Watch the video below for the full interview.

There are a couple of words that do a pretty good job of summing up the gut-punching new movie 'Pike River': “F*ckin' eh.”

It’s one of Melanie Lynskey’s iconic lines in the movie in her role as Anna Osbourne, who lost her husband in the catastrophic explosion at Pike River Mine in 2010. 

Robyn Malcolm plays Sonya Rockhouse, who bonds with Anna while grieving the loss of her son in the accident. The phrase, Robyn and Melanie agreed, feels perfect for a story that is both brutal, funny and deeply Kiwi.

At the film's Auckland premiere, it was clear 'Pike River' isn’t just the story of a terrible tragedy -  it’s about resilience, community, justice and the unique way New Zealanders use humour in hard times. 

Director Robert Sarkies had a mammoth task ahead of him when taking on the project - and hearing him speak at the premiere, it was clear how seriously he took that responsibility. He asked that every actor start their audition by saying where they were when they heard about the explosion.

For Robyn, that memory was tangled with another national trauma. “I was in Christchurch because the earthquake had just happened," she explained. 

And it was like, what? Hold on a minute, we’re over here, we’re in this. What the hell is going on in this country?

Melanie was living in LA, trying to process the news as a Kiwi far from home. "It wasn't being reported over there in the way it was here," she recalled.

Well over a decade later, production on 'Pike River' began. Not only did Robyn and Melanie meet the real women who inspired the story, but the actresses met each other for the first time, too. 

"Somebody made a grubby joke quite early on, and we were laughing," Robyn said of the first time she and Melanie met Sonya and Anna. "It was their trust that was amazing.”

Despite having never worked together or even met before 'Pike River', Melanie said she feels like she's "always known" Robyn. The pair joked about having had a friendship in a past life, and their close rapport with each other and the women they portray is just one part of the magic of the movie. 

Amid the abject heartbreak of the story, the distinctly Kiwi spirit of the film endures, bringing familiarity, pride and even comedic relief.

"I mean, we're the masters of the understatement, and the more emotional things get, the more kind of pragmatic we become," Robyn said of New Zealanders.

"The darker something gets, the funnier we find it, without disrespecting the situation at all," she added.

There's something about that community and Sonya and Anna that feels like the very heart of New Zealand to me at the moment.

For a story born from unimaginable loss and broken promises, 'Pike River' feels like a film all Kiwis can be proud of. 

The movie hits cinemas nationwide on Thursday, October 30th.