What The World Is Saying About The Jacinda Ardern Documentary: Prime Minister

Wednesday, 29 January 2025, 8:58 pm
Article: RNZ

RNZ Online

A new documentary about former prime minister Jacinda Ardern's time at the helm has been released to mixed reviews from around the world.

Prime Minister, co-directed by Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe, premiered at Sundance Film Festival last week. It covers Dame Jacinda's tenure as leader for five years and features home videos shot by husband Clarke Gayford and unheard audio clips recorded by the Alexander Turnbull Library's Political Diaries project.

While many reviewers lauded the film for its introspection and showcasing the emotional toll of being a leader in today's world, they also noted its glaring omissions of an in-depth look into the political frameworks.

Los Angeles Times entertainment and arts deputy editor Matt Brennan called the 102-minute film "an uncommonly revealing portrait of leadership in action".

The Hollywood Reporter film critic Caryn James writes the juxtaposition with clips of then-US president Donald Trump is no coincidence.

"It would be a bit of an exaggeration, but just a bit, to say it trolls Donald Trump."

The film glosses over the political wrangling, instead making up for it with insight into her personal responses to crises, James writes.

"But even with its omissions and glossiness - a typical side effect of insider access - Prime Minister's portrait of Ardern is so persuasive it might make you wish you could vote for her."

Variety's Siddhant Adlakha described it as an "intimate but simplistic documentary".

The lack of political complexity proved detrimental, adding Gayford's involvement as producer was a "double-edged sword" that may have contributed to the limited political approach, Adlakha writes.

"Ardern's actual outlooks are usually skimmed past, or presented as broad ideological statements about social progress, with no mention of any of the financial policies (or tax promises un-kept) that would affect her approval beyond anti-vaccine fringe elements - a largely external factor framed as central to her resignation."

Screen Daily's Amber Wilkinson agrees there is a bit of glossing over when it comes to providing insights into Dame Jacinda's decision to step down, "but it's in keeping with a film that is as much about the person as the position she held".

"Offering an eye-opening insider perspective that comes as a reminder of what conviction politics looks like when it is maintained even under extreme pressure, as well as being a celebration of feminism, Prime Minister holds appeal for audiences well beyond New Zealand's shores. Its presence in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at Sundance should launch it into the attention it deserves."

IndieWire's Harrison Richlin, who ranked the documentary as "grade B", writes the film showcases how those who are loudest in politics win but also offers hope for a different future.

"Ultimately, 'Prime Minister' feels like a film that would've had more impact if released a year ago, but today reads as a tragic depiction of yet another experienced, thoughtful woman whose determination to do good, both by her family and the country she represents, is steam-rolled by the horror and bigotry other individuals wish to bring on the world."

Dame Jacinda told the New Zealand Herald she supported the film because the producers had not sought Film Commission funding.

"I saw the final cut of the film yesterday," she said during an interview for the Sundance Film Festival last week. "I cried through most of it, and I'm not sure if that's equivalent to laughing at your own jokes. I was very emotional watching it. I credit the storytellers for it. I hoped that the film would humanise politicians, those who are public servants, and leadership, but I never thought it would humanise me. When I watched it, I just saw myself as someone who was trying to do their best."

Since she stepped down as prime minister and leader of the Labour Party in 2023, she has gone on to be appointed for fellowships at Harvard University.

She has also continued her work for the Christchurch Call as a special envoy. The initiative, set up after the Christchurch terror attacks, pushes for greater protection online from terrorist and violent extremist content.

Her memoir, A Different Kind Of Power, is set to be released in early June.

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