A maximum of 12 picks obligatorily narrows down the list of the many films that have wowed me over the past 12 months – starting with Maiden, Amazing Grace, and most recently Portrait of a Lady on Fire and La Belle Époque (the latter two from our fab Cannes line-up). I don’t want to exclude any of them. Faced with this dilemma, my picks, listed in alphabetical order, are an opportunity to highlight a few titles striking for their formal approach or content, or their freshness, which may not be so obvious in our line-up, along with documentaries and an animated film that have left a lasting impression. These are complemented by two features from New Zealand and Australia I’m very much looking forward to seeing (but this is no indication that I’m not looking forward to also seeing Judy & Punch and so much more). And a delirious tale involving a murderous dress. — Sandra Reid, Programmer
Films — by Collection
- Film Talks: Jane Ross
- Flicks.co.nz
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- Letterboxd Crew
- Lumière Cinemas
- Staff Picks: Bradley Pratt
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- Staff Picks: Michael McDonnell
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- Staff Picks: Rebecca McMillan
- Staff Picks: Sandra Reid
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- Wellington Film Society
Staff Picks: Sandra Reid
Adam
Set in Casablanca’s Old Medina, this nuanced tale of female solidarity transcending temperamental difference captivates through the richly detailed performances of two superb actresses.
Angelo
An arresting, crisply detailed period drama examining the legacy – and tainted freedom – of an African slave integrated into Viennese high society. Based on a true story.
Bellbird
Marshall Napier, Cohen Holloway and Rachel House shine in Hamish Bennett’s beautifully judged, poignantly funny drama of life and community on a struggling Northland family dairy farm.
Cold Case Hammarskjöld
What starts out as an investigation into the plane crash that killed UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld in 1961 soon spirals into something even darker under the direction of Danish provocateur Mads Brügger.
Crystal Swan
Khrustal
Determined to follow the siren’s call of house music and escape the confines of her 90s Eastern Bloc existence, a young DJ’s aspirations are dented when she’s forced to prove the reality of a bogus job on her visa form.
Dark Suns
Soleils noirs
This striking black-and-white documentary criss-crosses Mexico, unearthing grassroots tales of grief, resilience and determined resistance in the wake of a decades-long drug war and political corruption.
For Sama
Shot over five years, Waad al-Kateab’s intimate, Cannes award-winning film addresses her baby daughter and delivers a harrowing account of the war in Aleppo, the devastation wrought on the city, its people and children.
In Fabric
A cross between Suspiria and an old Farmers catalogue, the latest from retro genre stylist Peter Strickland, centring on a demonic dress at a posh department store, gleefully satirises fashion and consumerism.
The Nightingale
Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, Jennifer Kent’s brutal revenge saga is an unrelenting reckoning with white male oppression – and not for the faint of heart.
Push
As rocketing urbanisation collides with stagnant wages and a lack of affordable housing around the world, Fredrik Gertten’s clarion call to arms shows how global finance giants turn homes into assets.
Ruben Brandt, Collector
Ruben Brandt, a gyűjtő
Boasting batshit surreal imagery, fist-pumping action sequences and a wall-to-wall shrine of art and cinema references, Ruben Brandt, Collector is a new milestone for animated invention.
Stuffed
A fully rounded, elegantly observed documentary on the world of taxidermy, its dedicated practitioners and their empathy for the animals whose lives and beauty they lovingly preserve.