time aside. Not necessarily fun, but useful. Vincent, do you want to give us another.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Absolutely. Here, friends, is Isa, a question very close to my heart. I can't even. I mean, it's like, really the heart of the matter for me. I'll just let it roll. Issa, go ahead.

[Alex Schwartz]

Hello, critics. I have been faced with a very pressing dilemma in my relationship, and it has to do with a road trips. And the dilemma being who is on ox and what is on ox as we were going on road trips. So just to give you a sense of my partners and my music tastes, my day list yesterday was Old School Electro Latino Sunday morning, whereas my partner's daylist was Van Life Modern Folk Sunday Afternoon. So you can see how distinct our music tastes are. So I would love if, if y' all could help us out with recommending some music playlists. Anything that a Taylor Swift loving man and a Juane Bad Bunny loving person could enjoy together, or even some fictional podcasts or audiobooks that we could both enjoy. We have. We've listened to movies even on the. On road trips, the one that we've shared being the Devil Wears Prada. So we're up and down for anything. Just something that we can both, you know, sing our hearts out to and really enjoy as we're hit in the streets. All right, thank you.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay. Issa. Yeah, that's. You know, Vincent, since you said this is the heart of the matter for you.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Oh, God, it's so important.

[Nomi Frye]

Do you want to. Do you want to start?

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah. Well, first of all, I love to make playlists, and I think that what this points out, this dilemma points out, is that the art of making a playlist, listening to something in public with another person is always kind of. It's not just a passive enjoyment. It's not just a passive entertainment, but it's kind of a didactic thing. You're learning something by way of the correspondence between song A and song B. Making the playlist is an answer to the question, what does Bad Bunny have to do with Taylor Swift? What are the in betweens? So it's literally like you guys need to make a joint playlist, which is easily done on most of the main streaming services or whatever. And you need to start with two songs or maybe even, I don't know, maybe six songs. The point being three for you, three for him, and then your homework until whenever the road trip is, is to find Songs that sort of belong in the conversational air between your songs and his. This is an amazing opportunity to learn each other and then learn something together. And you're gonna find some amazing. The playlist that you make is going to be not just something to enjoy, but it's gonna be like a syllabus of your joint enjoyments. It's gonna make you and him better. Think about rhythm. Think about bpm. What are some songs that just have the same beat structure? It's gonna be fun. I would just say enjoy.

[Alex Schwartz]

Love that advice. I'm gonna take it in a bit of a different direction because, Issa, as I understand your question, you guys, you're really open. Like, it doesn't just have to be music. Maybe you'll never find that musical. I mean, if you're listening to the Devil Wears Prada, not even watching it, it suggests an interest in movies to me. Like, movies bring us together. Okay. I've been listening to a podcast that I've been really enjoying, and it's called what Went Wrong? It's a podcast about movies and about the making of movies and about what went wrong and occasionally what went right in the making of many, many movies. So there are all kinds of movies. Like, I listened to one on Chinatown. I listened to one on Toy Story. The two hosts are great. They have a lot of know, they're smart, they're funny. Why don't you guys check that podcast out and look for some movies that you've both seen, and it could even become like a kind of a playlist as you drive, and maybe you watch the movie that night when you get where you're going. I feel like that could be a fun little project.

[Nomi Frye]

That's a lovely suggestion, Alex. Who do we have on tap?

[Alex Schwartz]

Okay, we have a very timely question from Astrid. Dear critics, my name is Astrid, I'm Danish, and I live in Copenhagen. And for this past year or so, I've been witnessing a kind of boycott of the United States, of American products like Colgate toothpaste, Kellex, cornflakes, Tesla cars, hbo, Netflix, so on and so on. And people are also very discouraged from traveling to the United States. And I am, too. The reason, of course, is the very strong and threatening and hateful words and actions by the Trump administration against Europe in and Denmark and Greenland in particular. It's always been that way, that Europe has always looked up to and been influenced by American literature, cinema, tv, and cultural trends. And Americans have always been charmed by European cultures and been influenced also by our art, our Design, food and our fashion. I myself have always loved Americans, and I've always just had a warm place in my heart for the United States. So, obviously, it's really, really sad to see that people over here are giving up on the US I would really love to hear your thoughts on this. Critics, do you miss us as much as we miss you? And what can you suggest, looking to arts and culture that can inspire us to fall back in love?

