03 January 2012 - Information is now available for the soundtrack CD of 'The Orator', including mp3 samples. Check out this "Make Your Own CD" and pay what you feel it's worth. Can't find a fairer offer than that to start 2012.
31 December 2011 - Information is now available on the soundtrack CD of 'Sione's 2: Unfinished Business, including an mp3 sample and links to a couple of related music videos. Many great movies are coming to dvd next year and I hope you remember to check in here, from time to time. HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR !
21 December 2011 - The first trailer for 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' is now linked from the Sneak Peek Trailers Page. A page of coverage for 'The Orator' is now available and info on the soundtrack CD of 'Sione's 2: Unfinished Business' will be in a few days. MP3 samples of both will also be available for your listening pleasure. Have A Great Holiday and a Happy New Year.
18 December 2011 - A page of information covering the new to dvd film, 'Hugh & Heke', is now available for your viewing. If anyone wants to write up a review of this film, to have it included with the other information here, I would welcome such. I cannot pay for such, but you will retain all rights and would receive credit. Those of you residing in the Auckland Metro area will have another late Summer treat - FREE outdoor movies plus live music before the films. Kiwi films include: 'Tracker', 'Sione's Wedding', 'The Orator', 'Billy T: Te Movie', 'Boy', 'Curry Munchers', 'My Wedding and Other Secrets', 'The Hopes and Dreams of Gaza Snell', 'After the Waterfall', 'The World's Fastest Indian', 'Love Birds' and those are just the NZ films. There are also 12 non-nz titles that will be offered. To check out details as to where and when, go to Auckland Council Movies In Parks.
01 December 2011 - Just a quick note to let you know that DVD copies of 'Starlight Hotel' and 'Queen City Rocker' can now be purchase online from Screenline of Auckland. I might also mention that recently some new trailers links have been added at the Sneak Peek Trailers Page, including 'The Orator', 'The Holy Roller' and 'Rest For The Wicked'. Enjoy.
12 November 2011 - A page of information for 'Russian Snark' is now available for you enjoyment. You really should experience this unique film and now those outside of New Zealand can via its recently released dvd.
If you have not been able to view a linked to NZ Film Archive trailer, such as 'Ruby & Rata' or 'The Whole of the Moon', try it now as they had a tech problem that has been corrected. Special notice for Auckland area residents: Free outdoor movies are coming to the waterfront Silo Park. They all start at 9pm with food venders and stalls available starting at 5pm. The schedule is: 'Eagle vs Shark', 25 November; 'Sione's Wedding', 3 December; 'Love Story', 9 December. The AFTA (Aotearoa Film and Television Awards) have been announced and the Feature Film Winners, grouped by title, are: 'Love Story' - Best Feature, Director and Editing; 'The Hopes and Dreams of Gazza Snell' - Outstanding Feature Film Debut; 'The Insatiable Moon' - Best Lead Actor (Rawiri Paratene), Best supporting Actor (Greg Johnson); 'My Wedding and Other Secrets' - Best Lead Actress (Michelle Ang), Best Screenplay (Roseanne Liang and Angeline Loo); 'Matariki' - Best Supporting Actress (Sara Wiseman); 'After the Waterfall' - Best Sound Design (Dick Reade and Gethin Creagh); 'Predicament' - Best Cinematography (Simon Raby), Best Original Music (Plan 9), Best Production Design (John Harding), Best Costume Design (Lesley Burkes-Harding), Best Make-up Design (Angela Mooar), Best Visual Effects (Sauce VFX). Go to the AFTA Site for further details about the awards. One final note - 'Boy' will start its U.S. general theatrical release March 2, 2012.
17 October 2011 - Information is now available on the excellent new feature, 'Hook, Line & Sinker', from the same folks that brought us 'Taking the Waewae Express'. Additionally two older Gaylene Preston titles are now available in New Zealand on DVD - 'Bread & Roses' and 'Ruby & Rata'. I should have details within a week on two new dvd titles that are scheduled for release soon - 'Russian Snark' on 21 October and 'Hugh & Heke' in November; trailers for both can be accessed at the Sneak Peek Trailer Page. These are all good works that are worth viewing. One last notice about something to consider for your holiday stocking - 'Footrot Flats' is scheduled for a Blu-ray release 01 December 2011.
