Into the unknown
The deepest cave system in the Southern Hemisphere is in the Nelson hinterland. How do we know this? Because Kieran Mckay went in and explored it. One of Red Bull’s Explorers of the Century, he’ll be speaking about his experiences and introducing a film about his cave explorations on Saturday evening at Onslow College. “The […]
Back to REALITi
Jonathan King and Chad Taylor’s micro-budget film REALITi, which debuted at last year’s Film Festival, is now available for paid streaming or download on Vimeo On Demand. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/realiti/137721192 A dark thriller set in the very near future, REALITi was shot in and around Wellington. One striking aspect (at least for me) was the inventive use it made of […]
New Zealand International Film Festival 2014
It’s less than 2 weeks till The Wellington round of the New Zealand International Film Festival Typical Wellington behaviour at this time often includes – Courtenay Place place being full during daylight hours – people taking no lunch breaks to allow for an extra long lunch break to catch a film – taking a day off work […]
Vonderful Vellington Vampires
Yes, this is a write up on the premiere of Taika Waititi & Jermaine Clement’s new film What We Do In The Shadows. Yes, this post is well after the actual Wellington premiere BUT it’s not like there hasn’t been A LOT of coverage of the film. Wellington, and the rest of the country, has been […]
NZ’s longest running outdoor cinema
It’s that time of year again. Some mega outdoor film viewing action lies ahead for the Wellington region. Let’s all raise our faces skyward in the hope the weather comes to the party this year as the line-up is the right mix of classic, contemporary and fun! Kicking off THIS Thursday 6 February AT *6:30PM […]
New-ish at the Movies: Blue Jasmine, Riddick, What Maisie Knew, Romeo & Juliet: A Love Song and The Best Offer
When did “late-period: Woody Allen start? Was it with Match Point (when he finally left New York for some new scenery)? Or should we consider these last ten, globe-trotting, years as late‑r Woody? The last ten years have certainly been up and down in terms of quality. Scoop was all-but diabolical. Vicky Cristina Barcelona was […]
New-ish at the movies: Jobs, The Weight of Elephants, Red 2, White House Down, Salinger & In the House
The best way I can think of to sum up Jobs, the hastily-prepared not-quite adaptation of Walter Isaacson’s hastily-published biography of the Apple co-founder, is that its subject would have hated it. After all, Steve had taste and – famously – exercised it. He also didn’t release products until they were ready whereas Joshua Michael […]
New-ish at the Movies: Kick-Ass 2, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Much Ado About Nothing & Frances Ha
There has been much discussion in the circles in which I move about the quantity of films released to local cinemas. Not only are there too many films coming out every week – too many for each one to generate much heat at any rate – but the ones that are coming out aren’t always […]
‘Gardening Nun’ goes viral (on the big screen)
If you were part of the audience at the Embassy theatre for the world premiere of Gardening with Soul during the International Film Festival you will have witnessed something quite extraordinary. A standing ovation for a 92 year-old Island Bay resident and a speech by the diminutive woman, who started by telling the clapping crowd, […]
New-ish at the Movies: Pain & Gain, Only God Forgives, The Wolverine, The Way Way Back, The Conjuring & Byzantium
Still hovering around some local cinemas – and the longest-delayed of all my outstanding reviews – Still Mine is a surprisingly effective Canadian drama about an elderly man (James Cromwell, 73 but playing a fit 89) determined to build a new house for his wife (Geneviéve Bujold) before her memory deserts her completely. Cromwell gives […]