DIRECTOR/SCREENPLAY: Gillian Ashurst
PRODUCER: Vanessa Sheldrick
PRODUCTION CO: Cowgirl Productions, NZFC, Portman Productions
PHOTOGRAPHY: Donald Duncan
EDITORS: Marcus D'Arcy, Cushla Dillon
MUSIC: Joost Langeveld
WITH: Melanie Lynskey (Alice), Boyd Kestner (Seth), Dean O'Gorman (Johnny), Oliver Driver (Speed), Paul Glover (Terry), Charlie Bleakley (Owen), Gordon Hatfield (Tama), Taika Waititi (Nelson), Jodie Rimmer (Daisy)

FESTIVALS: AFI, Los Angeles

REVIEW

“Openly eyeing Thelma & Louise and Kalifornia, Snakeskin looks like a love letter from the director to the films that influenced her, and to some extent, underlines the impact of American culture on New Zealand and of the recurrent American dream. Her film embraces the clichés of the genre with a parodied but always respectful approach. The screenwriting roads don’t go through uncharted territories here, which doesn’t really matter since it's the characters, rather than the situations that bring life to the odyssey. Colorful, sometimes caricatured characters that bring energy to Snakeskin surround the charming and radiant Alice, the core of the film. Rave-goers, drug traffickers, locals, skinheads and a Nick Cave incarnation cross each other's paths, forming some kind of exotic gumbo that's fun to watch….

Ashurst’s direction is kinetic and inventive, focusing on the characters rather than showing off some picturesque postcard shots. The cast composed of young faces is fresh and lively. Lynskey makes the movie work with her ingenuity and charisma while O’Gorman and Kestner successfully get into the skin of the love interest and tough guy..”

– Fred Thom, Plume Noire

FILM SOCIETY SCREENINGS

Dunedin   
Wednesday, 31 August, 7:30pm

Auckland   
Tuesday, 27 September, 6:15pm

Timaru
​Monday, 14 November, 6.00pm

NZ FILM selection >>