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, I think we miss you, Astrid.

[Alex Schwartz]

We miss you, Astrid.

[Nomi Frye]

I think we miss you to the extent of, like, wanting to move in with you.

[Alex Schwartz]

Yeah. Astrid, we want to be where you.

[Nomi Frye]

Are for us over here at Critics Alone or hq. You know, much love to Europe.

[Alex Schwartz]

Sorry.

[Nomi Frye]

Yes. And we're sorry. But, you know, anyway, so. But yes, that's a good. You know, obviously, as you imply, you know, suggest, there's a long, long history of literature and movies and works of art about the relationship between Americans and Europeans and Americans going to Europe and Europeans going to America, and so. But I would say a favorite of mine. I mean, and it's a series. It's three movies, the Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise trilogy, in which Ethan Hawke plays a young. Starting out as a young American in the first iteration, who meets a French girl, Julie Delpi, and they fall in love. I think it's a very charming, very loving depiction of the love and compassion between, as well as some conflict between the American protagonist and the French protagonist.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Well, my initial reaction to this is Henry James.

[Nomi Frye]

Oh, yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

I was thinking about the Ambassadors, which is my most recent reread of James, and just the sort of change in perception that overcomes an interested and open.

[Nomi Frye]

American upon Lambert Strether.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah. Upon reaching Europe. And the sort of not simply locational, but sort of spiritual change that can come with a kind of, you know, diplomacy of the heart, let's call it. Maybe that's one.

[Alex Schwartz]

You know, I just think, Astrid, so much. I hear you and I feel you deeply, and I almost think the thing you need is, like, something super American. Like, you say you want to fall back in love with American culture, and I'm just gonna come and say, I know that we've talked about it a lot, obviously, and that we have a relationship to it in the room. I think when the movie Marty supreme comes to you, you should see it. You just gotta see a hustler who only cares for himself, who's, like, in many ways the worst aspect of the society, but in some small ways, also kind of the best aspect of the society. An outsider A Jewish kid in the post war who has crazy delusions of grandeur. And believe me, if he thought that just capturing Greenland would win him a ping pong trophy, he would do it. I think you have to just brush up against that absolute, frenetic, completely delusional American energy and know that we really are with you.

[Nomi Frye]

We've been doing all the hard work. In a minute, listeners. Yeah, it's your turn. I need a critic on critics at large. We'll be right back.

[Alex Schwartz]

Hi, I'm Rebecca Ford, senior awards correspondent at Vanity Fair and co host of Little Gold Men. Oscar season is upon us. Little Gold Men takes you behind the scenes of the race for the biggest prize in Hollywood.

[Vincent Cunningham]

There's 100 wrestlers in the room, but only one can be Oscar nominated.

[Alex Schwartz]

Whether you're a movie lover or an industry buff, Little Gold Men from Vanity Fair has everything you need to know about this year's Oscar race.

[Nomi Frye]

Follow and listen to Little Gold Men.

[Alex Schwartz]

Wherever you get your podcasts.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, so normally, you know, we're the ones answering the questions, but this episode is a little bit special, so we're changing things up. We have our own questions to share and we need your advice. Yes, listeners, we're turning the tables.

[Alex Schwartz]

Help us, help us.

[Nomi Frye]

We help you, we hope. Now we need your help. If you think you've got an answer to the questions we're going to be posing right now, please email it to us@the mailnewyorker.com subject line. Critics. Okay, you guys, what are your questions? Let's start. Vincent, do you want to begin?

