Prime Minister
Published February 1, 2026
Film info
- Title Prime Minister
- Directors Michelle Walshe, Lindsay Utz
- Year 2025
- Run time 1hr 41m
- Genre Documentary
- Tagline To rule is easy. To lead is hard.
A view inside the life of former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, capturing her through five tumultuous years in power and beyond as she redefined leadership on the world stage.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 4:51 | “Out of fear that all of this would land on me and I wouldn’t be able to make it any better.” |
| 8:22 | It’s bad that a politician being themselves is revolutionary. |
| 16:13 | The first year of university free is a start, because you might not even like it. |
| 17:50 | The lovely Queen! |
| 19:59 | The reaction to the name: “Well, that’s different.” Hilarious. |
| 29:44 | Definitely need to get people interested in politics young. |
| 34:58 | These visits and these speeches, I can’t imagine how hard. |
| 36:15 | “Tell people what you know, even if it is hard.” |
| 42:28 | I can’t believe one person said no! |
| 46:42 | I hate those first few months of 2020. The hope, the not realising what’s coming. |
| 53:55 | She’ll work anywhere and everywhere, does she even have a desk? |
| 54:51 | “Are you fake carrying laundry around?” |
| 1:03:47 | “I wanted to punch him in the face.” |
| 1:10:33 | How do you deal with it when it’s not rational? |
| 1:11:26 | “Free-dumb protestors.” |
| 1:20:21 | It’s just so telling how she started so full of life and now is just endlessly tired and sad. |
| 1:29:37 | She’s wearing the cape! |
Thoughts
Continuing my efforts to find the humanity in politics, this documentary was an incredible insight into the efforts of Jacinda Ardern, someone I was vaguely familiar with but knew far too little about. It’s an excellent documentary, engaging and moving right from the start, eye-opening, and refreshing. The amount of stuff that Ardern and her team and also family had to go through, it’s just amazing that she remained as grounded and hopeful as she did. I found this infuriating and depressing in places, but then there’s an optimism that shines through and makes you remember there are good people out there.
Rating: 5 / 5