It is a nostalgic look at the golden age of radio during the late 1930s and 1940s, focusing on a working-class family living in Rockaway Beach, New York.

Other radio memories are stories about sporting heroes, news bulletins about World War II, a report of a Martian invasion (similar to the real-life 1938 radio broadcast), and a live report of the search for a little girl who fell into a well (similar to the real-world incidents of Kathy Fiscus and Floyd Collins).

Joe collected stories of radio stars, including that of Sally White, whose dreams of becoming famous were hampered by her shrill voice and Brooklyn accent.

[3] Radio Days holds a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average score of 8.00/10 from 40 reviews, and a consensus summary stating: "Woody Allen at his most charmingly nostalgic.

"[4] In his four-star review, noted critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times described Radio Days as Allen’s answer to Federico Fellini’s Amarcord and referred to it as "so ambitious and so audacious that it almost defies description.

It's a kaleidoscope of dozens of characters, settings and scenes - the most elaborate production Allen has ever made - and it's inexhaustible, spinning out one delight after another.

"[5] Vincent Canby of The New York Times referred to Allen as the "prodigal cinema resource" and spoke of the film saying, "Radio Days [...] is as free in form as it is generous of spirit.

"[6] David Denby wrote for New York that: "[...] The real glue, however, is the lullingly beautiful popular music of the period — Cole Porter, Dubin and Warren, big-band jazz, crooners, torch singers, Carmen Miranda.

The music, perfectly matched to images of old wood and brick buildings and old glamour spots, produces a mood of distanced, bittersweet nostalgia.