How to watch Holy Cow in New Zealand
Teen prays to Jesus his cheese pleases in this recent release.
This debut feature from Swiss/French filmmaker Louise Courvoisier has been wowing overseas and festival audiences for a good year now, so it’s great to see it finally getting a wide release locally.
How to watch Holy Cow in New Zealand
Holy Cow is screening in New Zealand cinemas from October 2, 2025.
What is Holy Cow about?
Coming of age in rural France! And cheese.
Jura is the particular patch of French countryside, which is right down on the Swiss border, and not coincidentally where writer and director Louise Courvoisier grew up. Here we find restless teen Totone, whose aimless days of hanging out with his hopeless mates come to an abrupt end when his dad dies in a car crash. Suddenly finding himself guardian of his little sister, Claire, our hero needs to find cash fast. Hearing of a lucrative cheese competition (30,000 euros being serious cheddar), he decides to reopen his late father’s cheese dairy, win the competition, and bring home the bacon. So, it’s sort of a “put on a show to have the rec centre” deal, except it’s “make a really good cheese to save my sister from going into the system.”
The cast of Holy Cow
Clément Faveau is Totone, an 18-year-old boy living in rural France; Luna Garret is Claire, Totone’s younger sister; Maiwene Barthelemy is Marie-Lise, his love interest; Dimitry Baudry and Mathis Bernard are Francis and Jean-Yves, Totone’s best friends; Armand Sancey Richard is Cyril; and Lucas Marillier is Pierrick.
Holy Cow trailer
Why we’re excited about Holy Cow
Holy Cow has not quite swept the awards season, but it’s getting universally effusive reviews from audiences and critics alike. While the story seems, at first taste, to be both formulaic and self-consciously quirky, but the grounded emotions, dry humour, and charming, naturalistic performances elevate the whole thing. “Heartfelt without being cloying” seems to be the general vibe for this one.
