New Zealand-born director Lee Tamahori has dabbled in big-budget Hollywood film-making as well as more intimately-scaled films exploring his Māori heritage. So he brings both skills to bear in his sweeping, early 19th-century period drama about Māori conflict— ostensibly crafting a founding myth for New Zealand.
Continue reading ‘The Convert’ Review: Guy Pearce Stars In Lee Tamahori’s Stunning, Sweeping & Action-Packed Historical Epic [TIFF] at The Playlist.
Continue reading ‘The Convert’ Review: Guy Pearce Stars In Lee Tamahori’s Stunning, Sweeping & Action-Packed Historical Epic [TIFF] at The Playlist.
- 9/10/2023
- by Ankit Jhunjhunwala
- The Playlist
When lay minister Thomas Munro (Guy Pearce) first reaches the shores of New Zealand in 1830, he does so on a white horse. A religious British man riding into a far-off land on his milky stallion is the picture of a white savior if there ever was one. But director Lee Tamahori has other plans for this well-spoken man of God in his blood-soaked period drama “The Convert,” his first feature film outing since 2016’s soapy “The Patriarch.”
From the onset, the stunning vistas, handsomely photographed by Gin Loane, signal the underlying theme of the narrative: Survival belongs to the strongest, a precept that grows in significance as the plot progresses. The fierce introduction to this unforgiving environment is a shot of a large bird making a smaller one its prey in one swift motion. Through such imagery, Tamahori aims to imbue the violence that permeates with a primal quality, obeying...
From the onset, the stunning vistas, handsomely photographed by Gin Loane, signal the underlying theme of the narrative: Survival belongs to the strongest, a precept that grows in significance as the plot progresses. The fierce introduction to this unforgiving environment is a shot of a large bird making a smaller one its prey in one swift motion. Through such imagery, Tamahori aims to imbue the violence that permeates with a primal quality, obeying...
- 9/9/2023
- by Carlos Aguilar
- Variety Film + TV
The apocalyptic anxiety of our present sociopolitical moment is the not-so-hidden undergirding of Alistair Banks Griffin’s psychodrama “The Wolf Hour,” in which Naomi Watts plays June Leigh, a fearful author who’s isolated herself from the outside world by holing up in her fifth-floor South Bronx walk-up.
But it’s not 2019, when even the most dedicated of hermits can feel connected to others through the Internet. Griffin’s analog setting is the summer of 1977, when New York’s then-notorious version of urban decay had segments of the city ready to ignite, while a steady stream of news about “The .44 Caliber Killer” — a female-targeting serial murderer soon to be known as “Son of Sam” — had single women on edge, especially those with long, dark hair, like June’s.
But despite a typically committed performance by Watts, once again showing her special affinity for hard-edged sufferers grinding out a way to survive,...
But it’s not 2019, when even the most dedicated of hermits can feel connected to others through the Internet. Griffin’s analog setting is the summer of 1977, when New York’s then-notorious version of urban decay had segments of the city ready to ignite, while a steady stream of news about “The .44 Caliber Killer” — a female-targeting serial murderer soon to be known as “Son of Sam” — had single women on edge, especially those with long, dark hair, like June’s.
But despite a typically committed performance by Watts, once again showing her special affinity for hard-edged sufferers grinding out a way to survive,...
- 12/5/2019
- by Robert Abele
- The Wrap
Lee Van Cleef in Giancarlo Santi’s The Grand Duel (1972) will be available on Blu-ray May 7th From Arrow Video
The Grand Duel is an archetypal spaghetti western which boasts many of the genre s classic hallmarks including action-packed gunfights, wild stunts and an impressive climactic showdown…
Genre stalwart Lee Van Cleef stars as a gnarled ex-sheriff called Clayton who comes to the aid of young Philipp Wermeer (Alberto Dentice), a fugitive framed for the murder of a powerful figure called The Patriarch. Clayton helps Philipp fend off attacks from bounty hunters in a series of thrilling shootouts before the two make their way to Jefferson to confront three villains known as the Saxon brothers, and reveal who really killed The Patriarch.
A complex tale of revenge penned by prolific giallo writer Ernesto Gastaldi, The Grand Duel benefits from a beguiling central performance from Lee Van Cleef and assured helmsmanship from Giancarlo Santi.
The Grand Duel is an archetypal spaghetti western which boasts many of the genre s classic hallmarks including action-packed gunfights, wild stunts and an impressive climactic showdown…
Genre stalwart Lee Van Cleef stars as a gnarled ex-sheriff called Clayton who comes to the aid of young Philipp Wermeer (Alberto Dentice), a fugitive framed for the murder of a powerful figure called The Patriarch. Clayton helps Philipp fend off attacks from bounty hunters in a series of thrilling shootouts before the two make their way to Jefferson to confront three villains known as the Saxon brothers, and reveal who really killed The Patriarch.
