Flight of the Albatross

Flight of the Albatross,[1] also known as Der Flug des Albatros, is a German-New Zealand film. It is based on the Deborah Savage novel of the same name. It was filmed on Great Barrier Island in early 1995.[2][3] It had its New Zealand cinema debut on 6 July 1996 at Great Barrier Island before opening in Auckland the next week.[4]

Flight of the Albatross
Directed byWerner Meyer
Written byRiwia Brown
Produced by
  • Vincent Burke
  • Susanne Wagner
  • Udo Heiland
Starring
CinematographyMartin Gressmann
Edited byMichael Horton
Music byJan Preston
Release date
  • 6 July 1996 (1996-07-06)
Running time
90 min
Countries
  • Germany
  • New Zealand
LanguageEnglish

Māori teenager and German girl form a relationship after she arrives on his island while dealing with an ancient Māori curse and a wounded albatross.[5]

Cast

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Reception

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Reina Whaitiri in The Contemporary Pacific wrote "The word melodrama came to mind as I watched, half-heartedly, the coming together of two very immature and somewhat shallow characters, each absorbed with their own problems." She finished "As a film targeted at young adults Flight of the Albatross fulfills the criteria but would probably leave a wider, more mature audience unsatisfied."[6] Cinema Aotearoa said "Aside from a mildly amusing albatross puppet, there's really not much to recommend with Flight of the Albatross. Its harmlessness is its downfall, and the film will likely be forgotten mere hours after a viewing."[7]

Awards

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1996 New Zealand Film Awards

  • Best Supporting Actor - Pete Smith - won[8]

47th Berlin International Film Festival - Crystal Bear[9]

References

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  1. Martin, Helen; Edwards, Sam (1997). New Zealand film, 1912-1996. Oxford University Press. p. 188. ISBN 9780195583366.
  2. "Movie set to boost the Barrier", NZ Herald, p. 20, 12 January 1995
  3. Houlahan, Mike (11 July 1996), "Top-flight Romeo And Juliet tale", The Evening Post (Wellington), p. 19
  4. Grant, Frances (8 July 1996), "Glitz and glamour on the Barrier", NZ Herald, p. 20
  5. Linda, Herrick (14 July 1996), "Island woman soars with the Albatross", Sunday Star Times
  6. Whaitiri, Reina (1999), "Review of Flight of the Albatross, by Werner Meyer.", The Contemporary Pacific, p. 505-508
  7. "FLIGHT OF THE ALBATROSS (1995)", Cinema Aotearoa
  8. "`Natural' is named best actress", Sunday Star Times, 24 November 1996
  9. "PRIZES & HONOURS 1997". berlinale.de. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
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