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Whale Rider: Special Edition
Columbia/Tri-Star // PG-13 // October 28, 2003
List Price: $27.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
(movie review written Summer, 03)
It's rare that I'm simply floored by a movie these days; I see so many that it takes something special to truly find a place in my memory. That said, it was a pleasure to walk into "Whale Rider" knowing little about the film and walk out considering it one of the best films I've seen in the past few years. The fact that nearly everyone involved with the movie is a relative unknown makes a film this masterfully done that much more surprising and pleasing.
Newcomer Keisha Castle-Hughes stars as Pai, a 12-year-old girl who lives with her grandfather, Koro and grandmother in a Maori community on the Eastern coast of New Zealand. Tribal history has stated that the first-born son will be the chieftain of the tribe, but after a difficult birth, Pai survives, while her twin brother does not make it. Her father Porourangi (Cliff Curtis), starts a new life in Europe, leaving his daughter in the care of his father, who will not come to terms with the fact that Pai - the next in the bloodline - might be the first female chief.
As she becomes older, Koro still shows care for his daughter, but the way he acts on the surface suggest that his dissapointment at not having a grandson still exists. Pai, who has grown into a determined, intelligent and kind 12-year-old, sets out to learn more about her culture and get respect from her grandfather. Audiences have seen films where a younger individual faces challenges to prove themselves capable of leadership to older members who have their own beliefs about their history.
However, this one works wonderfully, and for several reasons. Rawiri Paratene's performance as Koro is absolutely terrific. His performance is intense, fierce, and yet complex. While he's stern to Pai, he manages - which is quite a feat, given the character - to make the character at least somewhat sympathetic. He wants to care for his granddaughter and still hold onto the values and traditions that he has known. The scenes where he finally begins to realize the potential of Pai are extremely well-done and quite powerful. Throughout the movie, but especially towards the end, this is a very compelling performance. Keisha Castle-Hughes is simply fantastic as Pai, superbly portraying the character's ambition, intelligence and caring. A speech meant for her grandfather in the last half of the film is one of the film's several powerful moments. Supporting performances are strong across the board. These are largely non-professional actors, yet these are some of the best performances I've seen all year.
Director Niki Caro handles the picture superbly, giving the film a grounded, spiritual, tranquil and poetic beauty (although a completely different movie, passages of "Whale Rider" reminded me a bit of the tone and feel of some of Terrence Malick's "The Thin Red Line"). There's emotional moments, but nothing that I found sappy or unearned. There's even the occasional bits of humor, which feel right for the situation and add some lightness to the movie. And the ending...oh, the ending. "Whale Rider" is merely excellent throughout the majority of its running time, but the ending - which would be wrong to ruin here and I'm displeased that some reviews have ruined it - lifts it all up into another level altogether. It's simply magical, extraordinary and remarkably uplifting. The film won audience awards at the Sundance, Rotterdam and Toronto film festivals.
"Whale Rider" is still haunting me a week after I've seen it. Wonderfully written, strongly acted and beautiful to watch, "Whale Rider" is magnificent. It's a true gem in the middle of the Summer season - a special movie for all ages.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Whale Rider" is presented by Columbia/Tristar in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. As with most transfers from the studio, this is a fine effort that only contains a few minor concerns. The film remained about as sharp as one might expect throughout; given the lighting and other issues, a couple of interior scenes can appear a bit soft. However, the majority of the movie remained crisp and well-defined, with a pleasing level of detail visible.
A little bit of grain was present in the image, as it was theatrically. Still, the print seemed otherwise in excellent shape, with no noticable marks or scratches. Edge enhancement was also absent, but I did notice the occasional small instance of compression artifacts. Colors remained bright, vivid and well-saturated, with no issues.
SOUND: The film is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. Understandably, this is a front-heavy sound mix that focuses almost solely on dialogue. The moody, haunting score does get slight reinforcement from the surrounds and the rear speakers do provide some ambience in a scene or two, but otherwise, they go largely unused. Dialogue remained clear and clean throughout.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: Writer/director Niki Caro provides the DVD's full-length audio commentary. She provides a pleasant, soft-spoken track that engages the listener. She goes through a a series of topics, including casting, the honor she felt at being able to adapt such a treasured story, some of the traditions of the Maori culture/community and stories from the set. The writer/director provides a fine track, keeping the discussion going throughout the track and rarely falling back into simply discussing the story. This was a film that I wanted to learn more about, and I'm pleased to say that this track offers a fine analysis of story, character and production.
Deleted Scenes: The DVD offers 8 deleted scenes with commentary from the director and (I believe) the editor. These are fine character moments, but it's understandable that they were deleted due to pacing or repeating information already presented elsewhere in the picture.
Making Of: This is a 27-minute "making of" documentary. Novelist Witi Ihimaera, director/writer Niki Caro, the film's producer and members of the cast are interviewed. The interviews are enjoyable and provide a good deal of insight; actress Keisha Castle-Hughes is especially charming, providing very good insights about her performance. The majority of the piece is a mixture of clips and interviews, but a little past the halfway point, we get more behind-the-scenes information, such as some footage and discussion of how the final major scene was done.
Also: The film's trailer, TV spots, selected tracks from Lisa Gerrard's score (and a note from the composer), a featurette on building the canoe featured in the film and a photo gallery.
Final Thoughts: "Whale Rider" is a powerful, engaging, brilliantly acted and wonderfully moving film that remains the very best movie I've seen in 2003. Columbia/Tristar's DVD provides excellent audio/video quality and some enjoyable supplements. Very highly recommended.
