Starlight Hotel

1h 33min

Drama

During the Great Depression, Kate (Greer Robson) is a 13-year-old girl living on New Zealand's South Island. When her mother dies and her father is offered a job in Wellington on North Island, Kate is sent to live with an aunt. The girl runs away to find her father, hopping onto a boxcar and befriending a fellow fugitive, Patrick (Peter Phelps), an emotionally battle-scarred WWI veteran fleeing the authorities after injuring a repo man. Pretending to be father and daughter, Patrick and Kate use each other for cover as they make their way across New Zealand, sleeping under the stars and championing the rights of destitute farmers and homeless squatters whose fortunes have been wiped out by economic hardship.

Production Companies

New Zealand Film Commission

Challenge Film Corporation

Cast

Bruce Phillips

Bruce Phillips

Kate's Father
Vanessa Young

Vanessa Young

Schoolgirl #1
Teresa Bonney

Teresa Bonney

Schoolgirl #2
Duncan Anderson

Duncan Anderson

Railway Foreman
Russell Gibson

Russell Gibson

Railway Worker
Marshall Napier

Marshall Napier

Det. Wallace
Craig Halkett

Craig Halkett

Farmer's Son
Laura Robertson

Laura Robertson

Panel Member
John Watson

John Watson

School Teacher
Lee Matheson

Lee Matheson

Constable #2

Release date

27th Nov 1987

Status

Released

Spoken languages

English