English

Conceived, written and designed by the legendary Dr Seuss, The 5000 Fingers of Dr T is a true cult classic and one of the strangest, most memorable musical films for children ever made. Ages 6+

Recalling his love affair with a mercurial American woman, a young Brit remembers the sex – and the bands they heard. Digicam cinema, noted for its explicit treatment of sex.

Disturbingly riveting account of the true stories behind 2005 Oscar-winning animated short Ryan. Rest assured, this is no ‘Making Of’ blurb piece.

A young Chinese New Zealander and her Pakeha boyfriend seek her parents’ blessing for their marriage in Roseanne Liang’s funny and poignant documentary of cross-cultural navigation.

"The poignant profile of a troubled troubadour… a dignified and wistful look at the unusual life, difficult career and lasting influence of singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt." — Variety

James Mason plays a mild school teacher unhinged by cortisone in Nicholas Ray’s blistering expose of 50s family values. “Sharper and fiercer than ever.” — The Guardian

“The eerie tale is steeped in brooding atmosphere and psychological suspense… Nicole Kidman is better than ever. Brilliant.” — David Sterritt, Christian Science Monitor

Actor Richard Burton was never more compelling on screen than as the cynical, cocksure Captain Leith in Nicholas Ray’s tale of a British commando raid into Nazi-occupied Libya.

Lovers of the Broadway musical and of the great American theatre of the 50s will be enthralled by the wealth of anecdote and reminiscence recorded here with a starry array of writers, directors and performers. “Enormously entertaining… Chock full of juicy, touching and hilarious tales.” — Playbill

Bill Murray catches up with some old girlfriends – Sharon Stone, Tilda Swinton, Jessica Lange! – in Jim Jarmusch's deadpan Cannes prizewinner. "Deliciously funny and strangely touching." — Time Out

Will they make it? This up-close documentary account of three attempts to swim from Dover to France has us rooting for the marathon swimmers, and provides full immersion in channel swimmer lore.

New Zealander Alex Monteith’s open-ended, experimental documentary invites us to consider her images of a Northern Ireland ‘defined by the troubles’, and to listen to the eloquent voices of the troubled.

Three very different short films about still photography by the French New Wave’s 76-year-old doyenne. “Agnes Varda's photography is pure joy… For photo buffs and Varda fans, it's a can't-miss.” — salon.com

Adrenalised panorama of Los Angeles life with Don Cheadle, Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon, Ryan Philippe. “Racism collides with its targets during one thirty-six-hour period in Los Angeles. Alive with bracing human drama and blistering wit… The acting is dynamite.” — Rolling Stone

A jaw-dropping and scathing exposé of the ecological devastation and economic exploitation of Tanzania's Lake Victoria.

Can a corporation balance profit-making and social responsibility? Cellphone giant Nokia sends their Ethics and Environmental Specialist to China to audit one of its suppliers in this revealing documentary.

Sundance award-winning documentary about indie-rock cult hero and ‘crazy genius’. “Superb: a complex and balanced portrait that celebrates and reveals a character who has remained an enigma for years.” — Dave Calhoun, Time Out

Filmmaker Ondi Timoner spent seven years documenting the criss-crossing careers of alt-rock bands, The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre, and emerged with this classic narrative of art vs. commerce.

Appreciative and entertaining double portrait of veteran Hollywood stuntwoman Jeannie Epper (Wonder Woman) and Kiwi newcomer Zoë Bell (Xena, Kill Bill).

James Dean is at the centre of virtually every frame in Elia Kazan’s adptation of John Steinbeck’s Cain and Abel tale. His electrifying impact can still be felt 50 years later – in a beautiful new CinemaScope print on the big screen.

