37th Wellington Film Festival

At the Embassy, Paramount, Film Archive, Penthouse Cinema and Te Papa till August 3

The 37th Wellington Film Festival starts today, and it's looking like being a terrific year.

The list of must-sees in my dog-eared programme is growing by the day. I can especially recommend the feature film Apron Strings. The only full-length fictional film from a New Zealand director in the festival, Apron Strings is an Auckland-based story about two very different families who both run food businesses in Otahuhu. What sounds like the tiniest of stories grows some universal relevance in Sima Urale's debut feature. The film makes a virtue of accurate performances, a nicely wrought script, and some gorgeous camerawork. Go see it.

The lineup of documentaries is particularly strong. Juliette Weber's Trouble is My Business, about an inspirational South Auckland teacher, deserves to be a sellout. I've seen The Not Dead, Bigger Stronger Faster, Crazy Love, The King of Kong, Garbage Warrior, Up the Yangtze, Stranded, and Taxi to the Darkside during the past few days and I've been impressed by all of them. Look out for locally made Clash of the Titans, a nicely made piece on Wellington's hip-hop culture.

The big-hitting international acts don't need any publicity from me, but Let the Right One In, Empties, O'Horten, Ben X, and Married Life are all startlingly good films. It's also great to see Ant Timpson's legendary Incredibly Strange selection back in full force. I'm picking I Think We're Alone Now, REC, and Teeth as being unmissable. Take your mum.

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