At the Movies: 'Whale Rider'

By Ben Nuckols
Associated Press Writer

"Whale Rider," a Newmarket Films release, is rated PG-13 for brief language and a momentary drug reference. Running time: 105 minutes. Stars:

As the successes of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and "Bend It Like Beckham" have proved, art-house crowds can be as predictable in their tastes as the teenage boys who haunt the multiplexes. They love feel-good stories about intergenerational ethnic conflict, and with an effective marketing campaign, they're going to love this one.

Which is not to suggest that writer-director Niki Caro had this in mind when she made "Whale Rider"; there's not a drop of cynicism in this honest, earnest movie. But she's a filmmaker of elementary gifts, and she leans on them to tell a story wanting for complexity. A formula is a formula, no matter how modest the budget or exotic the setting — in this case, the Maori community of New Zealand.

"Whale Rider" follows Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes), a 12-year-old Maori girl who fancies herself the savior of her people — a descendant of her tribe's original ancestor who, according to myth, arrived in their village on the back of a whale. That doesn't sit well with her grandfather, Koro (Rawiri Paratne), who insists despite his community's long decline and Pai's fervent commitment to reversing the trend that their new leader must be male.

As far as Koro is concerned, his true heir was Pai's twin brother, who died at birth along with her mother. Pai's father, Porourangi (the great Maori actor Cliff Curtis), traumatized by the death of his wife and Koro's callous indifference to it, has run off to Europe to pursue an art career.

Pai, then, is raised by her grandparents, and on one of her dad's infrequent visits home he announces that his German girlfriend is pregnant — the last straw for Koro, who insists he wants nothing to do with his son or granddaughter anymore. Pai agrees to go to Germany with her beloved dad, but on the way out of town she stops and looks at the ocean and insists she turn back.

(It's wonderful to see Curtis, who has made a good living in Hollywood playing villains of numerous ethnicities not his own, come home again. In his too-brief screen time he delivers the movie's most sophisticated performance; it's as emotionally resonant as you'd hope.)

Once Porourangi departs, the butting of heads between Pai and her grandfather intensifies after Koro begins teaching the boys of the community the ways of the ancient Maori warriors. Pai isn't allowed to participate because of her gender, even though she's far more interested than her listless male peers. So she sneaks a look at Koro's lessons and picks up fighting technique from her pothead uncle.

There's no ambiguity for the audience as we watch this conflict unfold: We remain squarely on Pai's side. Paratene, while an intense and believable actor, is never surprising, and his gruff paternalism becomes repetitive and wearying.

"Whale Rider," though, is never less than pleasurable to watch, thanks largely to the charming, unguarded performance of young Castle-Hughes, who was discovered by the director. She sells both Pai's fierce admiration of her grandfather and the pain his stubbornness causes.

Castle-Hughes propels this predictable movie to a few truly powerful moments near the end, at least until the final scene, which manages to be both manipulative and banal. "Whale Rider" wants you to stand up and cheer, but it doesn't earn that reaction.