Country Poll: New Zealand [RESULTS]

[Fergenaprido]

There were 104 films voted by 27 participants.

Below are all the films that received at least 25 points.

Rank	Title [AKA]	Year	Director	Points	Ballots	Highest Ranking	IMDb	Votes	iCM	Checks	Toplists
1	Heavenly Creatures	1994	Peter Jackson	164.5	20	1		63,668		8,977	7
2	Once Were Warriors	1994	Lee Tamahori	114	15	1		34,274		2,205	2
3	What We Do in the Shadows	2014	Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi	111	14	1		181,461		11,095	6
4	The Quiet Earth	1985	Geoff Murphy	107.5	12	1		26,183		2,586	3
5	An Angel at My Table	1990	Jane Campion	105.5	14	1		7,863		1,322	8
6	Braindead [Dead Alive]	1992	Peter Jackson	80	12	1		97,032		10,590	7
7	Hunt for the Wilderpeople	2016	Taika Waititi	74	10	1		129,416		5,247	1
8	Eagle vs Shark	2007	Taika Waititi	68	7	1		24,805		1,979	0
9	The World's Fastest Indian	2005	Roger Donaldson	61.5	8	2		54,944		5,135	1
9	Whale Rider	2002	Niki Caro	61.5	11	1		42,458		3,986	4
11	Forgotten Silver	1995	Peter Jackson, Costa Botes	60	8	2		6,056		889	2
12	Utu	1983	Geoff Murphy	52.5	7	1		1,180		251	2
13	Tickled	2016	David Farrier, Dylan Reeve	47	4	1		18,566		1,184	0
14	The Navigator: A Mediaeval Odyssey	1988	Vincent Ward	46.5	8	3		3,720		450	2
14	Boy	2010	Taika Waititi	46.5	8	4		26,541		1,340	1
16	Kitchen Sink	1989	Alison Maclean	45	7	1		1,099		498	1
17	The Power of the Dog	2021	Jane Campion	39	5	2		166,056		2,871	5
17	Jojo Rabbit	2019	Taika Waititi	39	6	2		377,193		6,697	2
19	Bad Taste	1987	Peter Jackson	36	4	1		46,983		5,557	6
20	Smash Palace	1981	Roger Donaldson	35	5	1		1,042		218	2
21	Black Sheep	2006	Jonathan King	30.5	6	2		40,742		4,259	2
22	Two Cars, One Night	2003	Taika Waititi	25	4	3		2,591		283	0

Runners-up (20+ points or 3+ votes or #1 votes)

Rank	Title [AKA]	Year	Director	Points	Ballots	Highest Ranking	IMDb	Votes	iCM	Checks	Toplists
23	Vigil	1984	Vincent Ward	24.5	4	5		781		76	0
24	Housebound	2014	Gerard Johnstone	24	6	7		34,666		1,499	0
25	Deathgasm	2015	Jason Howden	21	3	5		17,679		730	0
26	Desperate Remedies	1992	Peter Wells, Stewart Main	20	1	1		396		15	0
27	In My Father's Den	2004	Brad McGann	19	3	2		7,635		271	0
33	Vai	2019	Matasila Freshwater, Ofa Guttenbeil, Becs Arahanga, Marina McCartney, Miria George, Dianna Fuemana, Amberley Jo Aumua, Sharon Whippy, Nicole Whippy	17	1	1		180		11	0
45	Baelin's Route: An Epic NPC Man Adventure	2021	Adam King, Alan Morrison	11	1	1		802		5	0
50	Field Punishment No.1	2014	Peter Burger	10	1	1		243		5	0
50	The Frighteners	1996	Peter Jackson	10	4	7		88,206		7,364	1

Films that received 1st place votes
4 #5 An Angel at My Table - Caracortada, Leopardi, OldAle1, TalkingElvish
2 #1 Heavenly Creatures - gromit82, Mario Gaborović
2 #2 Once Were Warriors - Gordon_Gekko, ororama
2 #3 What We Do in the Shadows - Mysterious Dude, TraverseTown
2 #6 Braindead - mightysparks, Onderhond
2 #19 Bad Taste - filmbantha, magnusbernhardsen
1 #4 The Quiet Earth - peeptoad
1 #7 Hunt for the Wilderpeople - Fergenaprido
1 #9 Whale Rider - Rufus-T
1 #12 Utu - zomgmouse
1 #13 Tickled - sol
1 #16 Kitchen Sink - Melvelet
1 #26 Desperate Remedies - RogerTheMovieManiac88
1 #33 Vai - zzzorf
1 #45 Baelin's Route: An Epic NPC Man Adventure - gunnar
1 #50 Field Punishment No.1 - 3eyes
3 - unranked - Angel Glez, cayado-coro, Lonewolf2003

