Whale Rider (2003)

Starring Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis.
Written and directed by Niki Caro.
Based on the novel by Witi Ihimaera.
Produced by Tim Sanders, John Bartnett, and Frank Hübner.
Distributed by Newmarket Films.
105 minutes.

LVJeff's Rating: 7/10

Girl-Power Wins, No Contest

The theaters are seeing a lot of "girl-power" movies these days. One of these is Whale Rider, which features a unique setting -- it takes place among the Maori people, who live on the coast of New Zealand. For over 1,000 years, the Maori have upheld a tradition in which their chief is a direct male descendant of Paikea, a leader who was once lost at sea but was rescued by riding a whale back to land.

Whale Rider is set in contemporary times, so the Maori people we meet aren't a stereotype of "natives"; their lifestyle is fairly modern, and their cultural history is a revered part of their colorful background. Currently, the chief is Koro (Rawiri Paratene), an elderly man with a grown son, Porourangi (Cliff Curtis). Koro feels unsettled, however, because Porourangi has all but cast off his roots -- he has an art career in Europe. Since Maori tradition declares that only a first-born son of Paikea's line can succeed as chief, Koro's only hope rests on Porourangi's offspring. However, during childbirth, the mother dies, and only the female half of a pair of fraternal twins survives. Almost directly to spite his father's uncompassionate concern for the male twin's health over the female's, Porourangi names the girl Paikea.

Naturally, this is the story of Paikea (Keisha Castle-Hughes), informally known as Pai, who has grown to become a 12-year-old of some conviction. What's nice about Whale Rider is its setting and theme -- a people must challenge their own tradition to make room for a justifiable 21st century issue, i.e. the equality of women. The movie slightly disappoints, however, in the way it carries out its story -- for my tastes, it's a bit too straightforward, too black-and-white.

Consider the character of Koro. He has legitimate concern about maintaining his people's tradition, but the movie not only makes him out to be a villain, he is also all alone in being the representative of the old values. Many of his actions appear stubborn and heartless -- the story beings by showing that he does care for Pai as his grandchild, yet whenever it comes to the matter of finding his heir, he coldly shuts out Pai and all consideration of her and her feelings. Meanwhile, his own wife, Flowers (Vicky Haughton), can barely stand for the way he treats Pai, and the audience is led into cheering anytime she denounces Koro. The film makes no time for how difficult it must be to sway from a thousand-year-old tradition, even if a traditionalist had an inclination to.

That's because the movie is too busy making the case for Pai. She is not only a direct descendant, but she also happens to love the tradition and culture of her people. She is as proud of the legacy of the original Whale Rider as she is strong and intelligent as a human being. When Koro begins to gather the town's first-born sons in a rather desperate effort to train the next possible male heir, Pai is forbidden from the lessons, but she manages to do all she can to train on the side. Naturally, we must root for her -- stuffy traditionalists must learn how wrong they are in suppressing their females, and who better to get behind in this effort than Pai.

I realize I sound sarcastic, and, honestly, I might have really been feeling that way toward the movie had it not been for a remarkable performance by Castle-Hughes. She reminded me very much of Everlyn Sampi in Rabbit-Proof Fence -- they have that same look in their eyes that says, "I will stand up for what I believe in, and you can not beat me down." Whale Rider's black-and-white-ness and somewhat shameless attempts at swaying its audience are tempered very well with Castle-Hughes's screen persona -- she makes believable a character that, frankly, was written to be flawless. A key scene in which she delivers a tearful speech works solely because Castle-Hughes sells the scene with such strong sincerity that even jaded viewers will find it difficult not to be moved.

Whale Rider's enjoyability also receives an assist from its appealing mythic qualities, reflected in its story origins and its ending, which features, appropriately enough, whales (I won't say more about it to keep from spoiling anything). Quality acting, camerawork, and theme almost make it a shame that the movie is as simplistic as it is. I'm all for girl-power and calling out the unfair treatment of women in outdated aspects of longstanding cultures, but, in Whale Rider, tradition doesn't even get a realistic fighting chance.

©Jeffrey Chen, Jun. 12, 2003

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