A complex tale of revenge penned by prolific giallo writer Ernesto Gastaldi, The Grand Duel benefits from a beguiling central performance from Lee Van Cleef and assured helmsmanship from Giancarlo Santi.
- 4/19/2019
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Nigerian metropolis Lagos is the focus of the eighth City To City showcase at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) as top brass anoint two international Rising Stars.
Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.
A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.
Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.
Rounding out the...
Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.
A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.
Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.
Rounding out the...
- 8/16/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Nigerian capital Lagos is the focus of the eighth City To City showcase at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) as top brass anoint two international Rising Stars.
Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.
A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.
Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.
Rounding out the...
Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.
A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.
Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.
Rounding out the...
- 8/16/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
The Toronto International Film Festival is mere weeks from kicking off, yet the annual fall fest is showing zero sign of slowing down when it comes to announcing the titles that will round out this year’s event. Today’s announcement brings with it a number of Cannes favorites, including Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or-winning “I, Daniel Blake,” Olivier Assayas’ divisive Kristen Stewart-starring “Personal Shopper” and Pedro Almodovar’s “Julieta.”
Read More: Tiff Reveals First Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Magnificent Seven,’ ‘American Honey,’ ‘La La Land’ and ‘Birth of A Nation’
The slate will also play home to the Dardenne Brothers’ latest, “The Unknown Girl,” which has reportedly been through an edit since it debuted at Cannes earlier this year. Other standouts from Cannes include Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “Aquarius,” Boo Junfeng’s “Apprentice,” Cristian Mungiu’s “Graduation,” Brillante Ma Mendoza’s “Ma’ Rosa” and Cristi Puiu’s “Sieranevada.
Read More: Tiff Reveals First Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Magnificent Seven,’ ‘American Honey,’ ‘La La Land’ and ‘Birth of A Nation’
The slate will also play home to the Dardenne Brothers’ latest, “The Unknown Girl,” which has reportedly been through an edit since it debuted at Cannes earlier this year. Other standouts from Cannes include Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “Aquarius,” Boo Junfeng’s “Apprentice,” Cristian Mungiu’s “Graduation,” Brillante Ma Mendoza’s “Ma’ Rosa” and Cristi Puiu’s “Sieranevada.
- 8/16/2016
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Alex Russell in Ivan Sen's Goldstone.
The Sydney Film Festival's Travelling Film Fest returns to Newcastle this year, screening at Tower Cinemas from June 24-26.
Sff's roadshow takes films around the country after they've screened at the festival itself, which takes place in Sydney from June 8-19.
Highlights include Sff's opening night film Goldstone, directed by Ivan Sen and starring Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell, Jacki Weaver, David Wenham and David Gulpilil, and closing night film Love and Friendship, Whit Stillman's adaptation of an early, unheralded Jane Austen short novel.
Stillman's acclaimed comedy of manners stars Australia's own Xavier Samuel as well as Stephen Fry, Kate Beckinsale and Chloë Sevigny.
.We are thrilled to be returning to Tower Cinemas with a vibrant program of four short films and nine feature films including one documentary,. Travelling Film Festival Manager Alicia Emery said.
Other films set to go on tour include Lee Tamahori's Mahana,...
The Sydney Film Festival's Travelling Film Fest returns to Newcastle this year, screening at Tower Cinemas from June 24-26.
Sff's roadshow takes films around the country after they've screened at the festival itself, which takes place in Sydney from June 8-19.
Highlights include Sff's opening night film Goldstone, directed by Ivan Sen and starring Aaron Pedersen, Alex Russell, Jacki Weaver, David Wenham and David Gulpilil, and closing night film Love and Friendship, Whit Stillman's adaptation of an early, unheralded Jane Austen short novel.
Stillman's acclaimed comedy of manners stars Australia's own Xavier Samuel as well as Stephen Fry, Kate Beckinsale and Chloë Sevigny.
.We are thrilled to be returning to Tower Cinemas with a vibrant program of four short films and nine feature films including one documentary,. Travelling Film Festival Manager Alicia Emery said.
Other films set to go on tour include Lee Tamahori's Mahana,...
- 5/17/2016
- by Staff Writer
- IF.com.au
Cleverman.
Park Road Post has worked on some major productions over the past few years including the The Hobbit, Bilal, The Hunt for the Wilderpeople and The Dark Horse.
But it.s their work on Australian-New Zealand co-production Cleverman which has set tongues wagging on both sides of the Tasman.
Park Road Post chief executive, Cameron Harland told If one of the biggest highlights of 2015 was working with Goalpost and Pukeko on Cleverman.
.This was an Australian production with very much an Australian heart and story but posted in its entirety in New Zealand at Park Road,. he said..
.We have been blown away by how successful the early screenings have been and how widely the production has been picked up, but also in the way the production worked..
