NZIFF Q&A 2019 - David Nash - A Seat at the Table

NZIFF Q&A 2019 - David Nash - A Seat at the Table

Our film is.... A Seat at the Table

The moment I'm most proud of is....Finishing it. Although, I think it’ll be pretty special moment for Simon & I sharing it at The Civic with many friends and family that have been along for the journey since day one.

The reason I carried on with this film when it got tough is..... I don’t think I ever got to a point where I wanted to give up.  I produced this film with a talented good friend Simon Mark-Brown, which helps when you have some dark moments, the other person can take the lead and run with it for a while.  The one thing that drove me through the post-production (which was the most torturous) was thinking of all the people who had invested their time and energy in supporting this film, people giving up their busy days to be interviewed, hosting us – I would never be able to tell those people we gave up on this story.  There were plenty of tough times, wine helps!

The one moment that will resonate with an audience is....... For almost a year I tried to get an introduction to Domaine de la Romanée-Conti.  They’re the most famous winemakers on the planet, and as it turns out really hard to get a hold of.  By luck and a bit of gall I acquired their phone number when we were in Burgundy, France about 5min drive away.  Bertrand Remaut our DOP had the agility and speed to film that phone call from the back seat of the car.  It makes the final cut.

The hardest thing I had to cut from this film is........ People who had brilliant things to say.  There were quite a few producers who sadly didn’t make the final cut.  Not because they didn’t come across well on camera, the story just evolved and we simply couldn’t cover every question scripted.  

The thing I want people to take from this film is ...... That they’ve seen the definitive New Zealand wine story.  I think people who know nothing about wine will love this film as it’ll will give them an instant understanding of the world of wine and where NZ fits.  For people who love wine, it’s their favourite producers sharing some amazing stories with a view shown of the industry that we don’t see enough of.

The reason I love the NZIFF is....... It’s an incredible platform where first time filmmakers can share their films alongside some of the most exciting films direct from Cannes.  The team at the NZIFF are an incredible group of film lovers (could be a doco in itself) the compressed hard work, personal sacrifice and genuine love that they provide for filmmakers is the perfect rehab-facility for re-entering the world after making a feature length film.

What I want to see at this year's NZIFF is...... Amazing Grace, I love documentaries – that’s part of the reason why I made one, but more importantly I love that era of music.  Can’t wait.  

The one thing I'd say to aspiring filmmakers is..... Just keep going.  Even if it feels a bit rubbish, even if everyone you respect tells you it’s a bit shit – if you believe in what you are doing… just keep going.  You’ll learn more from finishing (even if you don’t want to show anyone) than from giving up.  And, most importantly, like all creative endeavours filmmaking has a really ‘messy middle’.  The start is fun, then it’s really hard – a bit of a drag and then suddenly you pop out the other end and it’s done, it’s great and you look like you knew what you were doing all along.  Just keep going.

Fighting With My Family: DVD Review

Fighting With My Family: DVD Review

Much like a wrestling match itself, Fighting With My Family is a crowd-pleasing piece of performance, that occasionally flounders on the ropes, but ultimately wins with a KO.

Based on the true story of Saraya-Jade Bevis (aka Paige), this sports underdog yarn boasts all the feels and heart of your typical sporting movie.

Pugh and Lowden are sister and brother, Saraya and Zak, whose UK lives have been shaped permanently by wrestling, as they've been brought up by their parents (Frost and Headey, both amiable and amusing, but grounded and real), who are wrestling-obsessed.

When the duo get a chance to try out for the WWE in the US under Vince Vaughn's talent scout , not everything goes to plan...and could potentially open up a chasm between the family.

Fighting With My Family is essentially a Christmas movie, with Dwayne Johnson playing Fairy Godfather.

Its beats are familiar, and its genre tropes are all ticked off as it powers through its running time.

And yet, it's more than watchable fare that has a gooey heart to show, as well as an inspiring story of girl Paige's rise to the top. (Pertinent in these times, obviously).

It helps that Pugh and Lowden make a good on screen brother and sister, with Lowden dealing well with a complex and realistic arc as events transpire; he manages to elevate the cliches into something that's eminently identifiable, and gives his arc of finding your place in the world a fresh feel despite its hoary familiarity.

Equally, Pugh builds on promise demonstrated in the likes of Lady MacBeth to show a tough, but occasionally vulnerable, woman trying to make her way in a man's world.

Merchant's script gives the lion's share of the one-liners to Frost, who delivers them with the usual aplomb, and to crowd-pleasing knockout effect. But the script's also smart enough to occasionally pull the rug from under you, and deft writing helps sell some of the more improbable edges.

