Out of the Blue

In November 1990 misfit loner David Gray (played by Matthew Sunderland) killed 13 of his neighbours in the seaside town of Aramoana, near Dunedin. His rampage lasted 22 hours before he was gunned down by police. Out of the Blue is a dramatised re-enactment of these traumatic events. Directed by Rob Sarkies and co-written with Graeme Tetley, this gut-wrenching film did respectable box office and was lauded at 2008's Qantas Film and TV Awards, winning most feature categories, including best film and screenplay. Warning: excerpt contains realistic gun violence.

It's a powerful piece of work, made more so by a fierce restraint in its delivery. Its makers have shaped a narrative from the haphazard events of that day — and a little before in scenes showing the solitary and angry Gray approaching breaking point — but without making this run to a conventional thriller timetable.

– Russell Baillie, in a five star review of Out of the Blue, The NZ Herald, 5 October 2006

Key Cast & Crew

Victoria Kelly

Composer

Matthew Sunderland

As: David Gray

Rob Sarkies

Director, Writer

Karl Urban

As: Nick Harvey

Graeme Tetley

Writer

Steven O'Meagher

Producer