Pork Pie makes its glitzy Auckland debut

A remake of a Kiwi film more than 35 years old has made its star-studded debut in Auckland.

Pork Pie, based on Geoff Murphy's 1981 film Goodbye Pork Pie, isn't due in cinemas until February 2 but had its world premiere at a glitzy ceremony at The Civic tonight.

See: The red carpet pictures from the Pork Pie premiere

Starring James Rolleston, Dean O'Gorman and Ashleigh Cummings, Pork Pie is directed by Geoff Murphy's son Matt Murphy.

It follows a group of "accidental outlaws" who go on the run from police in a car chase that lasts the length of the country. It includes remade dialogue and scenes from the original movie.

Dean and Sarah O'Gorman attend the premiere of Pork Pie at The Civic in Auckland. Photo/Norrie Montgomery

Rolleston, a rising star who has also appeared in Boy and The Dark Horse, suffered life-threatening injuries in a serious car crash in July, just weeks after filming Pork Pie.

He suffered a compound fracture in his leg and a brain injury, and told the Herald in December he struggled to do basic things like "cut my food and brush my teeth".

"My career was right there in both my hands, right in front of me, and it's changed instantly. It's just opened my eyes up to how precious my life was and how I am so thankful for all the little things I have in life and what I can do."

Pork Pie is one of the biggest New Zealand film releases of the year, and comes on the back of an ultra successful 2016 thanks to the box office smash Hunt For the Wilderpeople, as well as accolades for David Farrier's Tickled.

James Rolleston and Dean O'Gorman in a scene from Pork Pie.

But early reviews have been mixed.

Despite some "enjoyably deja vu moments," Herald critic Russell Baillie said the film "stuck to the middle of the road".

It was "sporadically entertaining but a largely spiritless imitation".