Fine documentary from Film Unit

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32966, 12 July 1972, Page 4

Fine documentary from Film Unit

Not for the first time, the New Zealand National Film Unit has shown an j admirable maturity in a • film for television. “Gone ■ up North for a While,” a dramatised documentary I on New Zealand’s illegiti- ; mate births problem, was most ably handled and splendidly acted, especially by Denise Maunder as the - unmarried mother. ' There were 8500 illegitimate births in New Zealand last year, and the problem is no new one. The handling . of it, in this particular style, was very effective, often J touching. A flash-back and . flash-forward system, from the birth of the baby, was , used very well, and it was refreshing to see these ’ sequences being maintained . for telling periods; often there is a temptation to seek i dramatic impact with a string of jerky, brief moments of story telling. These ones put the colour in the picture faithfully. i Denise Maunder, wife of the producer Paul Maunder, was extraordinarily good. Although she faithfully maintained her characterisation of a rather unsophisticated (girl, one without the social 'refinements, the script gave The girl courage and feeling I which were most appealing. The story was developed I with restraint and studied care, but it dealt directly with some of the problems such unmarried mothers must often face—rejection by her parents, employment difficulties. trouble trying to find accommodation. It was always interesting, sometimes vivid and compelling. Most of the supporting players were more than adequate, and the best of them, we thought was Jacqui Jones as the landlady. Si* 7.S The final episode of “The

Big M’ was disappointing: I not that the previous five 'chapters had been startling. There was the well-worn | situation of the detective ’hero electing to become a human target to draw the villain into the open, but the story ended very weakly, with the occasional scenic shots as attractive as anyI thing in the telling of the I tale. Michael Bryant, a fine iactor, was wasted in this 'thrillerand his Galahad treatjment of the ill-named Verity I was as unconvicing as the j whole of Monday’s piece. The Rugby coverage from Auckland of the New Zealand Maoris’ match with the Californian Grizzlies was worth watching. There were variations in the picture I which helped maintain interest —angles and lengths of shots changing tellingly. The close-ups and action replays also contributed to the enjoyment of the report. But heaven help us. here was another commentator forever feeding not only the scrums, but line-outs as well. It did paII.—PANDORA. Tennis. — C. Richey (United States) beat J. Borowiak (United States) to win the Bretton Woods invitation tennis championship. 6-1, 6-0. F. Stolle and J. Alexander beat Richey and N. Pilic in a tight doubles match, 7-6, 7-6.