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Dilithium Crystals
Dilithium Crystals have been around since the origins of Star Trek. They regulate matter and anti-matter in the Starship Enterprise's warp core. But what are they? Audio
Flubber
Flubber has been around since 1961 when the mad scientist Professor Brainard discovered the flying rubber. It got a re-vamp with Robin Williams in the late 90s, but how realistic is it? Audio
Introducing Sci Fi Sci Fact
Sci Fi / Sci Fact is a new podcast series in which scientists from New Zealand's MacDiarmid Institute talk to RNZ host Bryan Crump about whether some of science-fiction's most popular concepts could… Audio
Movie Review - Encanto
Encanto is set in an exotic Latin American town, where all the Madrigal family but one have magical powers. Can Mirabel save the town when the powers start to fade? Songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda (In the… Audio
Review - Dune
Dune has defeated the best efforts of Hollywood in the past. Can Denis Villeneuve (Arrival) and an all-star cast triumph where others have failed. Stars Timothée Chalamet, Oscar Isaac, Zendaya and… Video, Audio
Review - The Electrical World of Louis Wain
The Electrical World of Louis Wain is an Amazon Prime feature about a Victorian English illustrator whose whimsical pictures of cats entranced the nation. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Claire Foy… Video, Audio
At The Movies for 8 December 2021
Simon Morris looks at three films that are all out of the ordinary - an adaptation of a sci-fi book that's defied filming, an animated musical set in Latin America and a biopic of an eccentric… Audio
TRAILER: Getting to the science behind the fiction
Listen in to hear New Zealand's brightest scientific minds discuss the merits of pop culture plot-drivers. From Wolverine's adamantium-fused skeleton to Star Trek's dilithium crystals. Audio
Review - Titane
French film Titane was a sensation when it won the Palme D'Or at Cannes this year. An erotic dancer moonlights as a serial killer, and has closer than normal feelings for American muscle cars -… Video, Audio
Movie review - Venom: Let There Be Carnage
Venom: Let There Be Carnage sees Eddie (Tom Hardy) still hosting alien being Venom, but this time he confronts a bad guy in the same predicament. Features Woody Harrelson (The Hunger Games) and… Video, Audio
Movie review - Petite Maman
Petite Maman is a French "what if?" story about how an 8-year-old girl makes a new friend, who may be her mother at the same age. Written and directed by Céline Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on Fire). Video, Audio
At the Movies for 3 November 2021
Simon Morris looks at three films about stories - one based on an early tale of chivalry, one that smuggles adult concerns into a children's animated movie, and a horror film that taps into indigenous… Audio
Sam's Take: Does Venom sequel pack a sting?
Sam's Take - Sam Rillstone takes a look at Sony's latest offering from the Spider-Man Universe - Venom: Let There Be Carnage.
Film Review: Graeme Tuckett
Graeme gives his thoughts on Petite Maman and Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Audio
Peter Jackson on how Tolkien stopped a Beatles LOTR film
1968 was a pivotal year in Peter Jackson's life - it was then that JRR Tolkien refused The Beatles permission to make a film version of The Lord of The Rings. Decades later, the Beatles and Sir Peter…
Review -The Rescue
The Rescue is the story of the rescue mission that gripped the world in 2018, when a young Thai football team found themselves trapped at the end of an underground river. Directed by Jimmy Chin and… Video, Audio
Movie Review - A Boy Called Christmas
A boy called Christmas is based on a popular children's book, and stars Dame Maggie Smith, Sally Hawkins, Jim Broadbent and Toby Jones. Audio
At The Movies for 24 November
Simon Morris goes to a couple of improving documentaries and finds them rather more entertaining than their fictional rivals. Audio
Review - Breaking Bread
Breaking Bread covers an Arabic Food Festival in Israel, where pairs of chefs - one Jewish, one Arabic - set out to show that food can bring people together. It was the brainchild of Nof… Video, Audio
Netflix's Cowboy Bebop shot in a gritty and grimy Auckland
Filmed under the twin shadows of both the pandemic and the Lord of the Rings, Cowboy Bebop is an Auckland film success story. Audio
