BANG! The Bert Berns Story Dir: Brett Berns, Bob Sarles
At the risk of sounding hyperbolic and clichéd…if you see one music doco at this year’s NZ Film Festival, make sure it’s Bang! The Bert Berns Story.
NZIFF
The Merciless Dir: Byun Sung-hyun
Get a taste of slick South Korean hardboiled pulp with this ultraviolent tale of betrayal that could tear a ruthless gang apart.
Columbus Dir: Kogonada
Love, loss, hope and architecture are explored in this measured and moving debut film from a remarkable new talent.
Wind River Dir: Taylor Sheridan
Starring: Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Olsen, Gil Birmingham, Graham Greene Oscar-nominated (Hell Or High Water) screenplay writer Taylor Sheridan moves into the director’s chair for the first time. The result is a bleak, who-done-it set in the blizzard-ridden Rocky Mountains of Wyoming.
Dina Dir: Antonio Santini, Dan Sickles
Sexual frustration in your late forties isn’t fun, especially when you’re both on the autism spectrum, but this Sundance crowd-pleaser is sure to push all the right buttons for a Kiwi crowd.
Spookers Dir: Florian Habicht
Horror theme park Spookers might be the stuff of nightmares, but Florian Habicht’s surreal look at the scare factory makes for a dream doco – life affirming and funny as hell.
The Party Dir: Sally Potter
Starring: Kristin Scott Thomas, Timothy Spall, Patricia Clarkson, Emily Mortimer, Cillian Murphy, Cherry Jones, Bruno Ganz Oh what fun! The Party is a delicious British black comedy that owes a serious debt to Mike Nichols’ classic Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?
Hostages Dir: Rezo Gigineishvili
Starring: Irakli Kvirikadze, Tina Dalakishvili This true-life story of a group of idealistic young people determined to escape the suffocating oppression of Georgia under the Soviet Union is an action-thriller of the first order.
My Life As A Courgette Dir: Claude Barras
Who would have thought an Oscar-nominated hit would be the perfect place for sex education? My Life As A Courgette is the one-stop-motion shop for dealing with tricky emotional issues and exploding penises.
Patti Cake$ Dir: Geremy Jasper
Starring: Danielle MacDonald, McCaul Lombardi Forget about your mum’s spaghetti, Patti Cake$ is a funnier and more heartfelt rap-to-riches tale thanks to it’s big, bad-ass breakout star.