The diversity of theatre offered at the Basement is amply demonstrated in an intriguing work by a contemporary Lithuanian playwright.

COMMENT: If you were to pick an auteur film talent to bring hip hop's origin story to TV, it's unlikely Baz Luhrmann would figure on your list.

Basically Sausage Party is a sniggering, dirty spin on the typical Pixar film, with the one big joke being its cartoons dropping f-bombs.

Blood Father heads towards an anaemic finish, but it offers plenty of pulp excitement along the way.

Tom Hanks sure suits the rank of captain. He was one in Saving Private Ryan and high-seas thriller Captain Phillips.

A cautionary tale about a high school teenager working out who she is and the dangers of being hardwired to the internet.

Bad Moms follows a group of frazzled moms in suburban Chicago who decide to throw away "having it all" in exchange for having fun and making time for themselves.

Well, it could have been worse. Like Absolutely Fabulous the movie bad or Mrs Browns Boys D' Movie bad.

Works selected for the Walters Prize, now on show at Auckland Art Gallery and to be announced later this month, are three video works and a billboard display representing each artist's body of work.

It is easy to see why the Royal NZ Ballet's signature work Giselle has earned popular and critical acclaim at home in New Zealand and around the world: it is simply superb in every way.

Bound is beautiful, monstrous, dizzying, thrilling and strange.

As a movie, 'Chasing Great' reminds us that Richie McCaw is one impressive bloke, but also that over-achievers are tricky doco subjects.

Bach Musica NZ marketed this early evening concert as a Mozart Feast and a generous repast it was.

Geoff Allen's snippets-of-life drama is prettily presented by director Amanda Rees and holds attention with some lovely moving moments

Long live the art of painting

Bad Moms is essentially your average frat-house party flick, starring hot Hollywood mums in place of Zac Efron - or at least it's trying to be.

There have been three previous Ben-Hur movies, as well as an animated version, a mini-series and a famous homage - Star Wars: The Phantom Menace - that ripped off its chariot race.

During the past few years, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra has presented annual Choral Masterpieces evenings, focusing on one particular

The Real Housewives of Auckland might be appallingly timed but it is the most entertaining television of the year, writes Duncan Greive.

If the Legionnaire hat comes roaring back into fashion in New Zealand this summer, we won't need to look far to find the reason why.

If the title Venus in Fur sounds vaguely familiar you could be thinking of Velvet Underground circa 1967 or the 19th century erotic novel.

Auckland Opera Studio and its artistic director Frances Wilson should be very proud of giving Handel's Oreste its New Zealand premiere.

What: Resident by James Cousins Where and when: Gow Langsford Gallery, 26 Lorne St, to August 27 TJ says: Luminous, near abstract

A fantasy adventure filled with heart and soul, and beautiful animation.

No Man's Sky is a true sandbox game. Like actual real life space, it's overwhelming in scale, but endlessly intriguing.

They're attempting to push their graphic novel style to deliver their most impressive game yet, with engaging dialogue and impressive action sequences.

The 12th and latest film to be based on a novel by the austere doyen of espionage fiction, John le Carre, may be the least satisfying ever.

The New Zealand String Quartet has a distinguished track record on disc, balancing homegrown with international repertoire. Its latest

Mendelssohn's Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage has always seemed a poor cousin to his more popular Hebrides Overture, despite its literary

The Shallows is is a B-movie hoot big on suspense and curiously low on gore.