I just saw In My Father's Den at its Seattle International Film Festival premiere and it was certainly an entertaining movie. The themes are fairly dark, the background scenery of the mountains and apple orchards (braeburn!) adds a nice touch, and the characters are all sufficiently flawed to make them real and interesting. The acting is routinely professional if never outstanding, and the mystery storyline plays out very well without becoming obvious even once it's exposed. All these aspects give it an intriguing sort of Kiwi Noir feel.
That said, the editing and cinematography from In My Father's Den never really exceed average, the story runs on a bit long, and there is nothing here particularly innovative or even cutting edge. Perhaps all the raving reviews had increased my expectations, but earlier kiwi gems like Rain (2001) and Whale Rider (2002) certainly also raised the bar. But I don't want to leave too negative an impression of this very interesting film. As Hollywood continues to produce worse and worse films, New Zealand has become one of a number of bright stars in world cinema and In My Father's Den certainly ranks amongst the better Kiwi films.
That said, the editing and cinematography from In My Father's Den never really exceed average, the story runs on a bit long, and there is nothing here particularly innovative or even cutting edge. Perhaps all the raving reviews had increased my expectations, but earlier kiwi gems like Rain (2001) and Whale Rider (2002) certainly also raised the bar. But I don't want to leave too negative an impression of this very interesting film. As Hollywood continues to produce worse and worse films, New Zealand has become one of a number of bright stars in world cinema and In My Father's Den certainly ranks amongst the better Kiwi films.