A riveting beginner’s guide to the mind-boggling Enron crash. “Fiercely intelligent, terrifying and absurdly funny… It’s a bracing portrait of American power-lust run amok.” — Scott Foundas, LA Weekly

This excellent documentary profiles 60s country rock pioneer Gram Parsons. “A portrait of a spoiled, charming, emotionally crippled young man whose shoddy treatment of people was always forgotten as soon as he opened his mouth to sing." — Chicago Reader

The classic triangle of old patriarch, young wife and young son plays out at the moneyed end of the Memphis music world in this year’s Sundance winner. Starring Rip Torn.

The photographs of Carol Jerrems provide an indelible record of bohemian Sydney and Melbourne in the 70s. Her indomitable spirit continues to burn in this terrific documentary portrait.

Comprehensive portrait of the notoriously autocratic mayor of New York who became the hero of 9/11. “Strips away the self-aggrandizement and analyzes the record." — Variety

Self-taught naturalist, Timothy Treadwell, who spent 12 summers living in the wilds of Alaska, obsessively filming the activities of grizzly bears, is the subject of Werner Herzog’s “brilliant portrait of adventure, activism, obsession and potential madness.” — Variety

This excellent documentary contains all known footage of country music's first superstar whose classic songs continue to inspire a thousand covers. “A vital piece of historical testimony.” — Variety

This light and lively road movie tours the architectural and topographical splendours of Rajasthan with auto-rickshaw driver Hari Om and a beautiful French passenger.

This year’s selection of homegrown short films finished on video covers a range of genres from comedy and computer animation through to drama and dance. Each display a unique take on the world – through current events, imagined histories or fable-like fantasies.

A fascinating examination of the mysterious life and the truly bizarre art of outsider artist Henry Darger.

How did one cheesy porn flick end up grossing $600 million, enrage the conservatives, enrapture the liberals, unite the feminists and finally bring down a President? This highly entertaining documentary has the answers.

"[Claire] Denis is one of cinema's greatest narrative poets, and The Intruder, the story of an adventurer, is her most adventurous cinematic poem." — Amy Taubin, Film Comment

In this send-up-cum-celebration of rave scene excess, English comedian Paul Kaye pulls out all the stops as a deranged Cockney exile who mixes his way to club-scene stardom in the über-trendy Spanish resort of Ibiza.

An amazingly layered, provocative work that takes us inside the struggle of Kaipara locals to obtain government support to rescue their depleted fisheries. It’s hard to imagine the New Zealander who’d not be moved by this picture of Māori and Pakeha acting in common cause, from Barry Barclay, the director of Ngāti and Feathers of Peace.

Fascinating, elegant documentary portrait of American composer Elliott Carter whose career straddles the better part of the last century.

George Romero, the individual most responsible for the world's enduring affection for the undead has returned to claim his title as King of Horror. We’re stoked to be presenting the premiere of his long-awaited futuristic zombie epic on the big screen.

"A definite contender for this year’s award for best film within a film about a struggle to make a film out of a TV series." — Time Out

A brilliantly choreographed extravaganza, complete with lovesick donkey and home-invading bear, Life Is a Miracle marks the overdue return to the screen of Balkan maestro Emir Kusturica (Black Cat, White Cat).

Intimate, acutely observant filmmaking with true emotional power, Campbell Walker’s superbly acted digital feature concerns a young couple’s struggle to survive one partner’s crushing bouts of depression.

“The astonishing debut feature of Sarah Watt interweaves animation and real-life drama to portray some very human responses to barely fathomable events.” — Melbourne International Film Festival

A documentary portrait of New Zealand motor racer Kim Newcombe, best remembered as the New Zealander who came second in the 1973 World 500 Grand Prix Championship and for the Konig bike he built himself using the engine from an outboard motor.

Nicholas Ray’s rodeo classic centres on the complex triangle of a former rodeo champion (the incomparable Robert Mitchum), his cowboy protegé, and the cowboy's wife. “A fine chunk of Americana… containing one of Mitchum's finest performances.” — Elliott Stein, Village Voice

Ballroom dancing teams from three New York public elementary schools prepare for competition. This irresistible picture of the civilising power of music, dance and inspired teaching may leave you hankering to move the kids to Manhattan.

