Bellbird (film)

Bellbird
Image of film poster
Directed byHamish Bennett
Screenplay byHamish Bennett
Produced byOrlando Stewart, Catherine Fitzgerald
Starring
CinematographyGrant McKinnon
Edited byJason Pengelly
Music byKarl Steven
Production
companies
Herringbone Productions, Stella Maria
Distributed byTransmission Films
Release date
  • 2019 (2019)
Running time
96 minutes
CountryNZ
LanguageEnglish
Box office$421,494[1]

Bellbird is a 2019 New Zealand drama comedy film written and directed by Hamish Bennett, and starring Marshall Napier, Rachel House and Annie Whittle.[2][3][4][5] The film is a story about loss, love and hope in a small rural community where the people are the heroes. It focuses on a father who is a farmer and his adult son, and how they face the bereavement of a wife and a mother respectively. The film also explores men's mental health and importance of community in rural life. It is also a tribute to Bennett's childhood growing up in rural New Zealand. Bellbird is Bennett's feature debut.[2]

On its release, the film received widespread critical acclaim in New Zealand, Australia and the US. It was also awarded several prizes at film festivals. It received the "Best Screenplay Award" at the International Film Festival & Awards Macao,[6][5] and the "Jury Grand Prix" at the 2021 Antipodean Film Festival in Saint Tropez.[7]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference BOM was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Adams, Tim (10 December 2019). "'Bellbird': Film Review". Variety. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  3. ^ Rudkin, Francesca (7 November 2019). "New rural dramedy Bellbird, a 'Joy to Watch' [Film Review]". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  4. ^ Tuckett, Graeme (6 November 2019). "Bellbird: A sweet, poignant, achingly well written and quite beautiful movie". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Bellbird: Film Review". Hollywood Reporter. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  6. ^ "MACAO 2019 Awards Kirill Mikhanovsky's Give Me Liberty wins the fourth International Film Festival & Awards‧Macao". Cineuropa.org. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  7. ^ "2021 Palmares". Rencontres Internationales du Cinéma des Antipodes. 25 May 2022. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2023.