Clarke Gayford – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

MOVIE OF THE WEEK June 13, 2025: PRIME MINISTER

June 8, 2025June 8, 2025 Jennifer Merin betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Clarke Gayford, Jacinda Ardern, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, Lindsay Utz, loren king, magnolia pictures, Michelle Walshe, nell minow, new zealand, Prime Minister, sandie angulo chen, sherin nicole

Anyone who still thinks that women are too emotionally unstable to be effective leaders needs to do two things, stat: Take a look at the messy, high-drama bromance break-up currently dominating the news cycle and sit down to watch Prime Minister, Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe’s intimate, insightful documentary about former New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern. If that combo doesn’t leave you desperate to have a kind, competent woman in charge, nothing will.

Reviews

PRIME MINISTER – Review by Loren King

June 4, 2025June 7, 2025 Loren King Clarke Gayford, covid, gun control, Jacinda Ardern, Lindsay Utz, Michelle Walshe, new zealand, Prime Minister

Prime Minister is eye opening, engaging and also depressing. To hear former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern routinely use words like kindness, compassion and empathy when advocating for policy or talking about leadership left me disheartened that in the currently deeply divided, disinformation-inundated United States, such a leader could never be elected. Prime Minister is more than a powerful portrait of a singular leader. It’s also a devastating look at politics in the world today.

Reviews

PRIME MINISTER – Review by Leslie Combemale

June 4, 2025June 6, 2025 Leslie Combemale Clarke Gayford, covid, gun control, Jacinda Ardern, Lindsay Utz, Michelle Walshe, new zealand, Prime Minister, roe v wade

Is watching a leader that is the diametrically opposite of Donald Trump going to bring you despair, or optimism, or both? That’s the question that will likely pop up for viewers of the documentary Prime Minister, from co-directors Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe. The film chronicles former New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern’s professional and personal experiences in her five years as head of government, years that included the birth of her first child, a mass shooting, and a worldwide pandemic, and proved enormously challenging.

Festivals Reviews

PRIME MINISTER (Sundance FF 2025) – Review by Cortland Jacoby

February 3, 2025February 5, 2025 Cortland Jacoby (Sundance FF 2025), Clarke Gayford, Jacinda Ardern, Lindsay Utz, Michelle Walshe, new zealand, Prime Minister

Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is probably the most well-known PM New Zealand has ever had. A new documentary by first-time directors Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe chronicles her time as the country’s leader and what exactly about her tenure made her so remarkable. As an American, watching Prime Minister is an experience unto itself. Knowing the reverence our country and the rest of the world have for Ardern and seeing the dissonance and hatred towards her in her own country is jarring. On one hand, much of it is systemic sexism and some of it is valid criticism that is never given a thorough examination. Every time Ardern triumphs you wonder if the United States will ever see a woman in a similar position. But more importantly, you wonder if they will ever get a chance to fail and make dire mistakes, just like the men in power do.