BRANNAVAN GNANALINGAM responds to Californication’s agitation of Family First, “newly self-appointed moral guardians of New Zealand” who this week called for the boycott of companies prepared to advertise during the show’s commercial breaks.
BRANNAVAN GNANALINGAM examines the racial landscape traversed by Spike Lee, from Do The Right Thing through to When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts, screening as part of this year’s DOCNZ Documentary Film Festival.
Sidebar
Vicky Cristina Barcelona: What's not to like? Barcelona in summer. Passionate artists Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz spend quality time with the free-spirited Scarlett Johansson. Blazingly sensual escapism, ground in realism. The Woodman's still got it, directing with a big heart and a sure hand. Cruz, liberated from mediocre American movies, is a Almodovarian force of nature.- Waltz With Bashir: Easily the year's best animated movie. Ex-Israeli soldier Ari Folman vividly explores the '82 war in Lebanon. With exceptional music, like the superb scene where a soldier hides in the ocean. "I am at peace. Just me and the sea."
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (DVD): My January DVD pick. Sidney Lumet owns the night, leaving the young pups in the dust, probing crime's personal tragedy. Fiercely moral, inventively constructed; forceful, while allowing ruminative space.—Alexander Bisley
Do you love movies and movie memorabilia? We have many kinds of original movie posters and vintage posters for you to browse through online.
- The Best of Film in 2008
- Year in Review: NZ International Film Festivals, Eleven Unreleased Films
- In Retrospect: Edward Yang's Taipei Stories
- In Praise of The Wire
- » Smells Like Teen Spirit: Judd Apatow, Adam McKay & The Comedy of Arrested Development
- » Taika Waititi: The Finest of Homecomings
- » Nina Davenport on Operation Filmmaker
- » Annie Goldson on An Island Calling
- » There Will Be Hope: The Films of Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
- » An Interview with Sarah Watt
- » Film Society 2008: Five Reasons to Join
- » Flight of the Conchords: "definitely in the top 3"
- » Year in Review: The Best of Film, DVD and Posters in 2007
- » Sex and Them: Californication vs Family First
- » Spike Lee's Territory
- » Syndromes of a Century: Spears, Network, and not taking it anymore
- » Fight the Power
- » Script to Screen, the Internet, and beyond
- » How irony killed satire: an earnest investigation
- » La Binoche
- » The Summer of Seth
- » Making Be Sharp, See Flat
- » The Muse of Brazilian Cinema: An Interview with Helena Ignez
- » Sign of the Times: A Struggle No More
- » Janet Goldwater on Rosita
- » Directorial Bandit: Sandor Lau on Squeegee Bandit
- » A Convenient Truth: Jeff Blitz on Spellbound
- » Year in Review: The Best of Film in 2006
- » In Praise Of: Ten Actors and Filmmakers in 2006
- » One-Sheet Wonders: The Best Movie Posters of 2006
- » Notes from the Underground: the V 24 Hour Movie Marathon 2006
- » West Coast Represent: Aunty Gaylene, Greymouth's Finest
- » The Passion of Laurie David
- » Ode to The West Wing
- Interviews from the NZ International Film Festivals:
- » Ben Russell on We Can Not Exist in This World Alone
- » Adam Wingard on Pop Skull
- » Yung Chang on Up the Yangtze
- » Benjamin Gilmour on Son of a Lion
- » Kathy Dudding on The Return
- » Gregory King on A Song of Good
- Browse Film Features
The Lumière Reader selects...
