When film buffs talk about their favorite female directors from New Zealand, Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog [2021], The Piano [1993]) is usually the first to be mentioned but there are plenty of other worthy contenders. Niki Caro (Whale Rider, 2002), Gaylene Preston (Perfect Strangers, 2003) and Merata Mita (Boy, 2010) also have impressive filmographies worth exploring and Alison Maclean is a particular favorite who should be better known. She first attracted attention for her nightmarish film short Kitchen Sink (1989) and followed it with Crush, her 1992 feature film debut. Jesus’ Son (1999), based on a collection of short stories by Denis Johnson and starring Billy Crudup as a heroin addict, was critically acclaimed and an art house success but Maclean still remains relatively unknown outside her own country despite directing TV episodes of Sex and the City (1998), The L Word (2005), The Tudors (2007), Gossip Girl (2009) and more recent work such as The Rehearsal (2016), a drama about a prestigious acting school. Yet I’m still surprised that her first feature Crush didn’t attract more attention at the time since it was such an emotionally complex and riveting psychological drama.