Came a Hot Friday
Promotional film poster
Directed by	Ian Mune
Written by	Ronald Hugh Morrieson (novel) Ian Mune (screen) Dean Parker (screen)
Starring	Peter Bland Phillip Gordon Michael Lawrence Billy T. James Marshall Napier Don Selwyn
Cinematography	Alun Bollinger
Edited by	Ken Zemke
Music by	Stephen McCurdy
Release dates	1985 (1985) (New Zealand) 4 October 1985 (1985-10-04) (U.S.)
Running time	101 minutes
Country	New Zealand
Language	English
Box office	NZ$950,000^[1]

Came a Hot Friday is a 1985 New Zealand comedy film, based on the 1964 novel by Ronald Hugh Morrieson. Directed and co-written by Ian Mune, it became one of the most successful local films released in New Zealand in the 1980s. The film's cast included famed New Zealand comedian Billy T. James.

Plot

In rural New Zealand in 1949, Wes Pennington (Peter Bland) and his partner Cyril (Philip Gordon) are out to run a horse-racing scam for as long as they can. They are inveterate gamblers who have joined forces to trick local bookies, by taking advantage of delayed broadcasts of horse races. After arriving in small town Tainuia Junction, Wes and Cyril get involved in a bootlegging ring, arson and murder. Among a group of local eccentrics, they also meet the Tainuia Kid (Billy T. James), a Maori who believes himself to be a Mexican bandito. He becomes a kind of protector for the duo.

Morrieson's novels featured some sexuality and violence, but the film downplayed these aspects of the source novel and concentrated more on the comical elements. Some argued that the film followed the spirit of the Ealing comedies. One writer argued that the book makes "good-natured, nostalgic fun of small town 1940s New Zealand where Friday night’s excitement is a pie and chips at the boozer" with "larger than life parodic characters".^[2]

Cast

Peter Bland as Wes Pennington
Phillip Gordon as Cyril Kidman
Michael Lawrence as Don Jackson
Billy T. James as The Tainuia Kid
Marshall Napier as Sel Bishop
Don Selwyn as Norm Cray
Marise Wipani as Esmerelda
Erna Larsen as Dinah
Philip Holder as Dick
Tricia Phillips as Claire
Bruce Allpress as Don's Dad
Michael Morrissey as Morrie
Roy Billing as Darkie Benson
Hemi Rapata as Kohi
Bridget Armstrong as Aunt Agg
Prince Tui Teka as Saxophonist

Home media

The film was released on DVD on 6 July 2011.^[3]

Awards

New Zealand Film and TV Awards

Year	Category	Recipient
1986	Best Director	Ian Mune
1986	Best Editing	Ken Zemke
1986	Best Film	Larry Parr
1986	Best Film Score	Stephen McCurdy
1986	Best Performance, Male in a Leading Role	Peter Bland
1986	Best Performance, Male in Supporting Role	Billy T. James
1986	Best Screenplay Adaption	Ian Mune, Dean Parker

External links

References

^ Nicolaidi, Mike (March 1987). "The dog has his day". Cinema Papers. p. 8. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
^ New Zealand Film 1912-1996 by Helen Martin & Sam Edwards p103 (1997, Oxford University Press, Auckland) ISBN 019 558336 1
^ "Came a Hot Friday". flicks.co.nz. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2011.

v t e Films directed by Ian Mune
Came a Hot Friday (1985) Bridge to Nowhere (1986) The Grasscutter (1990) The End of Golden Weather (1991) The Whole of the Moon (1997) What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? (1999) Life's a Riot (2009) Billy T: Te Movie (2011)