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Materialists may star Hollywood heart-throbs, but it's not quite what it appears. Director Celine Song talks about making a rom-com that shows the reality of modern dating.

The remake of How To Train Your Dragon sticks close to the blueprint, but is missing one elusive ingredient - originality.

My list for the year thus far managed to miss a couple of great remakes of classics by Ang Lee – The Wedding Banquet – and Homer – The Return. I thought Firebrand was a good picture of a forgotten Tudor and Bird was a reminder of how good Andrea Arnold is. My biggest regret is the shortage of decent comedies. Is Sean Baker the 21st Century’s Billy Wilder? Maybe. The competition isn’t particularly fierce yet.

Like other quirky TV shows that explore coercively controlling groups, Sirens leans into the “wackiness” of cult life.

Narrowing down to just 10 shows was no easy task, this could have easily been a Top 20 list without breaking a sweat. Nevertheless, hard decisions had to be made. So here are the 10 shows we consider the best of the year so far.

World-renowned mountaineer Mingma Tsiri's quest to bring back the dead from the world's highest peak is documented in a new film.

The pioneering documentarian says he made his latest film Separated was driven by a “feeling of growing horror” at the United States' government's immigration policies.

Aussie horror flick Dangerous Animals is the latest in the ever popular shark attack oeuvre, Dominic Corry looks at some of the best post-Jaws movies.

As each episode of The Pitt finishes, I wipe the sweat (and sometimes tears) from my face, take a sip of water and get ready for another hour in the ED.

Do spoilers need to shut their big mouths, or do spoiler-phobes need to get over it? We investigate.

Meet the Bay of Plenty possum-trapper who's just become the first Kiwi to win a season of hit survival show Alone.

Inspired by millennial television shows like Gossip Girl, The Sender, which tackles online abuse is aimed squarely at a Gen Z audience.

Thanks to a hi-tech inflatable raft and a support crew, 'Yak' can once again paddle down a raging river.

In 1971, John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono swapped their Ascot mansion and 70-acre estate for a two-room loft in New York's Greenwich Village.

Kōkā is a New Zealand road movie featuring two very different women, writes Simon Morris.

Pike River follows the real-life fight for justice by Anna Osborne and Sonya Rockhouse who lost loved ones in the 2010 mining disaster.

You’ll either go to Anderson’s idea of a '30s-style thriller because of Anderson, or you’ll stay away for the same reason.

The broadcaster reckons he is "quite similar" to the charismatic and well-loved host of the British version of the show, Bradley Walsh.

In Stories of Surrender, Bono appears solo on stage, sharing stories, jokes and songs that illuminate what life is like for the man behind the sunglasses.

Fans have been left 'heartbroken' and angry at the surprise Doctor Who finale.

The 47-year-old, who has been undergoing treatment for incurable cancer for years, was one of 188 New Zealanders honoured for their community contributions.

The new Lilo & Stitch's formula is simple: remove everything that could possibly offend anyone, replace the personalised hand-drawn animation with expensive, photo-realistic CGI, add in a little slapstick and a Bruno Mars song.

Praise be! The series finale of The Handmaid's Tale has dropped and it's the last time we have to sit in a full body clench of anxiety waiting to find out what becomes of June Osborne and her band of rebel handmaids.

There are striking differences between the fanfare and cultural symbolism of earlier seasons of The Handmaid's Tale and its middling finale. How did the show lose its way?

Samoan-Kiwi filmmaker Tuki Laumea checks in with indigenous communities in ten Pacific nations for a new Al Jazeera documentary series.

As a film adaptation of her best-selling memoir screens in cinemas, Raynor Winn reflects on her “gruesome” but life-changing 1,014km coastal trek with husband Moth.

A few years on from The Idol, The Weeknd's newest project seems hell-bent on ruining whatever's left of his audience goodwill.

Is it really the 'final reckoning'? We can but hope, writes film critic Simon Morris.

The NZ Film Commission says the win shows our film sector's reputation for celebrating indigenous storytelling and exceptional leaders.

As Tom Cruise's muscular action franchise reaches its ostensible conclusion – although let's face it: if this one does well, they'll totally come back – it's worth taking stock of the journey taken to get here.

A new award-winning Netflix documentary offers an intimate look at the men's struggles, triumphs and sense of pride in creating something beautiful while behind bars.

First reviews are saying the movie more than lives up to its steamroller hype with one critic calling its action sequences “astonishing” and "just insane".

The US comedian was lured here by the hunt for a guy named Riley who lives in a converted shipping container in Hokitika and poops in a bucket.

Star of the Wellington based drama, Robyn Malcolm, says she hopes this will open doors for New Zealand dramas and writers.

