Forgotten Silver
Encyclopedia
Forgotten Silver is a New Zealand film
mockumentary
that purports to tell the story of a pioneering New Zealand filmmaker. It was written and directed by Peter Jackson
and Costa Botes
, both of whom appear in the film in their roles as makers of the documentary.
was the first man to invent a powered aircraft, several months prior to the Wright Brothers
.
The film also shows a (staged) premiere screening of a recovered McKenzie film presented by film promoter Lindsay Shelton. It features deadpan commentary from actor/director Sam Neill
and director and film archivist John O'Shea
, as well as critical praise from international industry notables including film historian Leonard Maltin
, and Harvey Weinstein
of Miramax Films
.
In reality, McKenzie is a fictional character, and the films featured in Forgotten Silver were all created by Peter Jackson, carefully mimicking the style of early cinema. The interviewees are all acting. Thomas Robins, the actor who portrays Colin MacKenzie, is today more easily recognized by audiences as Sméagol's ill-fated companion Déagol
in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
.
, including the one with Weinstein.
's channel TV ONE in a time slot usually dedicated to plays
and mini-series, but was billed and introduced as a serious documentary. A large proportion of the TV audience were fooled until the directors shortly afterwards revealed that it was a hoax. The airing proved extremely controversial.
The film was subsequently screened at a number of film festival
s. It was acclaimed, and has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
.
Cinema of New Zealand
New Zealand cinema, can refer to films made by New Zealand-based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries...
mockumentary
Mockumentary
A mockumentary , is a type of film or television show in which fictitious events are presented in documentary format. These productions are often used to analyze or comment on current events and issues by using a fictitious setting, or to parody the documentary form itself...
that purports to tell the story of a pioneering New Zealand filmmaker. It was written and directed by Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
and Costa Botes
Costa Botes
Costa Botes is a New Zealand writer, director and cinematographer.-Movie-making career:Botes is best known in New Zealand for Forgotten Silver , a documentary he co-wrote and co-directed with Peter Jackson...
, both of whom appear in the film in their roles as makers of the documentary.
Synopsis
Forgotten Silver purports to tell the story of 'forgotten' New Zealand filmmaker Colin McKenzie, and the rediscovery of his lost films, which presenter Peter Jackson claims to have found in an old shed. McKenzie is presented as the first and greatest innovator of modern cinema, single-handedly inventing the tracking shot (by accident), the close-up (unintentionally), and both sound and color film years before their historically documented creation. The film also shows fragments of an epic Biblical film supposedly made by McKenzie in a giant set in the forests of New Zealand, and a 'computer enhancement' of a McKenzie film providing clear evidence that New Zealander Richard PearseRichard Pearse
Richard William Pearse , son of Cornish immigrants from St Columb near Newquay, a New Zealand farmer and inventor who performed pioneering experiments in aviation....
was the first man to invent a powered aircraft, several months prior to the Wright Brothers
Wright brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
.
The film also shows a (staged) premiere screening of a recovered McKenzie film presented by film promoter Lindsay Shelton. It features deadpan commentary from actor/director Sam Neill
Sam Neill
Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill, DCNZM, OBE is a New Zealand actor. He is well known for his starring role as paleontologist Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III....
and director and film archivist John O'Shea
John O'Shea (director)
John Dempsey O'Shea was a New Zealand independent filmmaker; he was a director, producer, writer and actor.He was active from 1940 to 1970, and in 1952 set up Pacific Films in Wellington with Roger Mirams...
, as well as critical praise from international industry notables including film historian Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
, and Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein, CBE is an American film producer and movie studio chairman. He is best known as co-founder of Miramax Films. He and his brother Bob have been co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company, their film production company, since 2005...
of Miramax Films
Miramax Films
Miramax Films is an American entertainment company known for distributing independent and foreign films. For its first 14 years the company was privately owned by its founders, Bob and Harvey Weinstein...
.
In reality, McKenzie is a fictional character, and the films featured in Forgotten Silver were all created by Peter Jackson, carefully mimicking the style of early cinema. The interviewees are all acting. Thomas Robins, the actor who portrays Colin MacKenzie, is today more easily recognized by audiences as Sméagol's ill-fated companion Déagol
Déagol
Déagol is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. His story is related in The Fellowship of the Ring, the first of three volumes comprising Tolkien's most famous novel, The Lord of the Rings, in the chapter "The Shadow of the Past"....
in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic fantasy-drama film directed by Peter Jackson that is based on the second and third volumes of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings...
.
Cast
- Peter JacksonPeter JacksonSir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
- Johnny MorrisJohnny MorrisErnest John "Johnny" Morris OBE ) was a Welsh television presenter. He is best known for narrating the imported, Canadian-produced Tales of the Riverbank series of stories about Hammy the Hamster, Roderick the Rat, GP the Guinea Pig, and their assorted animal friends along a riverbank and...
- Costa BotesCosta BotesCosta Botes is a New Zealand writer, director and cinematographer.-Movie-making career:Botes is best known in New Zealand for Forgotten Silver , a documentary he co-wrote and co-directed with Peter Jackson...
- Harvey WeinsteinHarvey WeinsteinHarvey Weinstein, CBE is an American film producer and movie studio chairman. He is best known as co-founder of Miramax Films. He and his brother Bob have been co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company, their film production company, since 2005...
- Leonard MaltinLeonard MaltinLeonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
- Sam NeillSam NeillNigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill, DCNZM, OBE is a New Zealand actor. He is well known for his starring role as paleontologist Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III....
- Marguerite Hurst
- John O'SheaJohn O'Shea (director)John Dempsey O'Shea was a New Zealand independent filmmaker; he was a director, producer, writer and actor.He was active from 1940 to 1970, and in 1952 set up Pacific Films in Wellington with Roger Mirams...
- Lindsay Shelton
- Beatrice Ashton
- Peter Corrigan
- Sarah McLeodSarah McLeodSarah McLeod is a New Zealand movie and television series actress. Her most notable role was in the Peter Jackson movies The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King as Rosie Cotton, a female hobbit who married Samwise Gamgee. Her daughter...
- Thomas RobinsThomas RobinsThomas Robins is a New Zealand actor who was the original host of Squirt, a children's television series. He has also played roles in two films directed by Peter Jackson.- Filmography :* Forgotten Silver - Colin McKenzie...
- Davina WhitehouseDavina WhitehouseDavina Whitehouse, OBE was a stage, film and television actress acclaimed in both her native UK as well as Australasia.She was a star of the London stage in the 1930s before emigrating to New Zealand in 1952,...
Production
Costa Botes directed the 'documentary' portions while Peter Jackson created the 'archive footage' supposedly filmed by McKenzie. Jackson also shot fake interviews in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, including the one with Weinstein.
Reception
The film was first aired on Television New ZealandTelevision New Zealand
Television New Zealand, more commonly referred to, and stylized as TVNZ, is a government-owned corporation television network broadcasting in New Zealand and parts of the Pacific. It operates TV1, TV2, TVNZ7, TVNZ Heartland, TVNZ U and new media services....
's channel TV ONE in a time slot usually dedicated to plays
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
and mini-series, but was billed and introduced as a serious documentary. A large proportion of the TV audience were fooled until the directors shortly afterwards revealed that it was a hoax. The airing proved extremely controversial.
The film was subsequently screened at a number of film festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
s. It was acclaimed, and has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.