Movielogr
Whale Rider (2003)
Directed by Niki Caro
Overview
On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea’s direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand tribe, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.
Rated PG-13 | Length 101 minutes
Actors
Keisha Castle-Hughes | Rawiri Paratene | Vicky Haughton | Cliff Curtis | Grant Roa | Mana Taumaunu | Rachel House | Taungaroa Emile | Tammy Davis | Mabel Wharekawa | Rawinia Clarke | Tahei Simpson | Roi Taimana | Elizabeth Skeen | Rutene Spooner | John Sumner | Jane O'Kane