Kiwi flavour

by CoolSchmoool | created - 12 Apr 2013 | updated - 28 Nov 2014 | Public

New Zealand cinema, many would describe it as dark and depressing...and it is pretty sombre, and even the comedy is mostly black, the films just have a different feel to them that's all it's own.

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1. Sleeping Dogs (1977)

Not Rated | 107 min | Action, Drama, Thriller

A New Zealand man recently estranged from his family gets unwittingly caught up in a revolution.

Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Sam Neill, Nevan Rowe, Ian Mune, Warren Oates

Votes: 1,656

2. Goodbye Pork Pie (1980)

R | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

Dumped by his girlfriend, a man joins a reckless youth in a stolen yellow mini and they drive the length of New Zealand, attracting cops and media attention, determined to get to Invercargill.

Director: Geoff Murphy | Stars: Tony Barry, Kelly Johnson, Claire Oberman, Shirley Gruar

Votes: 1,316

3. Smash Palace (1981)

Not Rated | 108 min | Drama, Thriller

After the break-up of his marriage, a racing driver sets out to get back his daughter - at any cost.

Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Bruno Lawrence, Anna Maria Monticelli, Greer Robson-Kirk, Keith Aberdein

Votes: 1,167

4. Klynham Summer (1982)

PG | 88 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller

The same night as a girl is slain in the woods, the teenagers Sam and Les are robbed of all of their hard earned hens. In the quest for their hens they cross the murderer's path.

Director: Sam Pillsbury | Stars: John Carradine, Tracy Mann, Jono Smith, Daniel McLaren

Votes: 221

5. Vigil (1984)

Not Rated | 90 min | Drama, Mystery

A lonely girl living on an isolated, mist-cloaked farm is confronted with the changes wrought by a stranger that arrives.

Director: Vincent Ward | Stars: Penelope Stewart, Frank Whitten, Bill Kerr, Fiona Kay

Votes: 887

6. Came a Hot Friday (1985)

PG | 101 min | Adventure, Comedy

This eccentric rural New Zealand tale follows two con men as they attempt to trick a small town into their illegal gambling scheme.

Director: Ian Mune | Stars: Peter Bland, Phillip Gordon, Michael Lawrence, Billy T. James

Votes: 226 | Gross: $0.01M

7. Bad Taste (1987)

Not Rated | 91 min | Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi

52 Metascore

The population of a small town disappears and is replaced by aliens that chase human flesh for their intergalactic fast-food chain.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Terry Potter, Pete O'Herne, Craig Smith, Mike Minett

Votes: 49,118

8. An Angel at My Table (1990)

R | 158 min | Biography, Drama

79 Metascore

Janet Frame was a brilliant child who, as a teen, was misdiagnosed with schizophrenia. Explore Janet's discovery of the world and her life in Europe as her books are published to acclaim.

Director: Jane Campion | Stars: Kerry Fox, Alexia Keogh, Karen Fergusson, Iris Churn

Votes: 8,680 | Gross: $1.05M

9. Braindead (1992)

R | 104 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror

54 Metascore

A young man's mother is bitten by a Sumatran rat-monkey. She gets sick and dies, at which time she comes back to life, killing and eating dogs, nurses, friends, and neighbors.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Timothy Balme, Diana Peñalver, Elizabeth Moody, Ian Watkin

Votes: 103,267 | Gross: $0.24M

10. Crush (1992)

Unrated | 97 min | Drama

On the way to interview a novelist, Lane and Christina are involved in a car crash which leaves literary critic Christina brain-damaged. Lane undertakes the assignment and becomes attracted... See full summary »

Director: Alison Maclean | Stars: Marcia Gay Harden, Donogh Rees, Caitlin Bossley, William Zappa

Votes: 564 | Gross: $0.11M

11. The Piano (1993)

R | 121 min | Drama, Music, Romance

89 Metascore

In the mid-19th century a mute woman is sent to New Zealand along with her young daughter and prized piano for an arranged marriage to a farmer, but is soon lusted after by a farm worker.