Directors with multiple films in the Top 100
6 Taika Waititi
4 Peter Jackson
2 Geoff Murphy
2 Jane Campion
2 Roger Donaldson

Breakdown by Decade
1890s
1900s
1910s
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s 6
1990s 5
2000s 5
2010s 5
2020s 1

[Fergenaprido]

Here are the results as an icm list: https://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/icm+ ... genaprido/
Here is the master list with the top 20 from each poll: https://www.icheckmovies.com/lists/icm+ ... genaprido/

Our last Oceanian Forum Poll was held in February 2018, and there wasn't much Kiwi representation there, with the poll being dominated by Australia, as expected. Here's our Top 50 compared to the previous poll. Even with the non-NZ films removed, the ordering was fairly consistent between the two polls.

Rank	Title [AKA]	Year	Director	Forum Poll	Difference
1	Heavenly Creatures	1994	Peter Jackson	7	△ 6
2	Once Were Warriors	1994	Lee Tamahori	33	△ 31
3	What We Do in the Shadows	2014	Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi	16	△ 13
4	The Quiet Earth	1985	Geoff Murphy	19	△ 15
5	An Angel at My Table	1990	Jane Campion	24	△ 19
6	Braindead [Dead Alive]	1992	Peter Jackson	10	△ 4
7	Hunt for the Wilderpeople	2016	Taika Waititi	44	△ 37
8	Eagle vs Shark	2007	Taika Waititi	69	△ 61
9	The World's Fastest Indian	2005	Roger Donaldson	63	△ 54
9	Whale Rider	2002	Niki Caro	40	△ 31
11	Forgotten Silver	1995	Peter Jackson, Costa Botes	41	△ 30
12	Utu	1983	Geoff Murphy	88	△ 76
13	Tickled	2016	David Farrier, Dylan Reeve	74	△ 61
14	The Navigator: A Mediaeval Odyssey	1988	Vincent Ward	79	△ 65
14	Boy	2010	Taika Waititi	59	△ 45
16	Kitchen Sink	1989	Alison Maclean	68	△ 52
17	The Power of the Dog	2021	Jane Campion	#N/A	--
17	Jojo Rabbit	2019	Taika Waititi	#N/A	--
19	Bad Taste	1987	Peter Jackson	62	△ 43
20	Smash Palace	1981	Roger Donaldson	116	△ 96
21	Black Sheep	2006	Jonathan King	90	△ 69
22	Two Cars, One Night	2003	Taika Waititi	98	△ 76
23	Vigil	1984	Vincent Ward	232	△ 209
24	Housebound	2014	Gerard Johnstone	92	△ 68
25	Deathgasm	2015	Jason Howden	241	△ 216
26	Desperate Remedies	1992	Peter Wells, Stewart Main	#N/A	--
27	What We Do in the Shadows: Interviews with Some Vampires	2005	Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi	#N/A	--
27	Sleeping Dogs	1977	Roger Donaldson	#N/A	--
27	Crush	1992	Alison Maclean	134	△ 107
27	In My Father's Den	2004	Brad McGann	114	△ 87
31	A Death in the Family	1987	Peter Wells, Stewart Main	253	△ 222
32	O le tulafale [The Orator]	2011	Tusi Tamasese	#N/A	--
33	140 Days Under the World	1964	0	248	△ 215
33	Vai	2019	Matasila Freshwater, Ofa Guttenbeil, Becs Arahanga, Marina McCartney, Miria George, Dianna Fuemana, Amberley Jo Aumua, Sharon Whippy, Nicole Whippy	#N/A	--
35	Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale	1986	Murray Ball	#N/A	--
35	Gone Up North for a While	1972	Paul Maunder	#N/A	--
37	Twilight of the Gods	1996	Stewart Main	187	△ 150
38	Flight to Venus	1960	Fred O'Neill	#N/A	--
38	Kim Dotcom: Caught in the Web	2017	Annie Goldson	#N/A	--
38	Shadow in the Cloud	2020	Roseanne Liang	#N/A	--
41	Pumicelands	1954	John Feeney	#N/A	--
41	Meet the Feebles	1989	Peter Jackson	161	△ 120
43	The Quarry	2013	Gavin Hipkins	#N/A	--
43	Niue: This Is Your Land	2005	Mella Lahina	235	△ 192
45	Goodbye Pork Pie	1980	Geoff Murphy	#N/A	--
45	Baelin's Route: An Epic NPC Man Adventure	2021	Adam King, Alan Morrison	#N/A	--
45	Weekly Review No. 232: Maori Battalion Returns	1946	Russell Reid	#N/A	--
45	Intersexion	2012	Grant Lahood	#N/A	--
45	White Lies	2013	Dana Rotberg	#N/A	--
50	Field Punishment No.1	2014	Peter Burger	#N/A	--
50	The Frighteners	1996	Peter Jackson	202	△ 152
50	A State of Siege	1978	Vincent Ward	257	△ 207

And the remaining NZ films (that are in my database) from the forum poll that didn't make the Top 50 this time.