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah, I do want to begin. Obviously, a lot of the questions that we get often have to do with kids and stuff. So I wanna reciprocate that. My question is this. Let's say you have a young child, as I do. The child goes to sleep, I don't know, somewhere in between seven and nine, depending on how the night's going. You gotta get to bed at, let's say, midnight. Now, one of my advices is that I stay up way longer than that. Way longer. But I'm trying to change.

[Nomi Frye]

You're a bit of a bad boy.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Yeah, a little bit. You know, up at night.

[Nomi Frye]

Yeah.

[Vincent Cunningham]

How do people, I would love to know, manage their engagement with art? They want to read. Maybe you want to get a movie in or an episode of a show under that kind, you got three hours to yourself. Let's say you and the other adult that you live with or not, how do you fit it all in? Do you talk about it beforehand? Do you Have a schedule. How do you manage getting in culture and art under the nocturnal timeline that is sort of imposed upon you by a child?

[Nomi Frye]

That's a great question. Love it.

[Vincent Cunningham]

It's a big problem for me these days.

[Nomi Frye]

It's a struggle for all parents, especially of young kids. Yeah, yeah. Alex, what's your question?

[Alex Schwartz]

As listeners may know, I've been engaging a bit more than usual in the world of sport. I was very surprised to find myself thoroughly enjoying learning about football for our recent football episode. And what I want to know is, what great artwork about sport do you think I should engage with next? Could be a movie, could be a book, could be TV series, could be whatever. Where am I going? Take me there.

[Nomi Frye]

Great question. I wouldn't mind knowing for myself.

[Alex Schwartz]

We'll find out. I'll pass the word along.

[Nomi Frye]

Okay, so here's my question. If you've been listening for 100 episodes, listeners, you probably know that I'm a bit of a nervous person. I'm a bit of an anxious person. Like, I want to relax, I want to chill out. But I find that's difficult for me.

[Alex Schwartz]

Okay.

[Nomi Frye]

And I often find, or I fear, I guess, that my desire to relax is at odds with my desire to better myself, to expand my horizons, to become a smarter, more improved person. Okay? So what I'm asking from you listeners, can you suggest a book or a movie or, you know what, even an album that would help me find comfort and relaxation, but that wouldn't also be necessarily totally mindless. Okay. This might be a tall order because, you know, I watch housewives, I watch reality. You know, I do some stuff to relax, and I also think about those things, but it's not like high culture, right? So I want that sweet meeting point between relaxation and edification. Help me, Help me. Thank you, you guys, Once again, oh, my gosh. Thanks so much, listeners, for sending us your questions. It's an honor. It's a pleasure. It's a privilege, always. We loved celebrating this hundredth episode. Mark with you. Congrats to all of us.

[Vincent Cunningham]

We did it.

[Nomi Frye]

To us in the room. And also to Brianny Corby, Alex Barris, Steven Valentino, Mike Kutschman. Mike Kutschman. All the people helping us.

[Vincent Cunningham]

James Yost.

[Nomi Frye]

James Yost.

[Vincent Cunningham]

Jake Loomis, Paris Fairchild Kron, Bondi.

[Alex Schwartz]

The people holding it down.

[Nomi Frye]

The people holding it down. We couldn't do it without you. And of course, to the listeners, once again, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Keep coming back, as they say.

[Vincent Cunningham]

That's it.

[Alex Schwartz]

We're here. If you are.

[Nomi Frye]

This has been Critics at Large. Alex Barish is our consulting editor. Rhiannon Corby is our senior producer. Our executive producer is Steven Valentino. Alexis Quadrato composed our theme music. And we had engineering help today from Vince Fairchild with mixing by Mike Kutchman. You can find every episode of Critics at [e-mail] and remember, you can always send us an email or a voice memo asking for advice. We might not get back to you right away, but we do bank these things for future episodes, and sometimes we build whole episodes around the ideas you guys send in. And on that note, we have heard the call. We heard it loud and clear for heated rivalry, and we will be answering it. Join us next time. We'll see you there. From prx.