While Merchant's directing is fairly formulaic, he does give the wrestling both at the WWE and in the UK heartland a sense of place, scale and nuance that's commendable.

Ultimately, Fighting With My Family is a nicely packaged piece about family as well as hopes and dreams. It's a knockout piece of fun that delivers where it should and is unashamedly happy to be feelgood where it counts. 

Films to watch out for at the 2019 New Zealand International Film Festival

Films to watch out for at the 2019 New Zealand International Film Festival

Every year, the phrase "cinematic smorgasbord" is bandied about, but every year, the choice is close to immaculate.

The 51st annual festival is no exception, bringing as much delight to cinephiles as it does distress by providing yet another scheduling frenzy.

Don't look to the experts to guide you on what's best to see - sometimes, it's a case of throwing a pin in the air, and seeing where in the programme schedule it lands.

These are the best moments of the festival - the unexpected joy of an unplanned screening.

But if you have to take some solace in what others think, these pointers may help.

2040 is the most optimistic film of the festival.

That Sugar Film's Damon Gameau (who'll be in NZ for the festival) decides to turn the spotlight on the planet and its future in a 90 minute piece of positive propaganda that zips by.

Centring around what he believes would work best for his daughter Velvet for the state of the planet, Gameau explores "fact-based dreaming" to see schemes from around the world that could help.

From grid-sharing in Bangladesh to autonomous cars, Gameau may inspire others, but he'll definitely frustrate some who are after some of the more political reasons why these can't be put in place, and why dreaming can only get us so far.

But the guarantee is that you'll leave the cinema galvanised and positive, rather than than terrified at what destruction your coffee cup will wreak.

Terrifying satirist Chris Morris is back with The Day Shall Come, a film that will be seen regardless by fans of his.

Four Lions a few festivals back brought raucous laughter with its clueless bunch of English jihadi, but in among the inept, real pathos lay, delivering a movie that worked on many levels.

Early word is that the absurd is present again in The Day Shall Come, and that the war on terror will never look the same.

Big events are what the NZIFF is known for - and you can't go bigger than Apollo 11 on the mighty Civic screen.

50 years on from the lunar landing, it's fortuitous the festival falls at the same time. However, conspiracy theorists would probably beg to differ....

Equally, Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now Final Cut should be thunderous too, with the three hour vision of the Vietnam film likely to thrill as much as tantalise.

Low key is also good for the festival - and Hail Satan?'s mix of high level trolling and examination of America's schisms over intolerance for other ideas gives the doco a kind of quirky feel that's hard to shake.

But it does expose the intolerances which have festered greatly within the US, as well as showing an organisation perceived as devilish, but which still has enough community nous to volunteer to clean a stretch of beach for a year. It exposes the paradigms, and does so playfully.

Hale County This Morning, This Evening looks promising too.

A short doco about African Americans in Alabama, the examination of community promises much, and given there was 1300 hours of footage to cull down, 76 minutes seems rich enough pasture to dwell in.

These are just a handful of what's out there - others like In Fabric, High Life, Come To Daddy all command your attention as well.

The New Zealand International Film Festival kicks off in Auckland on July 17. For more, go to nziff.co.nz

Pet Sematary: Blu Ray Review

Pet Sematary: Blu Ray Review

The 2019 remake of Pet Sematary knows what it wants to do.

But unfortunately, in parts, its weaker characters and wider film squanders some of the chance of doing it so.

Clarke and Seimetz play Louis and Rachel Creed, parents who've relocated to the apparently idyllic countryside for an easier life, and to spend time with their young family.

However, when their cat Church is killed by a passing truck, Louis finds an offer of a burial from neighbour Judd (Lithgow, in venerable and stoic form) too irresistible to refuse....and before they know it, their world's changed in ways they could never have imagined.

Pet Sematary may have big themes such as dealing with death and the wider effects of grief, but it squanders most of the well-done earlier edges in favour of traditional jump scares, brooding and foreboding  and creepy edges.

The final result is that parts of the plot creak with the silliness that's clearly been imbued in them by the original pulpy schlocky page turner from Stephen King. And while parts of the movie deviate from the book, the 2019 version is more a portmanteau of jump scares and creepy scenes, rather than a coherently paced story.

That's not to say when they come, the jump scenes don't work, but towards the back half of the film, the scares border on the silly rather than the horrific and sequences which should be terrifying end up more laughable than anything.
Pet Sematary follows the Stephen King writing MO - it has a great set up, but the final portion falls over under either close scrutiny or the weight of what it's been set up for. It's not that the 2019 version isn't unentertaining enough, it's just that paper-thin characters with largely underexplored themes don't create enough of an engaging finale, and wider themes are used solely as a lazy crutch for scares.

