NZIFF: Five festival films you need to see

Wondering what to see at the upcoming film festival? Wonder no more ...

Brigsby Bear

We may be going out on a very strange limb here but this oddball film has us very excited. A couple kidnap a baby, never let him out of his room and only let him watch the kids TV show Brigsby Bear. A show which they themselves make exclusively for him to watch. Now an adult, he's rescued and forced to come to terms with the world without Brigsby. Remember, we did preface this recommendation with "strange"... The film's from the comedy brain of SNL cast member Kyle Mooney and stars Andy Samberg, Claire Danes and Mark Hamill, so if you're after something a lot different, this is the one to see.

Top of the Lake
Top of the Lake is a weird thing to get excited about; it's incredibly bleak. But what is exciting is the opportunity to delve back into Jane Campion's unique world, rich storytelling and complex, fascinating characters. Plus this season features Nicole Kidman and Gwendoline Christie alongside the ridiculously talented Elisabeth Moss. And the film festival is debuting all six hours of it back-to-back over six hours on a Sunday. What's not to love?

Ancien and the Magic Tablet
Nestled in among all the bleak, serious movies is this brightly coloured family adventure about a young girl who takes a lot of naps. While dozing, she becomes a brave princess who gets into all sorts of adventures with her feisty sidekick. But when events in the dreamworld start affecting the real world she has to reassess the potential of her powers. This Japanese anime was written and directed by Kenji Kamiyama, the name behind the excellent, much more adult, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, which guarantees anime fans will be there. But as this is one of the few family-orientated films of the fest, it's a good excuse to grab the kids and introduce them to both, the fun of the film festival and something outside their usual cinema diet of Pixar and Dreamworks movies.

It Comes at Night
This scarefest sounds like it's doing what Get Out did earlier this year. Shot on a tiny budget in a short space of time, the horror from Trey Edward Shults has been gathering quite a buzz. It follows a family sheltering in a forest home from some kind of evil. The're okay by day, but then night comes and, well, you'll need to see the film to find out what happens next. Critics have raved about it, with many claiming it's one of those films that's so chilling it stays with you long after you've left the theatre. You have been warned.

Hounds of Love
This is an Australian movie by a first-time director. Wait, no, come back, because Ben Smith's debut feature Hounds of Love is getting rave reviews. Why? For one, it's a tense psychological thriller set in the 80s about a Perth couple who kidnap a teen. It's a simple premise, with horrific results. One critic called it "a relentless exercise in terror". Another said the film contained "the most chilling screen killer since Hannibal Lecter". A third said Hounds of Love would "take you to hell for two hours". Two hours in hell? Sign me up.