Movies

By Ben Wheeler In 2016 I was moved by an animated film called Zootopia in a way I’m sure I haven’t been before. It told the story of an overachieving rabbit rookie cop, Officer Judy Hops (Ginnifer Goodwin), shady street fox Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman,) and their unlikely partnership and takedown of a conspiracy to […]

The final night of the 5th Pacific Human Rights Film Festival in Suva gave audiences an unforgettable experience through the screening of Ocean with David Attenborough.

“I love Fiji, it’s never been out of my heart,” says Jean Bish, the protagonist and heart of the documentary Fiji Memory, Colonial Time, part-way through the film. Jean was born in Lami – just outside Suva – in 1925. A fourth- generation colonial, she had been away from Fiji for 40 years when her […]

The tide has started to turn as an upcoming filmmaker launches his film, Bati, approaching Pacific issues through a Pasifika lens. Born in Tuvalu, and raised and educated in Suva, Andrew John Fakaua Ponto is about to premiere his movie across the Pacific. Bati is a gripping drama which tells the story of a humble […]

The fourth edition of the European Film Festival officially opened on May 16 at Damodar City cinemas in Suva, bringing a vibrant and free celebration of European cinema to local audiences.

By Ema Ganivatu A collaboration between Fiji and Australia is set to bring a powerful and untold historical story to the screen. Unspoken, a joint production between Salt of the Earth Productions (SoTE) in Sydney and local Fijian filmmakers, tells the story of forbidden love and racial divides in colonial Fiji. Led by Fiji-born, Melbourne-based […]

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues its slide into unwitting self-parody, there is a filmmaker who has embraced the idea of genre burlesque and is running with it to fantastic effect. That person is Osgood Perkins – director of last year’s much-hyped super stylish thriller-horror Longlegs – and a little understanding of the man’s personal […]

By Ben Wheeler Writer-director Sanjane Koneshamoorthy and director of photography Rah Sharma talk about their Australian-produced film Arranged Love, screening in Fiji this February. “I was a kid sitting in Nehru Primary, daydreaming about becoming an aircraft engineer, even though I struggled in my studies,” Sharma says. “Life took unexpected turns, but when you start […]

Thousands attended the fourth Pacific Human Rights Film Festival in Suva to watch Pacific-based films and engage in discussions on the theme of ‘Oceans and Land’.

The short films titled In Exile and My Fish Is Your Fish were showcased before more than 200 high school students from across Suva.

By Ben Wheeler The Fourth Pacific Human Rights Film Festival is gearing up for what organisers expect to be its biggest and most successful year yet. This October audiences will be treated to the Fijian premiere of the sumptuous ecofeminist feature Pacific Mother and an exclusive director’s cut of the stunning reef renewal documentary Protecting […]

By Ben Wheeler If anyone deserves the moniker of Fijian Traveller right now, it is Tumeli ‘Meli’ Tuqota Jr. In recent years, his work as Fiji’s premier film producer and director has seen him voyage from the Maoriland Film Festival in New Zealand to the Rochefort Film Festival in France. He has also had spells […]

By Ben Wheeler Movie Review: The Fall Guy I do love the Courier font. I think it looks cool. It reminds me of my old typewriter, and it reminds me of movie scripts, which are always written in Courier or one of its variations. It has connotations of control – each character and each space […]

By Ben Wheeler Zendaya is, to quote Jacobim Mugatu, so hot right now. She’s in the MCU and she’s in the Duniverse. She’s prolific beyond her acting career, and yet very selective about the jobs she takes. She is currently, across the internet, accused of “being in everything” – a sure sign of success – […]

By Ben Wheeler Buyer beware! This is not an addendum to the already bloated Marvel Cinematic Universe! I repeat: Not! A! Marvel! It is instead a sporadically shockingly violent, surreal and contemplative blend of road movie and war movie from indie studio A24, and their most expensive film to date. As a cinematic experience that […]

Nina Nawalowalo returns home By Samantha Magick When director Nina Nawalowalo shared her film, A Boy Called Piano at the Samabula Juvenile Centre late last year, she was struck by the scenes that resonated with its young audience. The movie centres on the journey of Fa’amoana John Luafutu and his son Matthias. Fa’amoana moved to […]

By Ben Wheeler Recently the debate around how to release new movies – in theatres or home streaming – has raged. Doug Liman all but walked on his awesome remake of 80s classic Roadhouse when Amazon announced it would not receive a theatrical release some weeks back. He threatened to boycott the premiere, but then […]

By Ben Wheeler For many, the name Martin Scorsese is synonymous with American cinema. His films Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, and Goodfellas are considered by many to be among the greatest Hollywood has ever produced. Others like After Hours and The King of Comedy have a distinctly cult following and have inspired art as varied […]

Local filmmakers finally getting screentime By Ben Wheeler “Every culture has the right and responsibility to present its own culture to its own people,” writes New Zealand filmmaker Barry Barclay.  “That responsibility is so fundamental it cannot be left in the hands of outsiders, nor usurped by them.” These words seem more relevant in Fiji […]