In 2025, the world’s entire catalogue of television is just a click away. So why is that we keep skipping the latest series in favour of old favourites?

Josh Grossberg, a New York-based documentarian and journalist, has been on exhaustive search to find the “Holy Grail of cinema.”

The beloved presenter's latest film is about the glory of the watery world that feeds us, cleans our air and could save us from climate catastrophe. But also about how we are killing it.

Thunderbolts* is the 36th or 37th official Marvel Comics feature, since Kevin Feige started the ball rolling in 2008 with Iron Man - and with each new title Feige’s Cinematic Universe gets more cumbersome and more complex.

For her debut feature documentary about indie folk singer Marlon Williams, Ursula Grace Williams (no relation) wanted to show an artist living his real yet extraordinary life.

If you like the John Wick genre of movie-making, new Netflix offering Havoc might spark joy, says Simon Morris.

The deeply private musician pulls back the curtain on his personal life in a moving new film that tells the story of his bid to reclaim his reo.

Smear campaigns, politicking, gossip and blackmail: Conclave had it all.

The Black Panther director's latest film is such a fresh take on standard genre tropes that you feel like you are watching something brand new.

For once, the marketing hype is real: Warfare, the latest A24 thriller, is one of the most realistic depictions of modern military combat committed to screen.

Bailey Poching plays a radio DJ looking for love in Netflix's new Arctic comedy. The actor, who identifies as Samoan and Māori, relished the role which brings Indigenous communities together.

After the first Smell-O-Vision film was dissed by critics in 1960, the idea of adding aromas to the cinematic experience seemed a bit silly - but at an upcoming screening of Nosferatu, Wellingtonians will give it a go.

For many, it's going to be a wet and wild Easter. Plonk on the couch and pick from our favourites screening over the weekend or new to TV this week.

The Correspondent tells the true story of an Australian journalist and the war on journalism.

Actors Bella Ramsey and Kaitlyn Dever give us the lowdown on the eagerly awaited second series of the hit zombie survival show.

Twelve young Māori and Muslims who share a passion come together in a new documentary series to show how they can connect despite differences.

At 72, actor Ciarán Hinds is far from slowing down. Since his portrayal as the grandfather in Kenneth Branagh's 2021 Oscar-winning movie Belfast he's worked on five more films and six TV series.

Polk: The Trial Of Philip Polkinghorne sheds new light on the complicated characters at the centre of a murder trial steeped in sex, drugs and money.

If it were to go ahead, a rep for the star's production company said they hope it would “widen the aperture, stay true to its DNA, not be repetitive."

All the drama comes to a head in the last episode of Mike White's Thailand-set drama. Warning: contains spoilers.

"Has anyone seen my Lorazepam?" Parker Posey’s Southern-drawled plea has thrust an anti-anxiety drug into the spotlight in the latest season of Mike White's dark comedy.

Here’s just some of the conjecture to dive into as we reluctantly prepare to check out of the White Lotus resort and spa in Thailand.

A film about how cats and humans coexist at a Japanese shrine is enchanting international audiences.

This week, the Ministry of Education released a proposed list of suggested texts for New Zealand school students.

In a career spanning decades, Val Kilmer took on supporting and leading roles spanning from Batman to Doc Holliday.

A room full of kids were totally immersed in the fantasy world of A Minecraft Movie at the NZ premiere, and that's got to tell you something.

All four films about the members of The Beatles are set to be released concurrently in a "binge-able theatrical experience".

Is Snow White truly as awful as everyone says? It doesn’t seem possible.

Dianne Taylor - who actor Robyn Malcom describes as the “voice” of After the Party - reflects on the Kiwi drama’s international appeal.

‘Haumi e, hui e, SHREKIE’: Grassroots launch proves Shrek a game changer for Indigenous nations.

The Kiwi actor was in a Liverpool cafe when she found out the drama series was in the running for a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) award for Best International Show.

More than 100 films and digital works from 86 indigenous nations will be screening at the Māoriland Film Festival on the Kāpiti Coast.

Good American Family is inspired by the harrowing but real story of Natalia Grace, who lives with a rare form of dwarfism. Here's the complicated true story.

Hamdan Ballal was attacked by armed settlers in West Bank and handed to Israeli military, witnesses say.

Could a teenage boy be so influenced by the likes of misogynist Andrew Tate that he's driven to murder his young classmate?

Known as 'The White Lotus effect', tourism spikes in the glorious locations that Mike White's addictively awful characters take us.

With the finale of season two airing this weekend, actress Dichen Lachman discussed how parts of the sci-fi thriller mirror real life.

Netflix streaming came to New Zealand 10 years ago this month and how we watch television has never quite been the same.

