Homecoming

In The Shadows,

it looks as if it was a lot of fun to make, which, unsurprisingly, translates to it being a lot of fun to watch.

After they famously blew it by turning down Flight of the Conchords, TVNZ have finally let Jemaine Clement make us a TV show that’s actually funny. That’s worth celebrating and worth watching. You’ll never look at the Cuba St bucket fountain the same way again.

What We Do In The Shadows (2014)

Netflix

Absolutely worth watching again (or for the first time if you’re a maniac who hasn’t seen it yet) before Wellington Paranormal starts on Wednesday. Jemaine and Taika as vampires living in Te Aro along with Jonathan Brugh and Ben Fransham (also vampires). Rhys Darby is a werewolf. Jackie van Beek is herself. Surely the funniest movie ever made in this country.

MOVIE OF THE WEEK Thor: The Dark World

TVNZ 2, 7:00pm Sunday

A chance to catch up on Norse (via Marvel) mythology for all the patriotic moviegoers who started watching Thor only once Taika Waititi got involved. Released in 2013, The Dark World is the one before Ragnarok, and the sequel to 2011’s original Thor. The cast is nothing if not star-studded — in addition to Kim from there’s also Natalie Portman, Idris Elba, Tom Hiddlestone . . . Basically, if you have a celebrity crush there’s a pretty good chance they’re in this movie.

Home and Away PODCAST OF THE WEEK

Fiction podcasts — everyone says they’re the next big thing, and have been saying it for at least the last couple of years. the first series of which was released in 2016, remains the gold standard of the genre, and now it’s been turned into a TV series due out on Amazon Prime Video this year. If you haven’t listened already, now’s a good time to see what all the fuss is about.

A psychological thriller, the series is about a caseworker at a military facility who helps soldiers re-adjust to civilian life. Four years later, she’s living with her mother in her old hometown, working as a waitress. Over the course of the tensely plotted first series the gaps between these two scenes are filled in. It requires and rewards close listening.

One thing that sets this one apart is the cast — Catherine Keener is the caseworker, David Schwimmer, Oscar Isaac and Amy Sedaris also feature. In the TV show Keener’s role is being taken by Julia Roberts — the actual Julia Roberts, from It’s going to be big, and if it’s anything like the podcast, very, good.

Sharp Objects

SoHo 1:00pm and 8:30pm Monday American small towns are always so creepy on TV, but there’s something about the one in — Wind Gap, Missouri — that makes you feel particularly uneasy. Based on author Gillian Flynn’s debut novel, the eight-part HBO series is about a burnt-out journalist (Amy Adams), who returns to her hometown to report on the disappearances of two teenage girls while simultaneously dredging up dark memories from her own childhood. Adams puts in a hell of a performance as the psychologically precarious Camille Preaker, and the brooding cinematography makes it a treat to watch, as emotionally exhausting as it may be.

Gone Girl Homecoming, Pretty Woman.

Calum Henderson

Sharp Objects

MUSICAL WIZARDRY: It’s

as never imagined by anyone who had anything to do with the original story. This all-singing, alldancing production, with a 50-strong cast and live band, puts a sassy and outrageous twist on giving it a heavy sprinkling of South Auckland humour and incorporating rap to gospel music, hip-hop to high kicks. Dorothy and her dog, Koko, face a long journey home after Cyclone Tita’s fury has landed them far from home. Dorothy begins to like it a little too much, even if she has to drag her

of Oz The Wizard The Wizard of Oz,

new friends — a brainless Scarecrow, a suppressed Lion and a rejected Tinman — to find the famous Wizard of Ōtāhuhu. But Koko can sense danger beyond the Great South Rd, as their new entourage shares their encounters with not just one Wicked Witch, but four. Can Aunty Siapo and Aunty Sila come to Dorothy’s rescue? Probably not, but if those witches get any closer you can bet there’ll be a show-down of the century.

The Wizard of Ōtāhuhu, Q Theatre, Tuesday, July 10-Saturday, July 14 with shows at 2pm and 7pm.