Spoiler

Rank	Title [AKA]	Year	Country Poll Ranking	Notes
150	The Tickle King	2017	#N/A
171	Two Little Boys	2012	#N/A
218	The Lovely Bones	2009	53
252	Bad Blood	1981	#N/A
265	Abiogenesis	2011	73
300	Antarctica: A Year on Ice	2013	53
308	The Dark Horse	2014	86
345	Fracture	2004	#N/A
359	Beyond Reasonable Doubt	1982	93
375	Queen City Rocker	1986	86
382	Heart of the Stag	1984	53

There's no great NZ country list, so I'm not going to bother doing a comparison with any of the existing ones, but you can check out Fairfax Media's poll or Hamish McDouall's book for other films.

The Host's Hot Take
I had originally said only 21 films make the final list, but I had made an error when inputting one user's list so we actually have a Top 22. Very glad that Two Cars, One Night squeaked in to the final list after all. The only surprises for me are The Quiet Earth doing so well (and it's going to move way up my watchlist as a result), and Angel at My Table coming in at fifth despite having the most #1 votes - ballot size truly does matter. Decade distribution is surprisingly balanced, and despite Waititi & Jackson constituting half of the final list, other filmmakers are starting to get their due too. 4/22 (18%) of the Top films are directed by women. Roger Donaldson's Sleeping Dogs from 1977 is the highest ranked pre-1980 film at #27.

Aside from The Quiet Earth, my other priorities to see are two Maori stories: Once Were Warriors and Utu.

Next up: Brazil results, and then the Philippines.

[Torgo]

The only surprises for me are The Quiet Earth doing so well (and it's going to move way up my watchlist as a result)

Oh, it really shouldn't surprise one. I felt it had some "intelligent dystopia" cult going for the 90s and 00s, when science-fiction on the big screen was often very loud and goofy; this has changed so much for the 2010s (thank God). Movies like I Am Legend (2007) and countless other post-apocalyptic big budget productions which followed made the scenario and minimal human presence for such films somewhat popular again; The Quiet Earth wouldn't seem as original and otherworldly by that time, I assume.
It's still fascinating and would have been my #1 pick .. or the crushing Warriors. Hm. Both worthier than Heavenly Creatures, which mostly won the poll due to being the most-watched / known.

Breakdown by Decade
1890s
1900s
1910s
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s 6
1990s 5
2000s 5
2010s 5
2020s 1

Weird to look at.

[OldAle1]

Thanks Ferg! Wanted to get to more stuff myself for this poll, but two of the main ones - Whale Rider and Smash Palace - managed to get on the list anyway. The third priority for me was Roger's #1 which looks very weird - though my luck with weird NZ films has been spotty at best. Anyway those will remain priorities for... someday.

[gromit82]

Thanks, Ferg!

Very glad that Two Cars, One Night squeaked in to the final list after all.

I'm glad it made it in too. It was very precarious until the final results came in. Two Cars, One Night placed ahead of Jojo Rabbit on one ballot, and ahead of The Power of the Dog on another ballot. Therefore, because of the scoring system in these polls, if either of the latter films had been disqualified for being insufficiently NZ, Two Cars, One Night would have lost one point and missed the main list.

[Fergenaprido]

Both worthier than Heavenly Creatures, which mostly won the poll due to being the most-watched / known.

I don't know if it's more well-known or well-watched, as it's only third most-checked and seventh most-voted among the finalists and runners-up, but it certainly seems to be the most well-received, appearing on 20 of 27 ballots.

Thanks, Ferg!

Very glad that Two Cars, One Night squeaked in to the final list after all.

I'm glad it made it in too. It was very precarious until the final results came in. Two Cars, One Night placed ahead of Jojo Rabbit on one ballot, and ahead of The Power of the Dog on another ballot. Therefore, because of the scoring system in these polls, if either of the latter films had been disqualified for being insufficiently NZ, Two Cars, One Night would have lost one point and missed the main list.

Yep! Though I didn't take that into consideration when determining eligibility of those two films. Incidentally, it was your ballot I had messed up on (pasted your list in spots 2-11 instead of 1-10, resulting in each of your films getting one less point than they should have). I'm just glad I caught the mistake before I'd posted the results.

