Everything I Learned about Maori I learned from Whale Rider

It’s quite timely, considering that I’m leaving for New Zealand in less than two months, that the Whale Rider be released now.  This movie is a present day film revolving around a village of Maori.  Considering I know little about them, I thought this film might serve as a primer for me before my trip.

If you’re a chauncy, you may have followed the above link and went “What?  I’m not watching a bloody kid movie, especially not Free Willy Down Under!” Let me assure you: there is a tremendous difference between a movie for 12 year old girls and a movie about a 12 year old girl.

Suffice it to say, this is the second movie that has managed to make me cry.  And when I say cry, as in me crying, that basically amounts to a lumpy throat and my eyes sure do feel like the flood is cometh, but ne’er a tear squeaks out.  This actually ticks my wife off quite a bit.  “Your a stupid robot!” she says.  And ok, maybe not the second movie.  I certainly remember the first, and I’m pretty sure that like the 3rd time I watched the Fellowship of the Ring (who knows why it took three times--I guess it’s the robot in me), I got a little choked after Gandalf went into shadow, despite the fact that I have read the books countless times and had seen the movie at least twice before, as I had previously mentioned.

Oh yeah...the Whale Rider.  Real good film.  Find your favorite local independant film theater and see it.  If you can take a date, even better.  It serves as one of those films, too, I guess, though it is not a chick flick.  Way too cerebral.  I’ma gonna duck now.

Posted Friday September 5, 2003 in Real Life by Derek Jones

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Comments

I’ve read some stuff about “Whale Rider” and everything was very positive.  My parents went to see it and every time I’ve seen them since then they’ve managed to mention it! :D

And, yeah, I’m exactly the same way with movies.  Never cry at all and people think I’m weird that way, too.

By Chris Curtis on September 6, 2003 at 11:10am link

It sure does feel like I’m crying or whatever.  I look over and my wife’s bawling her eyes out, and I expect that I’m doing the same thing.  But she says my face shows more emotion after a good sneeze than from any heart-wrenching event, real or fiction.

By Derek Jones on September 6, 2003 at 11:28am link

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