By Tim Wong & Steve Garden
By Steve Garden
By Brannavan Gnanalingam
- Selected theatrical film releases in New Zealand, rated and reviewed:
- » The Visitor **
- » The Dark Knight ***
- » Dan in Real Life ***
- » I'm Not There *****
- » Rambo 4 **
- » There Will Be Blood *****
- » 2 Days in Paris ***
- » Rescue Dawn ***
- » No Country For Old Men *****
- » The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford ****
- » Once ****
- » Mr Brooks ***
- » A Mighty Heart **
- » Death Proof ****
- » We're Here to Help ****
- » Venus, Evening ****/**
- » Eastern Promises ****
- » La vie en rose ****
- » Superbad **
- » Joy Division ***
- » Eagle vs Shark ****/**
- » The Simpsons Movie ***
- » Zodiac ***
- » Scoop ***
- » 28 Weeks Later ***
- » The Host ****
- » The Road to Guantanamo ****
- Short Reviews:
- » Taken, Body of Lies, Young at Heart, Caramel, In Bruges
- » Up the Yangtze, Paris; 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
- » The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Get Smart, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Second-Hand Wedding, Charlie Bartlett
- » Street Kings, I'm Not There
- » Lars and the Real Girl, Gone Baby Gone, Four Minutes
- » Goodbye Bafana, Love in the Time of Cholera, Lady Chatterley, I Served the King of England
- » Michael Clayton, 30 Days of Night, Cloverfield, I Am Legend, Rescue Dawn, Red Road, Death at a Funeral
- Browse Film Reviews
- On Vampyr
- Selected Region 4 DVD releases and reissues reviewed:
- » The Darjeeling Limited
- » Inland Empire
- » Allan Wilson: Evolutionary
- » Bubble
- » The Films of Carl Theodor Dreyer
- » Eagle vs Shark
- » Jesus Camp
- » Sicko
- » The West Wing: The Complete Series
- » The Wrong Man, I Confess, Stage Fright, Dial M for Murder
- » Rome: The Complete First Season
- » Entourage: Season Three, Part 2
- » The Fred Dagg All-Purpose DVD
- » Rang de Basanti, Volver, Black Sheep
- » Becoming Jane
- » Wordplay
- » Rampage
- » A Scanner Darkly
- » Pan's Labyrinth
- » Sherrybaby
- » Out of the Blue
- » Flags of Our Fathers, Letters From Iwo Jima
- » Kubrick Triple Feature, Straight Time, The Yakuza, Lust for Life, Body Heat
- » The Simpsons: Season 9
- » The Pajama Game, Young Man With a Horn
- » The Queen
- Short Reviews:
- » The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, War/Dance, Tintin and I, I'm Not There, Sex and the City: The Movie
- » Underbelly, Donnie Darko: Collector's Edition, The Chaser's War on Everything, The War on Democracy, The Investigator, Secret Diary of a Call Girl
- » Outrageous Fortune: Series Three
- » Mandela: The Living Legend, We're Here to Help, Death at a Funeral, Barking Dogs Never Bite
- » The Sopranos: Season Six, The Final Episodes; I Think I Love My Wife, Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten
- » Severance, La Vie en Rose, Stephanie Daley
- Browse DVD Reviews
By Steve Garden
- Lumière at the New Zealand International Film Festivals 2008
- Reviews, interviews and editorial from the NZ International Film Festivals:
- » In Retrospect: Edward Yang
- » Ben Russell on We Can Not Exist in This World Alone
- » Adam Wingard on Pop Skull
- » Yung Chang on Up the Yangtze
- » Benjamin Gilmour on Son of a Lion
- » Kathy Dudding on The Return
- » Gregory King on A Song of Good
- » NZIFF '08 Dispatch #3: New Illustration
- » NZIFF '08 Dispatch #2: Priming the Melbourne International Film Festival
- » NZIFF '08 Dispatch #1: Auckland, and onwards
- » New Directions: the New Zealand International Film Festivals 2008
- Features, reviews and columns from the film festival circuit:
- » Italian Film Festival 2008
- » Not Miffed: Melbourne International Film Festival 2008
- » Postnatal Neglect: A Walk to Beautiful
- » Factory Girls: Maquilapolis—City of Factories
- » Left Alone: Western Sahara—Africa's Last Colony
- » Cannes 2008: Line-up
- » Interiors: Margot at the Wedding
- » Out of Sight: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
- » Midnight Cowboy: El Topo, The Holy Mountain
- » Lady-Tramp: An Old Mistress
- » Time-F**K: Southland Tales
- » Mutual Exploitation: Black, White + Gray
- » Crimes Committed: Dry Season
- » Wrong Man: Strange Culture
- » Type-Cast: Helvetica
- » Out of Africa: War/Dance
- » Eastern Promise: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
- » World Cinema Showcase 2008
- » French Film Festival 2008: Ascenseur pour l'echafaud
- » Festival Notes From Abroad: Marrakech, Melbourne, Venice
- Browse Festival Coverage
– Full Coverage Inside –
