Happy Birthday, Geoff Murphy! Born today in 1938 as Geoffrey Peter Murphy, this New Zealand screenwriter, film producer and film director was best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the last half of the 1970s.
Murphy grew up in the Wellington suburb of Highbury. Years later, he attended St. Vincent de Paul School in Kelburn and St. Patrick's College, Wellington, before training and working as a schoolteacher.
Murphy was a founding member of legendary 'hippy' musical and theatrical co-operative Blerta and working on the Blerta Television series (a kiwi-version of the Monty Python series that mixed musical performances with sketches).
A number of Blerta members would work on Murphy's later films, most notably British and New Zealand actor, musician and Blerta founder Bruno Lawrence.
Over this period, Murphy's all-round technical abilities saw him create explosions and fake AK-47s.
This was for Australian-born New Zealand film director, producer and writer Roger Donaldson's 1977 New Zealand drama action-thriller/political thriller film 'Sleeping Dogs', starring Sam Neill.
Murphy also rented out a homebuilt camera crane (built with Andy Grant).
He, along with Grant, cooked together a scheme whereby they designed and built a camera crane and hired it out to private film companies and the National Film Unit.
They mischievously called their joint venture the Acme Sausage Company and their Asosco Crane was in great demand.
When he left for Hollywood between 1977 and 1985, Murphy assisted many other local filmmakers to make their features.
During this time, Murphy directed the 1981 New Zealand comedy drama/adventure film 'Goodbye Pork Pie'.
Co-starring Lawrence, the film eventually grossed NZ$1.4 million ($630,290) at the box office on a budget of NZ$350,000 ($220,801).
Murphy and Lawrence were among many whose talents were forcing their way on to television after Bruno won his action award and for his earlier appearance in Geoff's film.
Two years later, Murphy co-wrote, produced and directed the first film of which he is best known. This was the 1983 New Zealand war/drama film 'Utu'.
The film is partly inspired by events from Te Kooti's War. This was among the last of the New Zealand wars, the series of 19th century conflicts between the Māori and the colonizing European settlers.
Set in the 1870s, 'Utu' tells of a tattooed Maori named Te Wheke (Anzac Wallace). He leads a reign of terror after a British massacre in 19th century New Zealand.
The soldier sets out to get utu, or vengeance, on his former allies after the British army destroys his home village and kills his uncle.
The cast for 'Utu' included Bruno Lawrence (Williamson), and Kelly Johnson (Lt. Scott).
It also featured veteran Māori New Zealand actor of film, theatre and television Wi Kuki Kaa (Wiremu). Murphy also has a bit part in the film, credited as Wagon Driver #1.
The film screened out of competition at the 36th Cannes Film Festival in May 1983. Post-screening, it became the second most successful local movie released in New Zealand to that date.
Positive reviews in America, including a rave review from American film critic for the New York Times Pauline Kael, of whom helped win Murphy directing work in Hollywood.
Sometimes described as "a Māori Western", 'Utu' was reputed to have one of the largest budgets for a New Zealand film up until that time at NZ$600,000.
Two years later, Murphy directed the second film of which he is best known for directing. This was the 1985 New Zealand post-apocalyptic sci-fi film 'The Quiet Earth'.
The film had been based on British-New Zealand author, playwright, scriptwriter, and retired university lecturer Craig Harrison's 1981 science fiction novel of the same name.
The film opens on July 5. It begins as a normal winter morning near Hamilton, New Zealand. At 6:12 a.m., the sun darkens for a moment, and a red light surrounded by darkness is briefly seen
When everyone around scientist Zac Hobson (Bruno Lawrence) vanishes overnight, he soon finds himself seemingly the only person on the planet. The isolation initially drives him to the brink of suicide, but eventually Zac adapts to a day-to-day routine.
After meeting two other survivors, Joanne (Alison Routledge) and Api (Peter Smith), a Maori, the trio roams New Zealand trying to understand what caused everyone else to disappear, why they remained behind -- and whether disaster will strike again.
The film's other sources of inspiration have been listed as American fantasy, horror and science fiction author and screenwriter Richard Matheson's 1954 horror post-apocalyptic dystopian fiction novel I Am Legend.
Even other sources include George A. Romero's ('Night of the Living Dead') 1978 Italian-American independent fantasy/thriller zombie horror film 'Dawn of the Dead'.
Especially, this includes the 1959 American black and white sci-fi/romance doomsday 'The World, the Flesh and the Devil', of which 'The Quiet Earth' has been called an unofficial remake.
By the 1990s, Murphy had begun a decade working outside of New Zealand, mostly in the United States.
In this period, he directed films such as the 1990 American Western action/adventure film 'Young Guns II' and the 1992 American adaptation science fiction action/thriller film 'Freejack', which featured Emilio Estevez and Mick Jagger.
In the mid-1990s, he directed the 1995 American action drama/ thriller Steven Segal Under Siege 2: Dark Territory'.
Although not critically successful, the film proved to be Murphy's most successful film at the international box-office, grossing $105 million worldwide.
In the early 2000s, Murphy later returned to New Zealand and assisted New Zealand film director, screenwriter, and film producer Peter Jackson on Lord of the Rings trilogy as 2nd Unit Director.
In the mid-2000s, Murphy served as second-unit director on the 2005 American thriller/action film 'XXX: State of the Union'.
In 2013, 'Utu' was re-released in digital form. This was partly thanks to the longtime existence of an alternative cut of the film aimed at international audiences, which Murphy had never been happy with.
He later completed work on a restored and recut version. This was 'Utu Redux', as it is now known. It premiered at the Wellington International Film Festival on July 26, 2013.
In 2014, Murphy was appointed an Officer of the 'New Zealand Order of Merit' for his services to film.
Murphy was named an 'Arts Icon' by the Arts Foundation, which named New Zealand's twenty greatest living artists. In the same year, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in literature by Massey University.
In 2016, Quentin Tarantino had labelled 'Utu' as “hands down the best New Zealand movie of all time.”
Tarantino told RNZ Afternoons he was a “big fan” of New Zealand cinema, including filmmakers Roger Donaldson and Bruno Lawrence.
According to Murphy's personal life, he was married to notable New Zealand filmmaker Merata Mita. She was also a key figure in the growth of the Māori screen industry. Mita had played the role of Matu in 'Utu'.
A leading if somewhat uneven figure among the glories of New Zealand cinema who made his mark in the 1980s, director-writer-producer Murphy became a hired gun in the first capacity in Hollywood action fare of the 1990s.
Although the antics of the protagonists were cruder and rowdier than genuinely witty or provocative, the film had energy, was technically playful, and scored a huge hit both in New Zealand and abroad.
Murphy had been active from 1977–2018.
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