At the Movies for 14 May 2025

Simon Morris checks out two films based on well-known material - just not well-known by him! Irish film Lies we tell is a 19th century thriller, The wedding banquet is a remake of one of Ang Lee's first films. He also previews the upcoming French Film Festival Aotearoa. Lies We Tell tells the story of an heiress whose shady uncle plans to get hold of her fortune by forcing her to marry his son. It was a big winner at the Irish Film Awards, including best actress for star Agnes O'Casey (Small Things Like These) The wedding banquet is a remake of the 1993 crowd-pleaser, written and directed by Ang Lee. This one stars Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live), Kelly Marie Tran (Star Wars), Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon) and Joan Chen (Twin Peaks). Fergus Grady, Director of the French Film Festival Aotearoa, previews this year's programme - a star-studded affair featuring Sarah Bernhardt, Charles Aznavour, Marie Antoinette, the Count of Monte Cristo, Laure Calamy, two films about art thieves and the story behind Ravel's "Bolero"!