The Whale Rider (Movie Review Sample)

The Whale Rider
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The Whangara people at the east of New Zealand believed that they have been in that land for more than one thousand years, and they also believed they originated from the same ancestor called Paikea. It is also believed that Paikea escaped death when the boat he was riding capsized as he was riding on the back of the whale. This movie is based on the novel named "The whale riders" by Witi Ihimaera. The movies main character is Keisha Castle-Hunhges as Kahu Paikea, a twelve-year-old Maori girl believed that she was destined to become the new chief of Patriarch New Zealand tribe. She however faces great opposition from her grandfather Koro who is absolutely bound by their traditions and prefers a male leader.
Despite her great love for her grandfather, Pai knows she has to fight for her rights so as to achieve her dreams and to fulfill her destiny. Her grandfather, on the other hand, is not happy about her view of things and her intentions of changing the normal ways things run in this society, and he blames her for causing the conflicts within the tribe. Porourangi is the father of Pai, and he is a well-known international artist who is supposed to be the successor of Koro as the chief of the tribe. He is however not interested in becoming the chief and instead he leaves the country. This fills Koro with great sorrow as the society does not his successor as Koro considers Pai unsuitable to take the role. He calls the people in the society to bring their boys for training so that he can identify the right person to succeed him as the chief of the tribe.
Koro teaches the boys how to fight using sticks a technique this community calls Tiaha and which had been traditionally reserved for boys. Pai secretly learns taiaha from Hemi, and she secretly follows all the lessons that Koro teaches the boys. The affiliation between Pai and her grandfather Koro worsens when he finds out that Pai had been leaning Tiaha and also when she wins tiaha against Hemi. Of all the boys who had been trained, none of them finds rei puta (whale tooth) an event that would signify the right person to succeed Koro as the chief of the tribe. Something surprising happens when Pai calls to the whales, and they hear her. Also, as she rides the boat together with her aunt and her uncle, Pai finds Rei puta and indication that Pai was the right one to succeed chief Koro.
Pai realizes the gap that has already grown between her and her grandfather and she decides make things work once again. She goes ahead and invites her Grandfather to her guest of honor as a concert of Maori chants that her school is putting on. It is during this event that the villagers realize that Pai had won an inter-school speech contest that was a dedication to her grandfather Koro, and it was directly linked to the traditions of the village. As Koro attends the events, he observes that there are so many whales near Pai’s home. He however warns Pai to touch the largest whale but as soon as he leaves, Pai climbs to the back of the largest whale, and she persuades it to take go back to the ocean. The whales go back to the ocean and Pai submerges into the ocean. People are left wondering whether she survives and on seeing her emerge from the ocean, they are overjoyed and they take her to the hospital. Her grandfather Koro is left with no alternative but to declare Pai as her successor and the next chief of the tribe. Indeed, he goes on and seeks for her forgiveness for being an obstacle in her life.
There are numerous social-cultural factors that revolve the characters in this movie. First of all is the religious factor. One way in which this social-cultural factor is depicted in this novel is through the sacrificial love that the main character Pai shows to her people. She sacrifices herself for her community and the community traditions. This can be compared to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ where he sacrificed to save other people. She does not evade the situations despite the fact that she is aware that they will inflict pain on her. She takes a risk of giving her life to the whale an indication of how she had strong faith and courage to achieve the best for her community. She risks dying by deciding to save the whale by taking them back to the oceans without worrying whether she dies as this will be beneficial to her community. She is committed to protecting the traditions and the beliefs of her community.
Also, the religious aspect is shown in this movie through resurrection or rebirth of the main character Pai which is comparable to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. After Pai emerges from the ocean she is taken to the hospital and her waking is seen as rebirth since the villagers had assumed that she had died when she submerged in the ocean on the back of the largest whale. Furthermore, there is godliness in Pai’s life because she feels so much connected to the ancestor a feeling that other members of the society do not experience. She is even able to communicate with animals which are believed to be the ancestors of this community who had taken the form of sharks. Also, when she is reborn, she comes up with full powers of leadership, and her grandfather acknowledges that she is the chief of the community.
Another social-cultural factor that is so evident in this movie is the sex preference. Traditionally, this community believes that the chief can only be men and special training is conducted amongst boys keeping aside all girls. This movie however plays a critical role in showing that women are also capable of being leaders and it stresses on the new...