Director: Jane Campion | Stars: Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, Anna Paquin

Votes: 95,130 | Gross: $40.16M

12. Heavenly Creatures (1994)

R | 99 min | Biography, Crime, Drama

86 Metascore

Two teenage girls share a unique bond; their parents, concerned that the friendship is too intense, separate them, and the girls take revenge.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Melanie Lynskey, Kate Winslet, Sarah Peirse, Diana Kent

Votes: 67,398 | Gross: $3.05M

13. Once Were Warriors (1994)

R | 102 min | Crime, Drama

77 Metascore

A family descended from Maori warriors is bedeviled by a violent father and the societal problems of being treated as outcasts.

Director: Lee Tamahori | Stars: Rena Owen, Temuera Morrison, Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell, Julian Arahanga

Votes: 36,832 | Gross: $2.20M

14. Forgotten Silver (1995 TV Movie)

53 min | Comedy

The film deals with the career of a supposedly forgotten pioneer of international cinema, Colin McKenzie, who was allegedly born in rural New Zealand in 1888.

Directors: Costa Botes, Peter Jackson | Stars: Peter Jackson, Jeffrey Thomas, Costa Botes, Leonard Maltin

Votes: 6,317 | Gross: $0.03M

15. Broken English (1996)

NC-17 | 92 min | Drama, Romance

Ivan is the fierce patriarch of a family of Croatian refugees in Auckland. Nina is his daughter, ready to live on her own, despite his angry objections. Eddie is the Maori she takes as her ... See full summary »

Director: Gregor Nicholas | Stars: Aleksandra Vujcic, Julian Arahanga, Rade Serbedzija, Marton Csokas

Votes: 739 | Gross: $0.48M

16. The Frighteners (1996)

R | 110 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror

52 Metascore

After a tragic car accident that kills his wife, a man discovers he can communicate with the dead, and he uses that gift to con people. However, when a demonic spirit appears, he may be the only one who can stop it from killing the living and the dead.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Michael J. Fox, Trini Alvarado, Peter Dobson, John Astin

Votes: 95,466 | Gross: $16.76M

17. Scarfies (1999)

R | 94 min | Action, Comedy, Thriller

Five kiwi flatmates find something growing in their basement much to their delight, but when the rightful owner comes knocking and finds that they have appropriated the goods things start to go awry.

Director: Robert Sarkies | Stars: Willa O'Neill, Neill Rea, Ashleigh Seagar, Taika Waititi

Votes: 1,162

18. What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? (1999)

108 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller

Jake Muss' oldest son is killed in a gang fight and the younger son wants revenge, but Jake doesn't want to lose his other son to violence as well.

Director: Ian Mune | Stars: Temuera Morrison, Rena Owen, Clint Eruera, Nancy Brunning

Votes: 3,768

19. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

PG-13 | 178 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

92 Metascore

A meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean

Votes: 2,006,485 | Gross: $315.54M

plus the sequels

20. Rain (III) (2001)

TV-MA | 92 min | Drama, Romance

71 Metascore

Whilst on a family vacation on the Mahurangi Peninsula in New Zealand, 13-year-old Janey begins to realize that her parents' marriage is on the rocks.

Director: Christine Jeffs | Stars: Alicia Fulford-Wierzbicki, Sarah Peirse, Marton Csokas, Alistair Browning

Votes: 1,632 | Gross: $0.45M

21. Whale Rider (2002)

PG-13 | 101 min | Drama, Family

80 Metascore

A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.

Director: Niki Caro | Stars: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis

Votes: 44,032 | Gross: $20.78M

22. In My Father's Den (2004)

R | 127 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller

A disillusioned war journalist's return home is blighted when he becomes implicated in the mysterious disappearance of a teenage girl he has befriended.

Director: Brad McGann | Stars: Matthew Macfadyen, Miranda Otto, Emily Barclay, Colin Moy

Votes: 7,865

23. River Queen (2005)

R | 114 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

An intimate story set during the 1860s in which a young Irish woman Sarah and her family find themselves on both sides of the turbulent wars between British and Maori during the British colonization of New Zealand.

Director: Vincent Ward | Stars: Samantha Morton, Kiefer Sutherland, Cliff Curtis, Temuera Morrison

Votes: 2,726

24. King Kong (2005)

PG-13 | 187 min | Action, Adventure, Romance

81 Metascore

A greedy film producer assembles a team of moviemakers and sets out for the infamous Skull Island, where they find more than just cannibalistic natives.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann

Votes: 446,758 | Gross: $218.08M

25. The World's Fastest Indian (2005)

PG-13 | 127 min | Biography, Drama, Sport

68 Metascore

The story of New Zealander Burt Munro, who spent years rebuilding a 1920 Indian motorcycle, which helped him set the land speed world record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats in 1967.

Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Diane Ladd, Iain Rea, Tessa Mitchell

Votes: 58,569 | Gross: $5.13M

26. Samoan Wedding (2006)

Not Rated | 97 min | Comedy, Romance

58 Metascore

Four raucous Samoans are banned from their best friend's wedding. To get in, they have to prove themselves as mature individuals by getting and keeping girlfriends.

Director: Chris Graham | Stars: Oscar Kightley, Heto Ah Hi, Shimpal Lelisi, Robbie Magasiva

Votes: 1,622 | Gross: $0.07M

27. Black Sheep (2006)

Not Rated | 87 min | Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi

62 Metascore

An experiment in genetic engineering turns harmless sheep into bloodthirsty killers that terrorize a sprawling New Zealand farm.

Director: Jonathan King | Stars: Oliver Driver, Nathan Meister, Tammy Davis, Matthew Chamberlain

Votes: 42,095 | Gross: $0.08M

28. Out of the Blue (I) (2006)

103 min | Crime, Drama

70 Metascore

Based on the Aramoana Massacre that occurred on 13 November and 14 November 1990. Resident David Gray, an unemployed gun collector, went on a rampage in which 13 people were shot dead, before Gray himself was shot by police.

Director: Robert Sarkies | Stars: Matthew Sunderland, Stuart Mathieson, Natalie Ellis, Patrick Paynter

Votes: 3,916 | Gross: $0.00M

29. Eagle vs Shark (2007)

R | 88 min | Comedy, Romance

55 Metascore

The tale of two socially-awkward misfits and the strange ways they try to find love: through revenge on high-school bullies, burgers, and video games.

Director: Taika Waititi | Stars: Loren Taylor, Jemaine Clement, Craig Hall, Joel Tobeck

Votes: 26,254 | Gross: $0.22M

30. Boy (I) (2010)

Not Rated | 87 min | Comedy, Drama

70 Metascore

Boy, an 11-year-old child and devout Michael Jackson fan who lives on the east coast of New Zealand in 1984, gets a chance to know his absentee criminal father, who has returned to find a bag of money he buried years ago.

Director: Taika Waititi | Stars: James Rolleston, Te Aho Eketone-Whitu, Taika Waititi, Moerangi Tihore

Votes: 29,515 | Gross: $0.26M

31. My Wedding and Other Secrets (2011)

85 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

The contemporary story of Chinese New Zealand-born over-achiever Emily Chu, raised to believe she can get anything she puts her mind to. Even if 'anything' is at odds with her traditional ... See full summary »

Director: Roseanne Liang | Stars: Michelle Ang, Matt Whelan, Johnny Barker, Pei-Pei Cheng

Votes: 314

32. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

PG-13 | 169 min | Adventure, Fantasy

58 Metascore

A reluctant Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, sets out to the Lonely Mountain with a spirited group of dwarves to reclaim their mountain home, and the gold within it from the dragon Smaug.

Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Andy Serkis

Votes: 872,822 | Gross: $303.00M

33. Century of Cinema (1995–1998)
Episode: Cinema of Unease: A Personal Journey by Sam Neill (1995)

52 min | Documentary, Biography, History

A personal journey through Sam Neill's childhood and memories.

Directors: Sam Neill, Judy Rymer | Stars: Timothy Balme, Melanie Lynskey, Elizabeth Moody, Sam Neill

Votes: 149

34. Housebound (2014)

Not Rated | 107 min | Comedy, Horror, Mystery

76 Metascore

A young woman is forced to return to her childhood home after being placed under house arrest, where she suspects that something evil may be lurking.

Director: Gerard Johnstone | Stars: Morgana O'Reilly, Rima Te Wiata, Glen-Paul Waru, Ross Harper

Votes: 37,562

35. What We Do in the Shadows (2014)

R | 86 min | Comedy, Horror

76 Metascore

Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav are vampires who are struggling with the mundane aspects of modern life, like paying rent, keeping up with the chore wheel, trying to get into nightclubs, and overcoming flatmate conflicts.

Directors: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi | Stars: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Cori Gonzalez-Macuer, Jonny Brugh

Votes: 200,171 | Gross: $3.33M



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