(movie review written Summer, 03)
It's rare that I'm simply floored by a movie these days; I see so many that it takes something special to truly find a place in my memory. That said, it was a pleasure to walk into "Whale Rider" knowing little about the film and walk out considering it one of the best films I've seen in the past few years. The fact that nearly everyone involved with the movie is a relative unknown makes a film this masterfully done that much more surprising and pleasing.
Newcomer Keisha Castle-Hughes stars as Pai, a 12-year-old girl who lives with her grandfather, Koro and grandmother in a Maori community on the Eastern coast of New Zealand. Tribal history has stated that the first-born son will be the chieftain of the tribe, but after a difficult birth, Pai survives, while her twin brother does not make it. Her father Porourangi (Cliff Curtis), starts a new life in Europe, leaving his daughter in the care of his father, who will not come to terms with the fact that Pai - the next in the bloodline - might be the first female chief.
As she becomes older, Koro still shows care for his daughter, but the way he acts on the surface suggest that his dissapointment at not having a grandson still exists. Pai, who has grown into a determined, intelligent and kind 12-year-old, sets out to learn more about her culture and get respect from her grandfather. Audiences have seen films where a younger individual faces challenges to prove themselves capable of leadership to older members who have their own beliefs about their history.
However, this one works wonderfully, and for several reasons. Rawiri Paratene's performance as Koro is absolutely terrific. His performance is intense, fierce, and yet complex. While he's stern to Pai, he manages - which is quite a feat, given the character - to make the character at least somewhat sympathetic. He wants to care for his granddaughter and still hold onto the values and traditions that he has known. The scenes where he finally begins to realize the potential of Pai are extremely well-done and quite powerful. Throughout the movie, but especially towards the end, this is a very compelling performance. Keisha Castle-Hughes is simply fantastic as Pai, superbly portraying the character's ambition, intelligence and caring. A speech meant for her grandfather in the last half of the film is one of the film's several powerful moments. Supporting performances are strong across the board. These are largely non-professional actors, yet these are some of the best performances I've seen all year.
Director Niki Caro handles the picture superbly, giving the film a grounded, spiritual, tranquil and poetic beauty (although a completely different movie, passages of "Whale Rider" reminded me a bit of the tone and feel of some of Terrence Malick's "The Thin Red Line"). There's emotional moments, but nothing that I found sappy or unearned. There's even the occasional bits of humor, which feel right for the situation and add some lightness to the movie. And the ending...oh, the ending. "Whale Rider" is merely excellent throughout the majority of its running time, but the ending - which would be wrong to ruin here and I'm displeased that some reviews have ruined it - lifts it all up into another level altogether. It's simply magical, extraordinary and remarkably uplifting. The film won audience awards at the Sundance, Rotterdam and Toronto film festivals.
"Whale Rider" is still haunting me a week after I've seen it. Wonderfully written, strongly acted and beautiful to watch, "Whale Rider" is magnificent. It's a true gem in the middle of the Summer season - a special movie for all ages.
The DVD
VIDEO: "Whale Rider" is presented by Columbia/Tristar in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. As with most transfers from the studio, this is a fine effort that only contains a few minor concerns. The film remained about as sharp as one might expect throughout; given the lighting and other issues, a couple of interior scenes can appear a bit soft. However, the majority of the movie remained crisp and well-defined, with a pleasing level of detail visible.
A little bit of grain was present in the image, as it was theatrically. Still, the print seemed otherwise in excellent shape, with no noticable marks or scratches. Edge enhancement was also absent, but I did notice the occasional small instance of compression artifacts. Colors remained bright, vivid and well-saturated, with no issues.
SOUND: The film is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1. Understandably, this is a front-heavy sound mix that focuses almost solely on dialogue. The moody, haunting score does get slight reinforcement from the surrounds and the rear speakers do provide some ambience in a scene or two, but otherwise, they go largely unused. Dialogue remained clear and clean throughout.
EXTRAS:
Commentary: Writer/director Niki Caro provides the DVD's full-length audio commentary. She provides a pleasant, soft-spoken track that engages the listener. She goes through a a series of topics, including casting, the honor she felt at being able to adapt such a treasured story, some of the traditions of the Maori culture/community and stories from the set. The writer/director provides a fine track, keeping the discussion going throughout the track and rarely falling back into simply discussing the story. This was a film that I wanted to learn more about, and I'm pleased to say that this track offers a fine analysis of story, character and production.
Deleted Scenes: The DVD offers 8 deleted scenes with commentary from the director and (I believe) the editor. These are fine character moments, but it's understandable that they were deleted due to pacing or repeating information already presented elsewhere in the picture.
Making Of: This is a 27-minute "making of" documentary. Novelist Witi Ihimaera, director/writer Niki Caro, the film's producer and members of the cast are interviewed. The interviews are enjoyable and provide a good deal of insight; actress Keisha Castle-Hughes is especially charming, providing very good insights about her performance. The majority of the piece is a mixture of clips and interviews, but a little past the halfway point, we get more behind-the-scenes information, such as some footage and discussion of how the final major scene was done.
Also: The film's trailer, TV spots, selected tracks from Lisa Gerrard's score (and a note from the composer), a featurette on building the canoe featured in the film and a photo gallery.
Final Thoughts: "Whale Rider" is a powerful, engaging, brilliantly acted and wonderfully moving film that remains the very best movie I've seen in 2003. Columbia/Tristar's DVD provides excellent audio/video quality and some enjoyable supplements. Very highly recommended.
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