Author: James Partridge

Kiwi filmmakers Chris Pryor and Miriam Smith to release grassroots rugby doco – with your help

Posted by | Apr 4, 2013 |

After last year’s moving and award-winning documentary How Far Is Heaven, the talented filmmaking team of Chris Pryor and Miriam Smith once again uproot their lives, leave loved ones behind and move into a small community for their next project, the grassroots rugby documentary The Ground We Won. This new doco will follow the highs and lows of a local rugby team, consisting of farmers aged 16-42, and looks to explore what rural life and the “love of the game” means to these men, and also for contemporary New Zealand society. Filming began last week with the first pre-season friendly – and in a big coup, All Black legend Colin Meads has been snagged as the film’s narrator. The Ground We Won is set for release in 2014. While the film is being made with the support of the Arts Foundation and in association with the New Zealand Film Commission, Pryor and Smith are seeking public support for post-production – through the Arts Foundation’s new crowd-sourcing platform Boosted. If you’d like to see the film in cinemas – and who wouldn’t – check out their Boosted video below and click on the donate link to get in behind this project. . Boosted: http://vimeo.com/60980391 Donate on Boosted here! . The Ground We Won: Website Facebook...

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Disney-Pixar announces ‘Finding Nemo’ sequel and Ellen DeGeneres’ return

Posted by | Apr 3, 2013 |

“Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming.” Today Disney–Pixar announced the details of the long awaited sequel to 2008 smash hit Finding Nemo. Finding Dory will be set a year after the first film, and will see Dory reunited with her loved ones – learning things about family along the way. “We couldn’t stop thinking about why she was all alone in the ocean the day she met Marlin (in Finding Nemo)” says returning Kiwi director Andrew Adamson. Set in part on the California coast, the film will feature all your favourites – Dory (obviously), Marlin, Nemo, the Tank Gang – and a host of new characters to fall in love with. Also returning is Ellen DeGeneres, who has confirmed she will reprise her role as the hilarious (but forgetful) blue tang fish.”I have waited for this day for a long, long, long, long, long, long time,” said DeGeneres in the press release. “I’m not mad it took this long. I know the people at Pixar were busy creating ‘Toy Story 16.’ But the time they took was worth it. The script is fantastic. And it has everything I loved about the first one: It’s got a lot of heart, it’s really funny, and the best part is—it’s got a lot more Dory.” As for the release date: 15 November, 2015 (in the US at least). Don’t forget now! I’m...

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Shiny new character posters for ‘The Great Gatsby’

Posted by | Apr 2, 2013 |

Aussie director Baz Lurhmann‘s new opus, The Great Gatsby, looks delightfully decadent and oozes Lurhmann’s signature style – the trailer nicely conveys the cinematic feast in store. Over the Easter weekend, six shiny new character posters were released, featuring the main cast: Leonardo DiCaprio (Inception), Isla Fisher (Wedding Crashers), Joel Edgerton (Zero Dark Thirty), Carey Mulligan (Drive), Tobey Maguire (Spiderman), and Elizabeth Debicki (A Few Best Men). While they are most definitely in keeping with the style of the film, they have a very Madame Tussaudes-esque look about them – check out the eyes! Creepy, right? Despite these posters freaking me out (Tobey Maguire’s in particular) I’m really looking forward to Lurhmann’s return, and hoping he can recreate some of that Romeo and Juliet magic- putting the disaster that was Australia behind him. Set in 1922, the film follows would-be writer Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) who chases his ‘American Dream’ to New York City and finds himself drawn into the captivating, but morally-loose, world of Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio): providing him plenty of fodder for his latest work. The Great Gatsby lights up Kiwi cinemas on 6 June. (Note: These are the US posters, so the release date here is not May 10 – rather June 6). You looking forward to The Great Gatsby? The Great Gatsby follows Fitzgerald-like, would-be writer Nick Carraway as he leaves the Midwest and...

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Cinema Release Round-Up: 28 March

Posted by | Mar 28, 2013 |

A host of cinematic goodness for you this week – 7 films to be precise – including a Kiwi sci-fi murder mystery, an award-winning French romantic drama, the return of G.I. Joe, and a new film based on a Stephenie Meyer novel. So whatever your taste… we got you covered. The films opening today are: . RUST AND BONE……FILM OF THE WEEK France, Belgium | 117 minutes | Romance, Drama Director: Jacques Audiard (A Prophet) Cast: Marion Cotillard, Mattias Schoenaerts, Armand Vendure, Celine Sallette, Corinne Masiero, Bouli Lanners A homeless father finds a friendship and love with a marine park trainer whose life’s been turned upside down by a horrific accident. We’ve been waiting a long time for this powerful, award-winning drama to come to our shores – it’s a must see. Distributor: Rialto Distribution . ETERNITY……HIGHLY RECOMMENDED New Zealand | 79 minutes | Sci-Fi, Mystery, Thriller Director: Alex Galvin (When Night Falls) Cast: Elliot Travers, Amy Usherwood, Dean Knowsley, Amy Tsang, Geraldine Brophy, Liz Kirkman, Ralph Johnson, Jessica Manins A disgraced detective finds his very existence on the line, when he trades the real world for a virtual one as part of an exercise to redeem his reputation. This Kiwi film blends sci-fi and old-school mystery elements to create an intriguing thriller that’s a cut above your conventional Hollywood fare. Distributor: Eternity Productions Limited . G.I. JOE: RETALIATION USA...

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