When the Cows Come Home

⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2 - Described by Stuff as “an appropriately bucolic, unrushed Kiwi gem of a movie”, When the Cows Come Home (directed by Costa Botes), follows the life of musician, journalist, artist and cow whisperer, Andrew Johnstone.

The film introduces audiences to Tilly and Maggie, a pair of cows Johnstone has befriended and subsequently saved from slaughter. The garrulous herdsman is enthusiastic to expound his views on animal husbandry, bovine communication and the vagaries of life in general before the film walks us back through the events that have shaped the singular farmer-philosopher.

When The Cows Come Home had its premiere at the 2022 Whānau Marama New Zealand International Film Festival.