A sardonic Melbourne hitman allows a filmmaker to follow him around as he gets away with murder in this droll, pitch-black mockumentary.

We’re delighted to present one of the landmark westerns of the 1950s in a superb new restoration. Starring Jimmy Stewart.

From the Shroud of Turin to Graceland, this superbly filmed world tour of venerated objects is like Koyannisqatsi without the bombast, exuding instead a gentle, inquisitive wit.

Funny, poignant and fresh as paint, Miranda July’s prize-bedecked drama burrows into suburbia to illustrate a classic conundrum: children long to become adults, and adults yearn for the irresponsibility of youth.

In-depth and highly entertaining documentary account of partnership between two successful entrepreneurs: a pushy New York investment banker and a savvy Hong Kong businessman.

A remarkable and disquietingly aestheticised documentary portrait of the North Island forestry town of Minginui, offering an eerily beautiful picture of torpor, isolation and decay – and of Maori culture enduring on the land, inhabiting the detritus of a western economy.

“A fascinating picture on wine as business and pleasure, poetry and philosophy, a way of life and a form of colonialism.” — Philip French, The Observer

An exploration into the work and the mind of unique Bruce Bickford, a Seattle based animator whose obsessive brilliance with clay-mation will leave you gobsmacked.

“Powered by a fantastic subject and real-life characters who would be difficult to invent, Murderball is a blast and a half.” — Robert Koehler, Variety

Heady with the joys and dangers of mutual infatuation, this award-winning British film sweeps us up in the passionate holiday friendship of two 16-year-old girls.

Gregg Araki’s punk cartoon-book approach to directing live action is remarkably right for this bracingly direct film about getting over child abuse.

Shirley Horrocks’ portrait of novelist, poet and educator Albert Wendt provides insight into a charismatic, intellectual Pacific man who continues to make a very real difference.

Embedded with the US Army in Falluja, this intimate portrait of young soldiers in the occupying force is a potent antidote to the recruitment ads.

This gripping docudrama about the aftermath of a 1998 car bombing in Northern Ireland derives its dramatic power from the determination of a diverse bunch of survivors to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

Robert Ryan, a brutal city cop who plays dirty, is sent to the country to cool off in Nicholas Ray’s striking rural film noir, also starring the peerless Ida Lupino as the woman who awakens his better instincts.

A stunning rags-to-rags morality tale about a blowhard who blew a once-in-a-lifetime Hollywood deal.

Todd Solondz (Happiness) puts the terminally uncool at the centre of his sick comic pictures of American suburbia. This time it’s 12-year-old Aviva whose sole ambition in life is to have a baby. “A demented screwball dream.” — Entertainment Weekly

A gangland lawyer and a lounge singer/call girl rebel against their underworld ‘family’ in this stunningly stylized Technicolor film noir. Rare screening of this hard-to-see cult classic.

“From street crazies who think ‘Jewmerika’ and ‘Jew York’ are run by people like ‘Jew-liani,’ to Nazi skinheads [and] Black Muslim prison inmates… [documentarian Marc] Levin pursues the issue of anti-Semitism straight into the murky places where it festers and blooms.” — Variety

In Colin Nutley's sweet comic hymn to Englishness, the hushed, proper, rather sad household of a country vicarage is brought back to life after World War II by the arrival of a beautiful mysterious 'foreigner'.

“Nicholas Ray’s 1955 troubled-teen drama refuses to age any more than its martyred lead tearaway James Dean’s star ever dimmed… It’s a bleak and tumultuous film, but searing.” — Time Out

The death of a boxer in 1962 is the focus for an intelligent, many-faceted consideration of brutality, machismo and sport. “An amazing story” — NY Times

The Official Festival Closer is a brilliant new documentary by David LaChapelle, which exuberantly demonstrates the rise of Krumping a startling new hip-hop dance subculture, which has grown beneath the mass-media’s radar.

