Freaktana A Major Disappointment

Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Aspen Orson There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

Yazmin Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

tamayo-24294 Whale Rider is a film from New Zealand, it portrays a small young girl who is destined to become chief. But there are some roadblocks in her way. Such as her grandfather, as is all older people who are stuck in their own way, Pie's grandfather wants a new chief for the community and it has to be a boy. Koro sets off to find the next chief by creating a school for boys since he does not have a grandson of his own. Koro goes so far as to disown Pie to find the right person, even if that person is right in front of him. I understand where Koro is coming from. He wants to keep the tradition of then a male chief alive, but at the same time I understand that Pie is the true leader and it's time for change. As time goes on through the film Pie's ability to be chief shows, she is able to call the great elder's, whales. As soon a Koro realizes she is the one, he has to accept her and he does. The film shows how to love, care, and accept, and we can use it to guide us today.

Lily Schneider Whale Rider, filmed and directed by Niki Caro, was honestly one of my favorite movies I have ever seen, even outside of Global Perspectives class. I fell in love with the main character, Pai's personality. Pai was a young girl who had an ambitious spirit and confidence that no one could change or take from her. I loved this about her, and her character really inspired me. Filmed and taking place in New Zealand, the story follows Pai and her family through rough times and spiritual experiences. I would definitely recommend this film to anyone, especially those interested in Maori culture and/or whales. This movie was one of my favorite ever, and I learned a lot about Maori culture.

thmurphy-37414 To start this all off, I would have to give Whale Rider a 8 out of 10 stars. The movie was a little hard to follow in the sense of not knowing much about Pai's family's culture, but that wasn't a very big problem. The story starts off with Pai's father in the hospital with Pai's mother, who is in childbirth. Pai's unborn brother dies with her mother, causing Pai's father to leave and go travel the world taking pictures. To me it was very surprising that a father would just leave his only daughter, especially after what occurred. Yet, I guess that is how he was to cope with the dramatic loss. I won't get too in depth about the rest of the story, but Pia's grandfather is looking for a new leader, and right from the start there are gender rolls that take place. Pia is not allowed to go for the position as the leader of the people, as she is only a girl. There is a constant love-hate relationship between Pia and Grandfather, yet it all ends towards the end. I won't spoil the ending, but it is very easy to get lost when it comes to why everything is happening. Besides that, Whale Rider is a very excellent movie, and I would recommend it to anyone. Before you watch it though, make sure to do some research on the movie and the people who are in it.

Pablo This to me was a very interesting movie to watch. It was pretty hard for me to understand at first, but I understood it more and more along the way as far as the plot line goes. It was also very different than most, if not all, of the movies we've watched throughout the year in this class. It is a story about a grandfather who wants to pass on his leadership to his grandson. The problem is, he doesn't have one. His son only has one daughter. A girl named Pai. He makes several efforts to find a capable young village boy to take his place. All of the boys fail, angering him and causing him to severely discourage his granddaughter Pai. Pai shows on many occasions how she is far better suited for the position of leader. In the end, she finally proves herself by releasing a pod of beached whales back into the ocean. Her grandfather later feels very bad for treating her the way he did and all is well. This was a very interesting story line in my eyes. It was pretty sad at some points, but also very happy at other times. In general, I like the main character Pai. She is very strong, intelligent, and outgoing. She also never gives up as she repeatedly attempts to show and prove her skills to her grandfather. My main gripes about the film were the acting and the grandfather. the acting for the most part was very bad in my eyes. I think the main problem was that a majority of the actors were children. I also severely disliked the grandfather. He was generally a mean, sour, and cold hearted person. Instead of supporting and standing up for his granddaughter, he put her down, ignored her, and attempted to discourage her from gaining the position of leader.