We round up great films, reads, shows to bingewatch, new albums to treat your ears to and a couple of decent podcasts to enlighten.

Watching

Film picks thanks to Lumière Cinemas' Nick Paris.

The Father Based on the award-winning play by Florian Zeller, who also directed the film, The Father stars Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman and is already generating Oscar buzz. A film both frightening and devastating in its familiarity, The Father follows the story of feisty 80-year-old dementia sufferer Anthony as he begins to lose his grip on reality, while his daughter Anne becomes increasingly more frustrated and desperate to find someone to help care for her father.

Collective On October 30, 2015, in popular Bucharest club Colectiv, metal band Goodbye to Gravity’s set ends with a small pyrotechnics display which ignites the entire club, killing 27 people. This shocking and unflinching documentary is really about what came after: a further 37 people died in the ensuing weeks as they succumbed to burn injuries and infection in hospital, leading a team of determined journalists to uncover a deep and insidious corruption at the heart of Romania’s medical system.

Six Minutes to Midnight In the summer of 1939, after the sudden disappearance of an English teacher from an Anglo-German finishing school in southern England, school teacher Thomas Miller (Eddie Izzard) takes up the recently vacated position. Thomas is overseen by headmistress Miss Rocholl (Judi Dench) and informed that the daughters of the Nazi High Command are among his students. Then the body of his predecessor washes up on shore.

Bingewatching

Bridgerton A period drama with a distinctly modern tone, Bridgerton sports a diverse cast and strong female characters. It’s a scandal-ridden drama following Daphne Bridgerton who courts the brooding Duke of Hastings. And if you say the fake relationship trope isn’t your guilty pleasure, well, how does it feel to be a liar? Watch on: Netflix

WandaVision This Marvel Studios TV series follows the idyllic suburban life of Wanda Maximoff (AKA The Scarlet Witch) and Vision. It pays homage to old family sitcoms, moving through the ‘50s, ‘60s and onward, dropping hints that all is not quite right in this unreal reality. Watch on: Disney+

Good Grief In this home-grown comedy, a pair of sisters come into an unlikely inheritance after the death of their grandfather: a funeral home. Owning a business only serves to put more pressure on a strained relationship, with Ellie wanting to uphold their koro’s legacy and Gwen more interested in DJing in Bali. Watch on: TVNZ OnDemand

Reading

Book picks thanks to University Book Shop Canterbury's Pene Whitty.

Land: How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World by Simon Winchester In this sweeping global history, journalist Simon Winchester explores how our land has been mapped, owned, divided, stolen, cared for, fought over and restored. By looking at history and confronting today’s issues, Simon offers insight into what ownership of this Earth means for the humans looking to continue living here.

Down South: In Search of the Great Southern Land by Bruce Ansley From Curio Bay to Golden Bay, the author sets off on a vast expedition across Te Waipounamu, visiting the places and people who hold clues to the south’s famous character. Not so long ago, the South Island held most of New Zealand’s people and just about all of the money. Bruce’s journey explores what happened to the island’s ‘golden fleece’, and what its future may hold.

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow In 1893, there’s no such thing as witches. All but done away with after the burnings, witching is now illegal and never mentioned outside of nursery rhymes. If a woman wants any measure of power, she must find it at the ballot box. Set in an alternate America in which the suffragette movement and a quest to end the banishment of witches coexist, this is a story of the phenomenal power of women.

Listening

Weezer – OK Human Sprung on Weezer’s unsuspecting audience during the pandemic, OK Human is a Beach Boys-inspired album that somehow feels on-brand. Branching out from Weezer’s traditional sound, the album features intimate, vulnerable tracks, cheerful singalongs, and even a 39-piece orchestra. The songs tend on the shorter side, but each one is imbued with meaning. An unexpected and bold album with some feel-good anthems.

Foo Fighters – Medicine at Midnight Alt-rock icons the Foo Fighters may have been around for 25 years, but they’re showing no signs of complacency. Their tenth album, promised by frontman Dave Grohl to be a “Saturday night party album”, proves to be just that – infused with more pop influences, more hooks and more enthusiasm than any of their previous releases. The record pulses with energy, from gospel-style harmonies, courtesy of Grohl’s teenage daughter, Violet, to giddy guitar riffs that sweep you up in head-banging enjoyment.

L.A.B – IV A running thread through many of New Zealand’s biggest summer festivals this year, L.A.B are on a wicked hot streak, and their latest album follows the same trajectory. With a dancier mood than its predecessor, IV is chock full of soft funk and reggae-flavoured bangers.

Podcasts

Seneca’s 100 Women to Hear If badass women like Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Malala Yousafzai or Tina Tchen have ever made it onto your fantasy dinner party guest list, this podcast is the next best thing. Each 30-minute episode profiles one of the world’s most inspiring women.

Grounded with Louis Theroux Louis keeps busy during lockdown by tracking down well-known people he’s long wanted to talk to – many of whom are also grounded. Discussing topics from the lighthearted to the heavy, the interviews are entertaining and refreshingly honest.