Movie Nights are back in CBD and they are on Tuesdays

Movie Nights are back in the central city! Our newest library Te Awe in Brandon Street offers much-missed movie nights in the CBD every Tuesday night starting at 5:45 pm. Te Awe Library (meaning White Feathers) features a lovely open area for various events and the movies will be shown there.

In July and August, we will be selecting movies from our ‘Essential Film Viewing’ list, which is based on the reference book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, so you must come to see them! No booking needed but please be seated by 5:45 pm.

Wadestown Library also continues to offer Thursday Movie Nights. Please contact them for further information on their screening.

Other branch libraries at Karori, Newtown, Johnsonville and Tawa also show movies.

Remembering Nicolas Roeg and Bernardo Bertolucci

The world has lost two of the outstanding filmmakers of our time; Nicolas Roeg and Bernardo Bertolucci.

Nicolas Roeg died on 23 November aged 90. He made his name as a cinematographer (Roger Corman’s The Masque of the Red Death, Francois Trufaut’s Fahrenheit 451 etc.) before turning into a director. In the 70s, he was the most acclaimed British auteur with a unique visionary style, leaving highly influential works such as Walkabout (1971), Don’t Look Now (1973) and The Man who Fell to Earth (1976).

 

 

 

 

One of the most provocative and influential directors of our time Bernardo Bertolucci died on 26 November aged 77. He was still in his 20s when The Conformist (1970) was hailed as a revolutionary work. He also worked outside of Italy, and enjoyed huge commercial successes with the controversial erotic drama The Last Tango in Paris (1972) and The Last Emperor (1987), which won 9 Academy Awards including Best Picture and the Best Director.

 

 

 

 

All covers are used with permission.

Let’s Boogie: Dance movies

NZ Dance Week is coming up (April 21 – 29) and Central Library is offering some evening events to celebrate it. For more details about the events, see our NZDW blog post. To get you in the mood, check out these DVDs and get ready to boogie!


La la land.
“Mia, an aspiring actress, serves lattes to movie stars in between auditions and Sebastian, a jazz musician, scrapes by playing cocktail party gigs in dingy bars, but as success mounts they are faced with decisions that begin to fray the fragile fabric of their love affair, and the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Billy Elliot.
“Set in a northern mining town, against the background of the 1984/’85 miner’s strikes. Billy’s journey takes him out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that inspires his family and whole community and changes his life forever.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Hip hop-eration.
“These senior citizens may each be almost a century young, but for Kara, (94) Maynie, (95) and Terri (93), the journey to Las Vegas and the World Hip Hop Dance Championships is just the beginning of a life’s journey. Along with twenty-four other nonagenarians they defy the odds and hip-hop their way into the hearts and minds of thousands of young fans from around the world. Along the way we hear how these extraordinary characters contributed to New Zealand as we know it. Their stories are a reminder of our history as a nation and the joy of living life to the fullest.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverPina.
“A film about the life and work of Pina Bausch, dancer and choreographer, who died in 2009 which features some of her greatest choreographies as performed by her Tanztheater Wuppertal ensemble.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

The red shoes.
“Film of the ballet based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale of a young girl who cannot stop thinking about her red dancing shoes. In this modern version, Vicky Page finds herself caught between simple human passion and artistic devotion to the ballet.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverSwing time.
“Fred Astaire plays a gambler intent on raising $25,000 in New York in order to marry his fiance back home. Romantic complications occur when he meets dancing teacher, Ginger Rogers.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

The dancer
“French singer/actress Soko and Lily-Rose Depp lead a star-studded cast in Stephanie Di Giustos spectacularly mounted screen biography, inspired by the true story of two rival pioneers of modern dance and theatrical performance in late 19th-century Paris. Nothing in her background destined Loe Fuller (Soko) to become the toast of the Belle Epoque cabarets or to perform at the Paris Opera. However, meeting with Isadora Duncan (Depp) a beautiful young prodigy hungry for glory that threatened everything.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Shall we dance?.
A funny comedy set in Japan about a middle aged discontented workaholic who find his passion – and himself in ballroom dancing. A hilarious and highly recommended film! (Katie)

Footloose.
“A city boy comes to a small town where rock music and dancing have been banned.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

Black swan.
In order for prima ballerina, Nina to embrace her dark side for her role as the white and black swan in Swan Lake, she loses grip on reality, as well as herself. Overall a gripping film that will have you on edge from start to finish and visualises the dark side of dance and ballet. It is also nice to see a darker and provocative side of Natalie Portman and is a welcome change from the sweet, innocent girly roles she has previously played. (Katie)

Strictly ballroom.
Things get messy in the world of Australian ballroom dancing – and dance politics when a championship ballroom dancer and his ugly duckling dance partner decide to compete together and break all the rules in dancing. Directed by Baz Luhrmann and part of “the red curtain trilogy”*, Strictly Ballroom is a great film with awesome dance moves, a killer soundtrack and a true celebration of dancing. [*The Red Curtain Trilogy has been described by Luhrmann as following a specific filmmaking technique, not necessarily a trilogy in the traditional sense. The Red Curtain Trilogy is the title given to the first three films directed by Baz Luhrmann: Strictly Ballroom, Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge]. (Katie)

NZDW 2018 - Dance movies

Thursday night films in December

Syndetics book coverFor December 2016, we will be featuring a series we’re calling ‘Farewell to 2016 and people who are no longer with us’, showing films to pay tribute to the great people who passed away this year. The line-up includes documentaries about a legendary Canadian singer, and one of the most controversial sporting people, and a fantasy comedy drama featuring a versatile English actor. Since Christmas is approaching, we are showing only three films this month and 15th December will be the last film night of the year.

Sessions begin at 6pm on the Ground Floor of the Central Library. These screenings are free to attend. To avoid disappointment reserve your seat by telephoning 801-4068 during library opening hours.

Remember: We have special permission to screen these films for free in public libraries as long as we don’t advertise the film name online (plus other conditions). Please call the information desk (801-4068) to get more details.
Note: reservations not taken up by the starting time at 6pm may be reallocated to customers waiting, as numbers are limited

Thursday night films in November

Syndetics book coverFor November 2016, we will be featuring a series we’re calling ‘I Spy with my Little Eye – Cold War espionage to rigged elections’, so you’ll be seeing some films with a political bent. The line-up includes a gripping hostage drama based on a real events, and a classic spy movie starring young Michael Caine.

Sessions begin at 6pm on the Ground Floor of the Central Library. These screenings are free to attend. To avoid disappointment reserve your seat by telephoning 801-4068 during library opening hours.

Remember: We have special permission to screen these films for free in public libraries as long as we don’t advertise the film name online (plus other conditions). Please call the information desk (801-4068) to get more details.
Note: reservations not taken up by the starting time at 6pm may be reallocated to customers waiting, as numbers are limited