One year after being cancelled last minute in Auckland due to COVID-19, cinephiles are rejoicing with the return of the 2022 Whānau Mārama: New Zealand International Film Festival just days away.
The event opens on Thursday in Tāmaki Makaurau with the premiere of new Kiwi film Muru, about the 2007 New Zealand police raids of the Ngāi Tūhoe community of Rūātoki.
The festival will then head around the country to keep everyone entertained during the final days of winter.
Here are five unmissable films from this year's event.
FIRE OF LOVE
Have you ever heard of French volcanologists Maurice and Katia Krafft?
Not to worry if you haven't, because this documentary from Sara Dosa looks at the pair whose seminal work into the exploration of eruptions helped inform early warning systems. And it's a completely compelling piece of work that oozes French vibes and incredible imagery.
It's no spoiler to say unfortunately the Kraffts were killed while investigating a volcanic eruption - but this film wastes no time revelling in mawkishness, instead preferring to use the Kraffts' own stunning home video footage to tell their story.
You'll never look at another erupting volcano in the same light - and you won't leave the cinema without a tear in your eye and your mouth wide open at the jaw-dropping imagery.
CRIMES OF THE FUTURE
Any film from Canadian director David Cronenberg that caused such a polarising audience reaction has to be worth a watch.
At the Cannes film festival in 2022, people walked out, booed, or gave an adoring standing ovation to the body horrormeister's latest, a cautionary tale about a celebrity performance artist (Viggo Mortensen) who undergoes various surgeries live on stage.
But when Kristen Stewart's organs cop comes a-knocking, things get more complicated…
Crimes of the Future's script was written 20 years ago, but with the recent news of the overturning of abortion bill Roe v Wade in the US, it's perhaps as timely as it'll ever be.
MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON
The film festival has a delightful tradition of showcasing animation at its event - and giving a big screen slot to a piece of international animated fare on a weekend when families can go together and enjoy.
This year is no different - with a cutesy looking film entitled Marcel The Shell with Shoes On. Voiced by US comedian Jenny Slate, and based on a series of short films by director Dean Fleischer-Camp, this is stop-motion animation at its most endearing.
It's guaranteed to ensure families have an experience and younger viewers may have their eyes opened to other forms of film-making than the usual superhero fare which tends to clog up our cinemas these days.
GLORIAVALE
New Zealanders are fascinated by the concept of Gloriavale.
Nestled down on the West Coast, the Christian Community's already been the subject of a series of relatively light-hearted TV specials looking at the characters within.
But directors Fergus Grady and Noel Smyth are aiming for something a little more serious here, as they follow a family of survivors who escaped from the compound, and are trying to pick up the pieces of their lives.
With home video footage, secret recordings and a shocking expose at its heart, Gloriavale is an intriguing documentary that mixes legal dramas with personal stories - and sensitively wraps it all up into a 90 minute tale that somehow feels like the opening salvo of a series of films, rather than a complete tale.
ALI & AVA
Described as an "understated triumph" by The Guardian, this is the latest from director Clio Barnard, whose 2013 NZIFF entrant The Selfish Giant utterly unravelled me.
Following a forbidden affair between Adeel Akhtar's Ali and Claire Rushbrook's Ava, this interracial romance offers as many heartfelt moments as it does insights into social reality.
Lauded for its authenticity and unshowy nature, Ali & Ava could be the one sleeper hit of the festival that all your friends will be talking about - so best see it either first or with them.
All the details of the full programme playing the 2022 Whānau Mārama: New Zealand International Film Festival can be found at www.nziff.co.nz
