WILD MAN: GEOFF MURPHY AND THE BIRTH OF THE AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND FILM INDUSTRY

For much of the 20th century Aotearoa New Zealand had no official film industry to speak of. It wasn’t until the early 1970s that conditions became ripe for development. Young aspirant filmmakers joined collectives and made independent productions – including Geoff Murphy’s (1938–2018) first feature film made with his musical co-operative Blerta, Wild Man (1977) – eventually spurring the government to action. Established in 1978, the New Zealand Film Commission functioned to encourage and promote screen production, and in the decade after its inception more films were completed in New Zealand than had been made over the previous 80 years. Murphy was amongst a core group of figures who contributed to the industry’s increasingly diverse production slate, along with Roger Donaldson, Ian Mune, Gaylene Preston, Merata Mita and Alun Bollinger. Hollywood stars also started to travel to New Zealand to add a little international flair, and when Smash Palace (1981) became the first production of this renaissance to screen at Cannes, the industry seemed to have finally come into its own. After his own initial critical and commercial success with the groundbreaking Goodbye Pork Pie (1981), Murphy directed two key films of the era, Utu (1983) and The Quiet Earth (1985), both of which feature in this program and star iconic actor Bruno Lawrence.

Wednesday 29 July

7:00pm THE QUIET EARTH

Geoff Murphy (1985) 91 mins – M

Loosely based on Craig Harrison’s 1982 novel of the same name, this post-apocalyptic science-fiction film follows a scientist, played impeccably by Bruno Lawrence (also co-writer of the screenplay), who grapples with the fact that he has caused the end of the world. Widely regarded as one of the standout films of the New Zealand New Wave and a landmark in genre filmmaking, Murphy’s key work has achieved cult status, with astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson naming it as one of his favourite science-fiction films of all time. With Alison Routledge and Peter Smith.

8:50pm UTU REDUX

Geoff Murphy (2013) 107 mins – Unclassified 15+

Anzac Wallace stars as a Māori rebel battling against the destruction of his home, alongside Bruno Lawrence as a Pākehā settler avenging the murder of his wife. A dark and violent “puha” western with a distinctly Kiwi sense of humour, this was the country’s second feature to screen at Cannes and was called “probably the seminal New Zealand film” by filmmaker Gaylene Preston. A 2013 project led by Murphy and cinematographer Graeme Cowley saw the film restored to their original vision. With Wi Kuki Kaa and Merata Mita.

Film courtesy of Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga New Zealand Film Commission and Aotearoa New Zealand Film Heritage Trust.