.I know that Graeme Mason (Screen Australia chief executive) is a big advocate of co-productions and was particularly engaged in this...
Park Road Post has worked on some major productions over the past few years including the The Hobbit, Bilal, The Hunt for the Wilderpeople and The Dark Horse.
But it.s their work on Australian-New Zealand co-production Cleverman which has set tongues wagging on both sides of the Tasman.
Park Road Post chief executive, Cameron Harland told If one of the biggest highlights of 2015 was working with Goalpost and Pukeko on Cleverman.
.This was an Australian production with very much an Australian heart and story but posted in its entirety in New Zealand at Park Road,. he said..
.We have been blown away by how successful the early screenings have been and how widely the production has been picked up, but also in the way the production worked..
.I know that Graeme Mason (Screen Australia chief executive) is a big advocate of co-productions and was particularly engaged in this...
- 2/19/2016
- by Brian Karlovsky
- IF.com.au
Halfway through The Patriarch (Mahana), young Simeon (Akuhata Keef) is enjoying a trip to the cinema that he’s fought hard for. His grandfather, Tamihana (Temuera Morrison), who rules undisputed over his extended Maori family, sees him as insubordinate and certainly would prefer the kids don’t “waste money on make-believe.” But Simeon loves westerns, and a town screening of 3:10 to Yuma is too good to pass up. Yet even Glenn Ford and Van Eflin’s march towards that train platform is derailed by intrusions from the real world, with a member of a rival family riding a horse into the cinema and an unexpected kiss opening up new perspectives in the ensuing confusion.
It’s a brief moment of autobiographical fun for director Lee Tamahori, who sprinkles bits of his own New Zealand upbringing on top of this adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s novel Bulibasha: King of the Gypsies.
It’s a brief moment of autobiographical fun for director Lee Tamahori, who sprinkles bits of his own New Zealand upbringing on top of this adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s novel Bulibasha: King of the Gypsies.
- 2/15/2016
- by Tommaso Tocci
- The Film Stage
I still can't believe I'm saying this. Lee Tamahori, director of Die Another Day (one of my least favorite Bond movies) and other junk like xXx: State of the Union, has actually made a rather wonderful film. I'll admit - I kinda loved it. Maybe because I really had no idea what to expect. The Patriarch, also known as Mahana, is a film about the Mahana family in New Zealand. It's set during the 1960s and focuses on one boy in the family named Simeon, played by Akuhata Keefe who is the only one, out of about 20 members, to ever challenge and speak out against the patriarch of the family, played by Temuera Morrison. It's an uplifting story about how things can change over generations, and it's just as fun to watch as it is inspiring. On paper, The Patriarch sounds like it's a powerful drama about how one man rules over an entire family.
- 2/14/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Lee Tamahori reunites with Once Were Warriors star Temuera Morrison for a melodrama about feuding sheep-shearing families that gambols along at a clip
Some feuds feel as old as the land. The Mahanas and the Poatas are rival sheep-shearing families, working the east coast of 1960s New Zealand, when they’re not picking at the scab of a decades-old injustice.
Lee Tamahori directs a handsome melodrama, based on the book by Whale Rider author Witi Ihimaera and headed up by his Once Were Warriors star Temuera Morrison. Morrison’s character here, Grandfather Mahana, is less impulsively violent than Once Were Warriors’s Jake “The Muss” Heke, but he shares his anger, his pride and his sense of encroaching desperation as the times move on and power slips from him.
Continue reading...
Some feuds feel as old as the land. The Mahanas and the Poatas are rival sheep-shearing families, working the east coast of 1960s New Zealand, when they’re not picking at the scab of a decades-old injustice.
Lee Tamahori directs a handsome melodrama, based on the book by Whale Rider author Witi Ihimaera and headed up by his Once Were Warriors star Temuera Morrison. Morrison’s character here, Grandfather Mahana, is less impulsively violent than Once Were Warriors’s Jake “The Muss” Heke, but he shares his anger, his pride and his sense of encroaching desperation as the times move on and power slips from him.
Continue reading...
- 2/13/2016
- by Henry Barnes
- The Guardian - Film News
"This country is great because of hard working men. Don't let us forget who our friends are, nor who are our enemies." eOne in Australia has debuted the first official trailer for the film The Patriarch, otherwise known as Mahana down in New Zealand, the latest drama from filmmaker Lee Tamahori (who previously made films like The Edge and Die Another Day before circling back around). The film tells a tale of family rivalry and reconciliation, set against the stunning backdrop of rural New Zealand in the 1960's. Temuera Morrison stars as Grandfather Mahana, along with Akuhata Keefe and many other fresh young faces. This trailer starts fairly slow, but picks up and becomes something quite beautiful and alluring by the end. Here's the first trailer for Lee Tamahori's The Patriarch, or Mahana, on YouTube (via The Film Stage): 1960s, East Coast of New Zealand. Two Maori sheep-shearing families,...