Ultimately, the 2019 Pet Sematary is to be lauded for some initial creepiness, and some unnerving moments that catch you off guard. It's just that in the final wash, the schlock overwhelms the B-movie edges and drowns it in a madness that's hard to shake. 

Disney Mulan trailer first look

Disney Mulan trailer first look

Epic Tale of Legendary Chinese Warrior Directed by Niki Caro

Features a Celebrated International Cast, Including

Yifei Liu, Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee with Gong Li and Jet Li

The teaser trailer and poster for Disney’s “Mulan” are here! Please check them out and share with your readers. The epic tale of a fearless young woman who risks everything out of love for her family and her country to become one of the greatest warriors China has ever known, opens in NZ cinemas in March, 2020.

When the Emperor of China issues a decree that one man per family must serve in the Imperial Army to defend the country from Northern invaders, Hua Mulan, the eldest daughter of an honored warrior, steps in to take the place of her ailing father. Masquerading as a man, Hua Jun, she is tested every step of the way and must harness her inner-strength and embrace her true potential. It is an epic journey that will transform her into an honored warrior and earn her the respect of a grateful nation…and a proud father. “Mulan” features a celebrated international cast that includes: Yifei Liu as Mulan; Donnie Yen as Commander Tung; Jason Scott Lee as Böri Khan; Yoson An as Cheng Honghui; with Gong Li as Xianniang and Jet Li as the Emperor. The film is directed by Niki Caro from a screenplay by Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver and Elizabeth Martin & Lauren Hynek based on the narrative poem “The Ballad of Mulan.”

For more information on “Mulan,” follow us on:

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A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon - Teaser Trailer

A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon - Teaser Trailer

Shaun the Sheep’s highly anticipated return to the big screen will herald the arrival of a mystery visitor from far across the galaxy…

…an impish and adorable alien called LU-LA who crash-lands near Mossy Bottom Farm, Shaun soon sees an opportunity for alien-powered fun and adventure as he sets off on a mission to shepherd LU-LA home.

Her magical alien powers, irrepressible mischief and galactic sized burps – showcased in today’s trailer - soon have the flock enchanted.  

Can Shaun and the flock avert Farmageddon on Mossy Bottom Farm before it’s too late?

“LAZY” is written by Justin Hayward-Young, Yoann Intonti, Timothy Lanham, Freddie Cowan, Arni Hjorvar Arnason,and Cole M. Greif-Neil. Published by Universal Music Publishing Ltd, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd, Beggars Music Publishing Ltd. Produced and mixed by Dan Grech-Marguerat. Recorded The Pool Studios, London and Sarm Music Village Studios, London

SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE: FARMAGEDDON continues the production partnership with AARDMAN and STUDIOCANAL following the success of SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE directed by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak, which grossed $106 million worldwide and Nick Park’s prehistoric comedy adventure, EARLY MAN. STUDIOCANAL is financing and will distribute in its own territories, the UK, France, Germany, Australia and New Zealand in Autumn 2019.

Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled Grand Prix

Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled Grand Prix

Get Ready to Floor It – Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled’s Grand Prix Has Arrived!

Crash™ Team Racing Nitro-Fueled has officially launched and is showing no signs of slowing down. Currently rated an 80+ on Metacritic and GameRankings, Beenox’s remastered experience has fans all around the world revving up their engines. And, starting this week, the race continues with the release of the game’s first ever Grand Prix!

From now, all Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled players that purchased the game will get the first Grand Prix* season called Nitro Tour pushed to their consoles for free – which gives fans more game to love, including a brand-new track, Twilight Tour, to conquer.

Twilight Tour will take players on an epic ride through a middle east-inspired track! Players will enjoy racing through the track that shifts from day to night during gameplay. What’s more, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled players will be able to compete in Grand Prix challenges* and fuel up their “Nitro Gauge” (XP) with Nitro points, to earn rewards, such as a new character (Tawna), new character skins, new karts, and new kart customisation items.

Also, as part of the content being offered during the Nitro Tour Grand Prix, the in-game Pit Stop is being updated with new characters, skins, karts, and kart customisation items.  Players can use the Wumpa Coins* that they earn by playing the game to unlock additional cool items, such as the Nitro Squad as playable characters for the first time. Formerly known as the Trophy Girls in the original CTR, the Nitro Squad have come to compete as some of the fiercest racers around!

For more information, players can head over to CTR TV, the in-game news channel where hosts Chick and Stew revealed some of the fun awaiting players in the Grand Prix and more.

*Requires players to be connected to the internet.