The following NZIFF 2019 picks are from our crew. And we can’t pass up an opportunity to mention the Film Quiz we’re co-presenting at the Wintergarden in Auckland on 3 August. See you there!
Films — by Collection
- Film Talks: Jane Ross
- Flicks.co.nz
- Letterboxd Community
- Letterboxd Crew
- Lumière Cinemas
- Staff Picks: Bradley Pratt
- Staff Picks: Charlotte Underhill
- Staff Picks: Daniel Burger
- Staff Picks: Emma Carter
- Staff Picks: Ina Kinski
- Staff Picks: Jessica Hof
- Staff Picks: Lauren Day
- Staff Picks: Lauri Korpela
- Staff Picks: Lynnaire MacDonald
- Staff Picks: Michael McDonnell
- Staff Picks: Nick Paris
- Staff Picks: Rebecca McMillan
- Staff Picks: Sandra Reid
- Staff Picks: Sharon Byrne
- Staff Picks: Tim Wong
- Wellington Film Society
Letterboxd Crew
![Herbs: Songs of Freedom](/assets/resized/sm/upload/mm/yh/un/68/Herbs%20Image%202%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=6c3d6b5d8e)
Herbs: Songs of Freedom
Director Tearepa Kahi’s follow-up to the infectious Poi E is a rousing celebration of Pacific reggae legends Herbs, the band’s members and its action as an inspiring musical front for social rights and harmony.
![Les Misérables](/assets/resized/sm/upload/wa/78/2o/ot/KEY2-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=4ffbfb0395)
Les Misérables
In the crime-ridden suburbs of impoverished Paris, the line between corrupt cop and upstanding criminal is not so clearly defined, in this explosive, Cannes Jury Prize-winning French thriller.
![High Life](/assets/resized/sm/upload/97/9o/ki/6t/NYFF_MainSlate_HighLife_image%20credit%20Claire%20Denis%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=fa6dd687e3)
High Life
A forbidding spaceship carrying death row inmates hurtles towards oblivion in Claire Denis’s long-awaited, intensely hypnotic sci-fi opus.
![In Fabric](/assets/resized/sm/upload/ut/uw/d9/25/In-Fabric_sewing-01.jpeg_cmyk%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=564ba24cd6)
In Fabric
A cross between Suspiria and an old Farmers catalogue, the latest from retro genre stylist Peter Strickland, centring on a demonic dress at a posh department store, gleefully satirises fashion and consumerism.
![Bellbird](/assets/resized/sm/upload/cq/pm/d4/q8/bellbird1%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=56a85db610)
Bellbird
Marshall Napier, Cohen Holloway and Rachel House shine in Hamish Bennett’s beautifully judged, poignantly funny drama of life and community on a struggling Northland family dairy farm.
![Deerskin](/assets/resized/sm/upload/7e/hm/9g/37/LE_DAIM_Photo_1%E2%88%8FAtelier-de-Production%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=07d0627cc9)
Deerskin
Le daim
Georges, 44 years old, and his jacket, 100% deerskin, have grand plans in director Quentin Dupieux’s latest cinematic oddity, destined for cult status.
![Brittany Runs a Marathon](/assets/resized/sm/upload/wp/bt/03/bx/brittanyrunsamarathon1-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=a2f555f56d)
Brittany Runs a Marathon
Jillian Bell (Workaholics, Rough Night) stars in this Audience Award-winning Sundance comedy about a New York slacker who takes up running in the hopes of getting her life back on track.
![Escher: Journey into Infinity](/assets/resized/sm/upload/u7/f6/d4/zu/Dag%20en%20Nacht%20kopie%20KEY2-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=b5b2b30530)
Escher: Journey into Infinity
Escher: Het oneindige zoeken
This vivid portrait explores M.C. Escher’s life and imaginative world through his own words and visions. Narrated by Stephen Fry.
![The Nightingale](/assets/resized/sm/upload/ty/fp/81/3r/19773_Nightingale_still1_AislingFranciosi__byKasiaLadczuk%20KEY-0-520-0-390-crop.jpg?k=92eed02f7d)
The Nightingale
Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, Jennifer Kent’s brutal revenge saga is an unrelenting reckoning with white male oppression – and not for the faint of heart.