Whale Rider
First screened in July 2003 / Most recently screened in June 2007
Director: Niki Caro. Cast: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis, Grant Roa, Mana Taumaunu, Rachel House, Taungaroa Emile, Rawinia Clarke. Screenplay: Niki Caro (based on the novel by Witi Ihimaera).

 Twitter Capsule: Most successful when openly folkloric. Odd for a Maori film to so associate traditionalism with patriarchal privilege.

VOR: ③  Slightly tentative, but noteworthy as a Maori-produced story of Maori life that resonated around the world, placing the worldly and the mythic in suggestive conjunction.


Photo © 2002 South Pacific Pictures/ApolloMedia Distribution/Pandora
Filmproduktion, © 2003 Newmarket Films

Not yet reviewed in full. Grade: C+

Academy Award Nominations:
Best Actress: Keisha Castle-Hughes

Other Awards:
Sundance Film Festival: Audience Award (World Cinema)
Toronto International Film Festival: People's Choice Award
Independent Spirit Awards: Best Foreign Film
National Board of Review: Special Mention for Excellence in Filmmaking
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