Cartoonist and co-writer Tom Scott looks back on the making of one of Aotearoa's most successful films of the 1980s.

Veteran director Mike Leigh returns with his most confronting character yet.

Has any movie managed to alienate everyone like Disney’s remake of a classic children's fairytale?

Netflix spent $500m on this film, yet couldn't afford a decent wig.

Filmmaker Allan George (Ngāti Kahungunu) shares a deeply personal story with animated short Mirumiru.

The veteran English filmmaker tells Culture 101 that the world continues to offer up great stories to tell.

Spit sees low-life criminal John Spitieri from 2003's Gettin’ Square return after 20 years.

The director of 2019 hit Parasite is back with a sci-fi flick in which a lowly worker is regularly killed doing dangerous jobs, only to be revived to die another day.

Despite plenty of thespian firepower, William Tell misses the mark, writes Simon Morris.

Watching movies at home on the sofa might be easy, but it's no match for watching them on the big screen, film buffs say.

Hilaria Baldwin was caught in a cultural appropriation scandal. Alec was involved in an accidental on-set shooting. Some reputation rehab was in order - can this peppy reality show possibly be it?

Nickel Boys was overlooked at the Oscars, but RaMell Ross' adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead is a triumph, writes Simon Morris.

The 97th annual Academy Awards is here - check out who took the big awards.

Ari Kerssens grew up watching queer makeup artists on YouTube and enrolled in a makeup course towards the end of school. It all changed when he lost most of his sight at age 19.

For over 50 years, Spike Milligan's deliciously pernicious witch Badjelly has been hugely popular in New Zealand.

The Netflix star recently became embroiled in a "horrific" catfishing scam in which countless people were contacted by someone claiming to be him.

Underneath all the warm fuzzies and grand gestures, romantic comedies can hide a dark truth about unrealistic expectations.

The popular empire-building game Civilization - beloved by Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk - has a new edition out soon.

The three surviving members of cult rock band Led Zeppelin have been famously media-shy since their bandmate John Bonham died in 1980. In Becoming Led Zeppelin, we hear all four of them reflecting on the band's origins.

Jarring explanations of the obvious aside, local audiences will find much to enjoy about the 83-year-old actor's new show Miriam Margolyes in New Zealand.

The Golden Globe-nominated film Babygirl is yet another example of an erotic sub-genre that we're told rarely gets made. But is that still true?

Prime Minister premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last week and the reviews are mixed.

The romantic chemistry between Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield as a young couple threatened by serious illness is off the charts.

Timothée Chalamet shines in his portrayal of the protean Bob Dylan in director James Mangold's A Complete Unknown.

Tinā takes viewers on an emotional ride through the life of Mareta Percival, played by Anapela Polataivao.

About 200 games are set to come out in 2025 - many long-awaited big budget sequels. So, hold on to your wallets and get ready to expand those hard drives.

From primal screams and mystery men to Kiwi music and cows, we take a look back at some of the late auteur's weirdest happenings.

The animated film Flow is destined to be a classic that audiences will return to year after year, writes Dan Slevin.

Some promising new telly shows (The Studio, It) and some returning favourites (White Lotus, Black Mirror).

Robert Eggers' remake of Nosferatu is a little bloodless.

When 130 cardinals gather in Rome to elect a new pope, intrigue and politics aren't very far behind, writes Dan Slevin.

Queer, Alien Weaponry: Kua Tupu Te Ara, and Superman - the flicks we can't wait to see in 2025.

Paddington's latest adventure doesn't quite hit the same mark that the unequivocal masterpiece Paddington 2 did, but it still tugs at the heartstrings, Dan Slevin writes.

Dan Slevin looks back at the cinematic year and picks his 10 top films - and not a horror flick among them.

From reality TV to sci-fi, here are the shows that stood out for reviewer Karl Puschmann.

It's supposed to be a Spider-Man universe movie involving a quest for vengeance, but Samuel Rillstone says this bland and boring story has nothing to recommend it.

New Zealand-born actress Anna Sawai, Kiwi actor Antony Starr and the What We Do in the Shadows spinoff will face some tough competition.

The US comedian and talkshow host delivered two minutes of pure, absurd genius as Dr Aiden Archer.

From a twisted take on Freaky Friday to a deeply satisfying 'eat the rich' fable, here are some Halloween movies that might give you a jolt but won't keep you up at night.

With a not-guilty verdict still reverberating around the country, at least one film crew is working on a documentary. Is that a good thing?

The notoriously punishing, elite world of the Moscow Bolshoi Ballet Academy is centre stage in Joika - the first-ever film collaboration between New Zealand and Poland.