11 September 2011 - Three older childrens movies, produced by Dale and Grant Bradley, have been added to the database.
In 2004 the "Treasure Island Kids" trilogy was released consisting of: 'The Battle of Treasure Island', 'The Monster of Treasure Island' and 'The Mystery of Treasure Island'. Aimed primarily towards a pre-teen viewing audience, they were destined for Saturday morning TV and definately not adult fare, but everyone can enjoy the North Island filming locations of: Piha, Kitekite Falls, Bethells Beach, Wenderholm Park, Stedfast Park and the grand Pah Homestead.
For those who have not visited the Sneak Peek Trailers page lately, you will find a link to the trailer of the soon to be released NZ/Samoan production, 'The Orator'.
02 September 2011 - Two more films have been added - 'Cave In' and 'The Warrior's Way'. Now I know that purists will say these are not NZ films, but they are both co-productions, as are many films these days and both were filmed in New Zealand, so I felt they were worthy of being added to the database. Soundtrack fans will find mp3 samples of not only 'Cave In' and 'The Warrior's Way', but 'Leave All Fair' also has a clip at the Soundtrack Samples page. Javier Navarrete's score for 'The Warrior's Way' is a most enjoyable homage, especially to Morriconi. For reasons that would be best to not go into right now, I am reserving my rant about the previously mentioned withdrawl of the scheduled dvd release of 'Illustrious Energy' as well as future dvd releases of older titles. I do not want to muddy the issue by making possible unconstructive comments at this time, as I have reason to believe that this issue may be resolved later this month. We shall see. One way or the other, I will have something to report next month.
21 August 2011 - It is with considerable sadness that I must report that not only have the dvd releases of 'Illustrious Energy' and 'Sons for the Return Home' have been cancelled, but other older titles that were planned for dvd releases in the near future are also canceled. This includes: 'Pallet on the Floor', 'The Whole of the Moon', 'Starlight Hotel', 'Shaker Run', 'Queen City Rocker' and 'A Soldier's Tale'. Of course this does not mean that they will never find their way to dvd, but at this time there would appear to be no plans for such releases. I will be posting a detailed commentary on this in a few days and will try to get the New Zealand media to report on it. If anyone wants to express their feelings on this, I would welcome such emails and will set up a page dedicated to the issue and your comments.
06 August 2011 - 'The Devil's Rock' is now represented with its page of information and links.
This NZ/UK co-production was all filmed in the Wellington area and is a horror drama set during World War II. Soundtrack fans will enjoy checking out the new mp3 samples of music from 'My Wedding and other Secrets', 'Love Birds' and 'The Devil's Rock' at the Soundtrack Samples Page. For those who wonder what else they can do during the forthcoming Rugby World Cup from 9 September to 23 October, Real New Zealand Festival and New Zealand Onscreen have an answer. In the North Island two eye-catching structures will be built on the Auckland Queens Wharf and Wellington Te Papa promenade waterfronts. Classic Kiwi screen moments will be shown on a video tower atop a modified shipping container. Inside visitors will be able to engage with, and be moved by the screen treasures via a state-of-the-art interactive video feature wall and viewing pods. A high-tech conversion of a classic Kiwi caravan will bring the New Zealand On Screen experience to the South Island. The travelling cinema will rove mainland towns and centres between 9 September and 6 October before spending the final fortnight of the tournament camped at Hagley Park in the Fan Zone from 8 October until 23 October. There is no charge for any of this.
For further details about the Kiwi Film Classics Events, click on the following: Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and the South Island Caravan Locations and dates.
25 July 2011 - 'Braindead, aka: Dead Alive' will be released on Blu-ray, in the U.S., starting 04 October 2011, but further details will have to wait. 'Russian Snark' now has a dvd release date of 23 October 2011, but it is too early to provide details about any extras. The first trailer for the forthcoming 'Sione's Wedding 2: Unfinished Business' is now available for viewing. The new romantic comedy, 'My Wedding and Other Secrets' now has a page with links to reviews and many other details.
19 July 2011 - Sorry about being so slow in posting new items - I have computer problems and will, hopefully, get everything going smoothly soon. Pages are up for the new films, 'Curry Munchers' and 'Love Birds'. To add to the 'Billy T' feeding frenzy, 'The Leading Edge' is now available on vanilla DVD. The Te Papa museum and the New Zealand Film Archive have worked together to put out a hardcover book, 'New Zealand Film: An Illustrated History'. This book is an impressive 360 page effort, containing over 400 illustrations and a 100 minute DVD. It covers over 100 years of film in New Zealand and includes articles by people in the industry as well as academics specialising in film history and New Zealand culture. You really should check out this fine effort and discover that there is more to NZ film than Peter Jackson.
