It would be stating the obvious to single out exciting new films by Ruben Östlund (The Square), Agnès Varda (Faces Places), Yorgos Lanthimos (The Killing of a Sacred Deer), or any of the heavyweight Cannes titles, really, as must-sees at this year’s Festival – which, tipping the scales at 172 features and short film programmes, is our biggest yet – so instead here’s a selection of great/potentially great films easily overlooked and ripe for discovery.
Films — by Collection
- At the Movies: Bill Gosden and Simon Morris
- Bill Gosden’s Guide to NZIFF 2017
- Coup De Main
- Letterboxd
- Metro: David Larsen
- Staff Picks: Abby Cattermole
- Staff Picks: Alice Vilardel
- Staff Picks: Ant Timpson
- Staff Picks: Beck Eleven
- Staff Picks: Hedda ten Holder
- Staff Picks: Ina Kinski
- Staff Picks: Jo Scott
- Staff Picks: Kailey Carruthers
- Staff Picks: Kezia Dwyer
- Staff Picks: Manali Bhatia
- Staff Picks: Michael McDonnell
- Staff Picks: Miles Chan
- Staff Picks: Nick Paris
- Staff Picks: Rebecca McMillan
- Staff Picks: Sandra Reid
- Staff Picks: Tim Keats
- Staff Picks: Tim Wong
- The Residents: Lucy Revill
- Wellington Film Society
Staff Picks: Tim Wong
![Bad Genius](/assets/resized/sm/upload/y8/50/0y/3g/BTS2%200067%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=47e1a22190)
Bad Genius
Chalard Games Goeng
A group of school friends scheme to rake in mega bucks by helping others cheat on their exams in this stylish and super-smart Thai suspense thriller, which has been a box office sensation on its home turf.
![Bangkok Nites](/assets/resized/sm/upload/pk/vy/c1/ay/BN%20Still5%20%20(c)%20Bangkok%20Nites%20Partners%202016_TEMP%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=74c251629f)
Bangkok Nites
A high-class call girl and a middle-aged army vet search for paradise in a society haunted by decades of foreign exploitation in this stirring long-form feature set in Bangkok’s red-light district.
![Beach Rats](/assets/resized/sm/upload/q3/k2/yj/1k/Beach_Rats_01%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=797d9dd931)
Beach Rats
In Eliza Hittman’s startlingly sensual study of conflicted masculinity, a Brooklyn teenager leads a perilous double life, cruising older men online while playing super straight to his homophobic homies.
![Columbus](/assets/resized/sm/upload/65/cl/15/al/Columbus_KeyArt-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=352d12fa0e)
Columbus
In this charming debut a young librarian and an out-of-town visitor bond in Columbus, Indiana, their friendship blossoming out of conversations about life, relationships and the city’s exceptional modern architecture.
![The Future Perfect](/assets/resized/sm/upload/00/b5/fl/m9/still1%20KEY-crop-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=4e1093d14c)
The Future Perfect
El futuro perfecto
Arriving in Buenos Aires, a young Chinese immigrant embraces the struggle of a new language and surroundings, reimagining herself and her future in the process, in this dry comedy of manners.
![Marjorie Prime](/assets/resized/sm/upload/xp/pr/il/lj/6486-UN17_MarjoriePrime_still1_JonHammandLoisSmith__bySeanPriceWilliams.jpg_rgb-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=7be39f4d4e)
Marjorie Prime
Michael Almereyda (Experimenter) directs the magnificent Lois Smith as an ailing widow who turns to a holographic projection, played by Jon Hamm, in an effort to stave off memory loss and the melancholy of old age.
![Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts](/assets/resized/sm/upload/sr/5z/y0/dv/Marlina_the_murdere_in_four_acts-1%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=b81460ad60)
Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts
Marlina si Pembunuh dalam Empat Babak
Set amongst the visually ravishing widescreen vistas of rural Indonesia, this thoroughly enjoyable and delightfully deadpan adventure delivers a wily feminist spin on a western tale of murder and revenge.
![On Body and Soul](/assets/resized/sm/upload/tq/r3/m6/oi/ON%20BODY%20AND%20SOUL%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=d28b292cc2)
On Body and Soul
Teströl és lélekröl
Two workers in a pristine modern abattoir are shocked to discover they have been dreaming the same idyllic dream in this arrestingly peculiar – and visually dazzling – tale of reluctant soulmates.
![The Love Witch](/assets/resized/sm/upload/ko/a1/wq/el/elaine_knife%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=b030abdb6d)
The Love Witch
A beautiful witch seduces – and disposes of – men in this sensationally conceived homage to 70s sexploitation, sharply told through both a contemporary feminist lens and the dubious sexual politics of the era.
![The Untamed](/assets/resized/sm/upload/q2/bi/fl/8g/18_LRS_MF_Photo_cred_Manuel_Claro_and_Marti%E2%95%A0%C3%BCn_Escalante%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=1670ce5ee1)
The Untamed
La región salvaje
Love triangle drama and erotic bio-sci-fi thrills meet in a truly bizarre exploration of oppressive machismo and liberating sexual abandon from Mexican director Amat Escalante.
![Western](/assets/resized/sm/upload/8g/0y/w8/ji/WESTERN-Still2-actorMeinhardNeumann_C-Komplizen-Film-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=49d5e1fdd9)
Western
Subtly applying the themes of the American western to Europe’s eastern frontier, Valeska Grisebach’s drama mines the tensions and the bonds that develop between a German construction camp and a nearby Bulgarian village.
![Yourself and Yours](/assets/resized/sm/upload/gi/0b/uq/ld/YOURSELF%20AND%20YOURS_still%206%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=85cc3e6c02)
Yourself and Yours
Dangsinjasingwa dangsinui geot
Hong Sang-soo’s sardonic romantic comedy teases confusion and bountiful amusement out of doppelgängers who may not be doppelgängers and lapses in memory that may or may not be genuine.