ARTS + CULTURE Vegas - TVNZ ONDEMAND
MAY STREAMING GUIDE It’s time to get your binge fitness up. The last of the long sunny days are behind us. Daylight Savings has ended and there is every excuse to snuggle in and binge. Let the anticipation build. The allegorical inferences are tempered with a style of humour local audiences appreciate and global audiences will find refreshing. It’s a homegrown production that easily competes with anything available on the international streaming services. Definitely a must watch. Amazon Prime Them More chilling than expected, Them is so cleverly put together and the performances so compelling that you can almost taste the hatred dripping from the white community intent on driving out their new black neighbours. It is telling that the spooky supernatural elements at play in this limited anthology series are actually a relief from the inhumanity displayed by the white Compton ‘welcoming committee’. It’s a narrative that lays bare the overt examples of the racism commonplace in 1950s America and serves as reminder of the more subversive racism that still persists in many forms today throughout the world. Entertaining yet scary.
Them on Amazon Prime
TVNZ OnDemand Vegas It would be a mistake to dismiss Vegas as merely a beautifully shot drama series exploiting and glamorizing the high stakes world of gang culture. It is set in one of the most exquisite and dynamic locations in the country and is on its way to becoming New Zealand’s answer to The Sopranos. Inspired by Canadian born writer Ray Berard’s award winning novel, Inside the Black Horse, Vegas script writer Micheal Bennett aimed to tell a more nuanced and far reaching narrative. Brought to life by director Kiel McNaughton, the actors and Rotorua based crew of Vegas have delivered a layered and complex character driven tale, ready to take audiences on a long and intriguing journey. The first episode introduces an ensemble cast you quickly care about, empathise with or despise. The action, tension and drama drives the story forward at pace, offering just enough plot twists and turns to keep you guessing and wanting more.
104 PONSONBY NEWS+ May 2021
PUBLISHED FIRST FRIDAY EACH MONTH (except January)