- 2/8/2016
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
New films from Lee Tamahori and Anne Zohra Berrached also added.
The Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) has completed the line-up of its Competiton programme, of which 18 out of 23 will vye for the Golden and Silver Bears. A total of 19 titles of the films are world premieres.
Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq will receive its international premiere as part of the strand, but will play out of competition.
The film stars Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris and Wesley Snipes, and is a modern day adaptation of the ancient Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes, set against the backdrop of gang violence in Chicago.
Germany’s Anne Zohra Berrached, who premiered Two Mothers at the Berlinale’s Perspektive Deutsches Kino in 2013, returns with 24 Weeks (24 Wochen). The film centres on the dilemma faced by a woman who is already six months pregnant when she learns that her unborn child will have Down‘s syndrome as well as a serious heart defect...
The Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) has completed the line-up of its Competiton programme, of which 18 out of 23 will vye for the Golden and Silver Bears. A total of 19 titles of the films are world premieres.
Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq will receive its international premiere as part of the strand, but will play out of competition.
The film stars Nick Cannon, Teyonah Parris and Wesley Snipes, and is a modern day adaptation of the ancient Greek play Lysistrata by Aristophanes, set against the backdrop of gang violence in Chicago.
Germany’s Anne Zohra Berrached, who premiered Two Mothers at the Berlinale’s Perspektive Deutsches Kino in 2013, returns with 24 Weeks (24 Wochen). The film centres on the dilemma faced by a woman who is already six months pregnant when she learns that her unborn child will have Down‘s syndrome as well as a serious heart defect...
- 1/20/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
The New Zealand Film Commission has named the recipients of its one-off business development scheme Boost, with total funding of more than $NZ450,000.
The scheme is designed to accelerate the slates of active producers and to enable screen businesses to move films more quickly into production.
Applicants were invited to apply for $NZ50,000 - $NZ130,000 per business. At least 50 per cent of the money must be allocated to third party development costs and the commission expects the entire amount to be spent within 12-18 months.
The recipients are Jump Film and Television, Centron Pictures, Pop Film, Four Knights Film and Firefly Films.
Making the announcement at the Big Screen Symposium conference, Nzfc CEO Dave Gibson, said that screen companies in New Zealand are growing in number and scale and he expects the five Boost companies will contribute to this growth.
Founded by Robin Scholes, Jump Pictures is completing Lee Tamahori...
The scheme is designed to accelerate the slates of active producers and to enable screen businesses to move films more quickly into production.
Applicants were invited to apply for $NZ50,000 - $NZ130,000 per business. At least 50 per cent of the money must be allocated to third party development costs and the commission expects the entire amount to be spent within 12-18 months.
The recipients are Jump Film and Television, Centron Pictures, Pop Film, Four Knights Film and Firefly Films.
Making the announcement at the Big Screen Symposium conference, Nzfc CEO Dave Gibson, said that screen companies in New Zealand are growing in number and scale and he expects the five Boost companies will contribute to this growth.
Founded by Robin Scholes, Jump Pictures is completing Lee Tamahori...
- 10/11/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Roger Donaldson is attached to direct two projects, a feature doc and a feature, inspired by the lives of two famous Kiwis.
McLaren will profile Bruce McLaren, the Formula One champion who won the Us Grand Prix when he was 23, the youngest ever to do so.
The Guinea Pig Club will chronicle the story of renegade plastic surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe, who revolutionised the treatment of burns victims during WW2.
The New Zealand Film Commission has offered conditional investment to both projects. Donaldson has already shot some footage for McLaren, using Nzfc development funds.
The Nzfc is also co-funding The Patriarch, just the second Kiwi feature from director Lee Tamahori, who broke through with Once Were Warriors in 1994.
Due to shoot on March 24, the drama is scripted by John Collee, based on Whale Rider author Witi Ihimaera's novel Bulibasha. The protagonist is the youngest son of a huge extended Maori family of shearers,...
McLaren will profile Bruce McLaren, the Formula One champion who won the Us Grand Prix when he was 23, the youngest ever to do so.
The Guinea Pig Club will chronicle the story of renegade plastic surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe, who revolutionised the treatment of burns victims during WW2.
The New Zealand Film Commission has offered conditional investment to both projects. Donaldson has already shot some footage for McLaren, using Nzfc development funds.
The Nzfc is also co-funding The Patriarch, just the second Kiwi feature from director Lee Tamahori, who broke through with Once Were Warriors in 1994.
Due to shoot on March 24, the drama is scripted by John Collee, based on Whale Rider author Witi Ihimaera's novel Bulibasha. The protagonist is the youngest son of a huge extended Maori family of shearers,...
- 2/3/2015
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
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