Cinephilia: Opening This Week

Marley & Me posterThis has to be the most middle-of-the-road week for new cinema since I started these little updates. Check these out:

First up Marley & Me, a rom-com-weepy best-seller adaptation starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson as a couple who adopt a puppy. Click here for the Defamer.com spoiler. Readings, Empire, Lighthouse Petone, Sky City Queensgate. Then we have He’s Just Not That Into You, the first film to be based on a best-selling book based on a throwaway line of dialogue from "Sex and the City": Readings, Empire and Sky City Queensgate.

Phoenix Foundation: 40 Years

The new Phoenix Foundation video, directed and starring Academy Award®-nominated director Taika Waititi is a wee gem, following our energetic protagonist in a one-shot piece of filming that takes him around the western coastline of Lyall Bay.

24 Hour Arty People

So you can’t sleep right?  If the Fringe festival has left you all over stimulated and you are in need of night time novelty may I suggest that you head to the Watsui tonight for the start of a frenetic 24 hour art gumball rally around Wellington.  Welsh artist Bedwyr Williams is going to give us his spin on the ONE DAY SCULPTURE series by taking a used station wagon around 24 locations in 24 hours, aiming to stack up 24 works on the roof rack by  midnight tomorrow.

Planned itinerary after the jump

Winds of Change

Turbine at DownstageDownstage opens its doors for the first time this summer with three new shows opening in less than a week!

This time last year Tim Spite’s SEEyD Company thrilled audiences with the paua poaching action adventure Paua (netting Spite the Chapman Tripp Director of the Year Award in the process). Now they’re back with a re-working of earlier success Turbine, which blew people away at BATS in 2006: An environmentally conscious family have their principles tested when a power company wants to build a wind farm in their ‘back yard’.

Turbine opens officially on Friday but early birds (or the price sensitive) can see previews on Wednesday or Thursday night for only $20.

Percussion-monsters Strike are back for one night only on Sunday, playing favourites and showcasing tracks from their forthcoming CD. Guests Lisa Tomlins (The Eggs) and Mana (Rhombus) collaborate and DJ Samu adds breaks. Strike Soundsystem is on Sunday at 8.00pm.

Sevens?

Thank god that’s over

I can’t claim to speak for all the Wellingtonista, but I have to say it: Sevens weekend is horrible. There’s a lot of gushy talk in the main media outlets about how colourful and vibrant and alive the city becomes, but one could say the same about a nasty fungal rash. Many of us who live in the central city can attest to how colourful and vibrant and alive the city is most of the time, and in an appealing, organic and independent way, but we found the CBD close to unbearable during the weekend.
 

What is it that appals us so much about this spectacle?

Waitangi weekend Venn diagram

Waitangi weekend Venn Diagram

Crafty Waitangi

Can’t wait till Craft2.0 in april to get your shopping groove on?

Well no worries, becuase for those of you in Wellington this is a weekend of crafty awesomness…

crafty

First up on Waitangi Day itself, why not head out to Pataka and celebrate Waitangi Day and the Festival of the Elements with a spot of crafty shopping.

The Festival of the Elements is  being held at Te Rauparaha Park & Te Rauparaha Arena. The day starts with an  opening ceremony at 11am, with a wide range of arts and entertainment programmes continuing through until 7pm.

The festival uses the arts to celebrate the cultural diversity of Porirua, made possible by the Treaty of Waitangi.  The elements of Earth and Air, Fire and Water embrace concepts of significance to all cultures, concepts around which we can all unite.  Tangata Whenua and Tangata Tiriti rejoice together on Waitangi Day by way of the arts.

Pataka is once again hosting a wide and wonderful range of quality crafts including jewellery, babywear, clothes, beads, lamps, cushions and much much more! You’ll be guaranteed to find something funky, cool, stylish that is made with ‘crafty’ loving care. Everything at Crafting is crafted in NZ and it’s a great chance to meet the person who created whatever you buy.

On Saturday head over the hill to Martinborough where the annual fair is being held. While some of Martinborough Fair is very much focused on imported stuff that might be cheap and break in a month, you’ll also find some really lovely and original handmade creations, many from lovely Craft2.0 crafters.

So have a fun weekend of crafts.

“Newtown – it’s a big ship”

Newtown DIY darlings, zinesters and the tiniest music venue in town, Spacething, have launched their website. The site has photos, an events calendar, DIY and zine-y links and details of their retail, publishing and music distro business arms and of course the lending library. And pandas. And a free tetris game!

Knife Fight play 'out the window' at Spacething

In a nice local segue, the picture to your right is taken at a Knife Fight single release held in Spacething’s teeny back room – with dancers in the alleyway – and the other item I have to bring to your attention is the Stabs playing at the Adelaide tonight. The Adelaide is, of course, across the road from Spacething; and tonight’s local support is none other than Knife Fight, playing their second-to-last show before they leave town. The Stabs recently played Australia’s inaugural All Tomorrow’s Parties (ATP) festivals, at the invitation of curators Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. The Melbournite Stabs have brought their cityside pals The Twerps with them to play tonight’s gig too – and some of you might recognise a Twerp as one of our own ex-pats, formerly a Batrider. Small world. 

Spacething: 171 Adelaide Rd, Newtown : spacething.co.nz

The Stabs, The Twerps and Knife Fight: 9pm Thursday 5th at the Adelaide, 114 Adelaide Rd, Newtown

Cinephilia: Opening This Week

Slumdog millionaire posterMore Oscar contenders hit our screens this weekend. Gus Van Sant’s biopic of the first openly gay elected politician in the USA, Milk opens today at Readings, Penthouse and Lighthouse Petone. Sean Penn plays San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk who was assassinated by fellow city official Dan White in 1978. Penn is supported by Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men), Emile Hirsch (Into the Willd) and James Franco (Pineapple Express).

I got to see Slumdog Millionaire last Friday at the Embassy – if it doesn’t romp home with the best picture Oscar I’ll be very surprised. Kinetic, colourful and heartfelt, it’s an object of great beauty. Slumdog is also playing Readings, Penthouse and Lighthouse Petone.

[The rest of this week’s releases – and there’s heaps – after the jump]