Russell Campbell’s documentary tells the stories of New Zealanders who stuck to their passionate anti-war commitment through World War II – and the draconian government crackdown on their dissent.

“This is a deeply engaging portrait of a remarkable man and a brutally frank indictment of the West’s moral cowardice.” — Reece Pendleton, Chicago Reader

In West Cameroon old values are being challenged in the courts by two inspiring women in the Judiciary. A fascinating, rousing picture of change, documented by Kim Longinotto (Divorce Iranian Style).

Margaret Leng Tan, charismatic diva of the avant-garde piano provides a seriously enlightening crash course in her repertoire in this highly entertaining documentary portrait. “Mesmerising.” — Michael Nyman

Filmmaker Avi Lewis introduces his documentary (co-authored with Naomi Klein) following the efforts of laid-off Argentinian workers to occupy and restart factories abandoned after the 2001 economic collapse.

At 31, drawing from movies he’d been making since age 11, Jonathan Caouette put together this extraordinary picture of his traumatic life-to-date. The year’s most written-about, exhaustively analysed and argued over documentary.

Famed (and famously cantankerous) cinematographer and activist Haskell Wexler submits ungraciously to the shrewd documentary scrutiny of his photojournalist son.

This darkly poetic tale of outlaw lovers on the run is a black-and-white crime classic.

New Aussie hit from the director of The Bank follows an idealistic young couple from student romance in the 80s to social realities 20 years on.

Lou Pucci took the Best Actor Award at the Berlin Film Festival for his performance in this gentle satire of suburban family angst. He plays 17-year-old Justin Cobb, who tries half-heartedly to ‘fix’ his oral obsession by replacing it with a host of interesting alternatives, including Ritalin.

Beautifully crafted documentary and “ear-opening” performance film with percussionist Evelyn Glennie.

Riveting documentary about the parental abduction of children, a frequent and alarming occurrence in a world where international marriages – and separations – are on the rise.

This digital romantic comedy set in Pakuranga announces the arrival of Scott Boswell whose abundant talents are happily evident in every jocular frame. His deftly balanced comic exploration of love and friendship bespeaks a natural flair for reveling in the formulaic, while hitting on a few home truths.

“Even those with a passing knowledge of the tumultuous career of the first black heavyweight boxing champion will be amazed by the depth and range of detail in Burns' irresistibly engrossing study.” — Variety

The latest tragicomedy from he director of Cosy Dens and Divided We Fall. "The rollicking social comedy continues the director's interest in adaptability and its discontents, then ups the ante by setting the story in the shape-shifting post-Communist present." — Entertainment Weekly

Werner Herzog’s stirring, lyrical documentary about Graham Dorrington, an English engineer who explores the South American rainforest canopy from a silently floating airship.

Fascinating, moving portrait of San Franciscan Mark Bittner and his relationship with the wild parrots who flock around his leafy neighbourhood.

“The Woodsman, a serious and thoughtful drama on a hideously difficult subject, deserves the warmest praise and the widest possible audience.” — Anthony Quinn, The Independent

In a marvellous mix of found footage, we’re invited to speculate about the lives and imaginations of passers-by in old documentary footage of street scenes from Vienna, Surabaya and Porto.

Ravishing the eye and the ear, funny, political and ebulliently literate, Sally Potter’s best film since Orlando exalts in the romantic adventure of crossing class and culture. Joan Allen and Sam Neill are perfect as a London society couple whose stale marriage is disrupted by her tempestuous affair with a Lebanese immigrant worker.

An evocative chronicle of the rise and fall of the TV programmer whose cable channel pumped a diet of art, cult, unreleased and otherwise under-the-radar movies into the Los Angeles area from 1974 to 1989 and influenced a generation of filmmakers.

One-man documentary team, New Zealander Hayden Campbell shows us the daily scramble of life in the West Bank town of Qalqiliya through the eyes of Palestine’s one and only zookeeper.