Pork Pie

AroView: Geoff Murphy’s beloved and iconic New Zealand road movie is given a souped-up and delightfully witty make-over by his son, Matt Murphy, who demonstrates tremendous confidence in his first feature film as writer/director.

The bones of the story remain the same - a trio of misfits travel the length of the country in a stolen yellow(-ish) Mini - but it’s fleshed out very differently to connect with the contemporary culture (and audience), and it’s these changes that justify it being “remade”. Dean O’Gorman proves himself again to be one of NZ’s most likable actors, while James Rolleston and Aussie import Ashleigh Cummings provide respective charms.

Totally recommended for fans of HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE, which also pays homage to the original Kiwi classic.