For the love of Florian
WITH New Zealand-German director Florian Habicht’s James & Isey set to open in a few weeks, I reckon it’s a superb time to take a brief look back at the career of this most idiosyncratic and loveable of film-maker.
And, as luck would have it, a lot of what he has done so far is available to watch for free on TVNZ OnDemand and DocPlay.com
Most people – maybe – first became aware of Habicht when his Kaikohe Demolition hit the festival and general release circuit in 2004. There is an urban legend doing the rounds that the filmmaker was given a budget to make a tourism video about the Far North of Te Ika-a-Ma¯ ui, and instead handed in this
unique, intimate, hilarious and undeniably moving portrait of small-town life instead. It’s not true, but it fits the homespun rascalry of Kaikohe Demolition perfectly.
Kaikohe – the town – made headlines in the 1990s, when local kids attacked Santa Claus at the annual Christmas parade, but hadn’t troubled the media again until Habicht shone a light on a rich local culture based around racing cars to destruction on pretty much every notable date in the calendar. There can’t be many towns in the world that mark Mother’s Day with a demolition derby. Kaikohe Demolition is one of the most enjoyable and memorable portraits of a community I’ve ever seen. Just watch it.
Habicht’s follow-up to Kaikohe was
Land of the Long White Cloud, which essentially does the same as the earlier film, but this time with the residents and competitors at the 90 Mile Beach Snapper Classic fishing contest.
Habicht’s childhood – spent in the Far North – informs every frame of this film with a child’s wonder and curiosity at what ‘‘the grown-ups’’ are getting up to.
On DocPlay only, Spookers is a 2017 film that visits the truly excellent behindthe-scenes culture at the iconic Auckland tourist attraction. Habicht’s disarming interview technique and genuine love for what the workers at the theme park are achieving lifts this into a happily surreal and very personal realm.
Again, the genius of the film is in making a very idiosyncratic way of
approaching a subject somehow yield such easily identifiable and relatable results.
Lastly, check out Habicht’s documentary on Jarvis Cocker and the band Pulp. Pulp: A Film about Life, Death and Supermarkets follows the band as they prepare for their farewell concert in their hometown of Sheffield, in England’s once-industrial north.
It’s one of the better concert movies you’ll ever see, but also much more than that, as Habicht paints a picture of a city and its inhabitants, not all of whom care about the band.
You can rent Pulp on iTunes, YouTube or Google Play Movies. However, Wellington’s Aro Street Video and Alice’s in Christchurch have it, too.