Thanks Ferg! Wanted to get to more stuff myself for this poll, but two of the main ones - Whale Rider and Smash Palace - managed to get on the list anyway. The third priority for me was Roger's #1 which looks very weird - though my luck with weird NZ films has been spotty at best. Anyway those will remain priorities for... someday.

I'm surprised you haven't seen those two, as the first is quite well-known, and the second was promoted on the forum a few years ago (maybe before you joined, though). Both worthwhile, IMO.
And I too am interested in seeing Roger's #1.

[OldAle1]

Thanks Ferg! Wanted to get to more stuff myself for this poll, but two of the main ones - Whale Rider and Smash Palace - managed to get on the list anyway. The third priority for me was Roger's #1 which looks very weird - though my luck with weird NZ films has been spotty at best. Anyway those will remain priorities for... someday.

I'm surprised you haven't seen those two, as the first is quite well-known, and the second was promoted on the forum a few years ago (maybe before you joined, though). Both worthwhile, IMO.
And I too am interested in seeing Roger's #1.

Whale Rider seemed to be promoted, when new, as an innocuous, cute family film - at least that's how it registered to me - so I skipped it, and it's sometimes hard to get over initial impressions. But I've looked into it more and it definitely seems like something I should see. Smash Palace was on my short-list of things to get to before the poll and I just didn't. Roger's pick is one I've known about for years but...again, weird NZ films sometimes don't work. Woodenhead, for example, ooh that was terrible, and it definitely got some promotion from somebody (I think back in IMDb days) which is why I saw it. So I'm a bit ambivalent about some of the more curious oddities from this country.

[Fergenaprido]

By the way when I added the full list to icm, it imported a bunch of films. My guess is they're the ones gromit created on imdb for Roger's ballot, so Roger, they're now checkable on icm

[RogerTheMovieManiac88]

Thanks for the results, Ferg.

I'm glad to see 'The Quiet Earth' in the top 5. Nice too to see Alison Maclean's 'Kitchen Sink' place inside the top 20 here.

I was another who avoided 'Whale Rider' for years, as I seem to remember it being rather sappily marketed as a feel-good, child-friendly film. I was really new to film though in 2002-2003, so I was just going off adverts I saw on TV or in newspapers. Looking at reviews/stills/blurbs now, it does strike me as much more interesting and important. The two films from the results that I'm most looking forward to catching up with are probably 'Whale Rider' itself and 'Smash Palace' (Bruno Lawrence is probably the actor/face I most associate with the NZ screen of the last 50 years).

My #1 is from the queer-focused Wells and Main, so I can definitely see Ferg being interested. I thought it was a marvellous, romantic, camp re-imagining of couplings, prospects, roles, self-interests in a colonial-era setting. Stylized and colourfully staged, the dialogue was beautifully biting and made it so much fun. I found it utterly irresistible.

[Lakigigar]

Didn't participate because I hadn't seen enough films.

Seen 3/22 out of the top list, meaning i've seen 13.64% of the list. Proportionally this means i've seen more from New Zealand than Germany or Australia, but less than France, UK, USA & Ireland.

And with Jojo Rabbit, Heavenly Creatures, Braindead, Power of the Dog quite a lot of well known films i haven't seen yet.

[peeptoad]

Thanks for the results, Ferg. Good to see Kitchen Sink on there... I'm probably alone in the opinion that PotD is a far better film than Angel at my Table, but I wonder if the former had been more definitively NZ if it would have been any higher.

[Fergenaprido]

My #1 is from the queer-focused Wells and Main, so I can definitely see Ferg being interested.

I had two Stewart Main films on my ballot, so you're not wrong.

I'm probably alone in the opinion that PotD is a far better film than Angel at my Table, but I wonder if the former had been more definitively NZ if it would have been any higher.

I think it was more of an issue of it being too new, since it was only released late last year. Even though it's available on streaming and was Oscar-nominated, I'm sure there are plenty of people who will like it who just haven't gotten around to seeing it yet (like me).

[sol]

Good to see Kitchen Sink on there

Kitchen Sink is an interesting enough short, but Crush is Alison Maclean's masterpiece for my money and it's sad (but I guess not surprising) to learn that I was the only voter for it.

[gunnar]

I haven't seen An Angel at My Table, but I should get around to seeing it sooner or later. I didn't really like The Power of the Dog. I recognized that it was well made from a technical and acting standpoint, but I'm not a fan of it.

[peeptoad]

Good to see Kitchen Sink on there

Kitchen Sink is an interesting enough short, but Crush is Alison Maclean's masterpiece for my money and it's sad (but I guess not surprising) to learn that I was the only voter for it.

Haven't seen that one yet, sol... maybe it wold have made my ballot if I had.