About this product

Product Information

In the villages of New Zealand legend decrees that the first-born male will become chief of the tribe. When Pai is born she is loved by all but rejected by her grandfather who is broken-hearted that there is no son to carry on the line. Pai, however, is blessed with leadership qualities and struggles to prove herself in a male-dominated world. When a pod of whales is stranded on a nearby beach Pai's spiritual affinity with the whales proves she is the true leader of the people...

Product Identifiers

EAN5051429100296

eBay Product ID (ePID)66987393

Product Key Features

ActorKeisha Castle-Hughes, Grant Roa, Cliff Curtis, Vicky Haughton, Rawiri Paratene

Film/TV TitleWhale Rider

DirectorNiki Caro

LanguageEnglish

Run Time97 Mins

Aspect Ratio16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen

FormatDVD

Release Year2008

FeaturesWidescreen, Director Audio Commentary\Behind The Scenes Featurette\Tribal Featurette\8 Deleted Scenes With Commentary\Cast Screen Tests\Photo Gallery

GenreDrama, General

Additional Product Features

Number of Discs1

CertificatePG

Country/Region of ManufactureNew Zealand

Additional InformationNew Zealand's Maori culture is the focus of WHALE RIDER, the powerful coming-of-age tale of Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes), a 13-year-old girl who feels destined to become leader and chief to her tribe although that role has always been reserved for males. In part, the role is her birthright, as her twin brother died in childbirth, and she survived. However, her grandfather, Koro (Rawiri Paratene), who is the current chief, stands firmly in the way of Pai's dream. He is extremely traditional and is superstitious that even Pai's curiosity in learning to be chief could upset the ancestors (who are the whales themselves). Pai's grandmother, Flowers (Vicky Haughton), defies Koro to support Pai, and her uncle, Rawiri (Grant Roa), trains her in the chants and battle techniques she needs. The rest is intuition, and Pai has loads of it--enough to communicate with the ancestors, and call them to her for help and guidance.<BR>Weaving family life, cultural tradition, and an ancient myth into a contemporary story, WHALE RIDER is a tender tale. As Pai, first-time actress Castle-Hughes is a small but impressive warrior, perfectly balancing kid naivety with adult bravery. The traditional costumes, language, chants, and personality of the Maori people come through well, while the tale is clearly a modern fiction, based on a novel by Witi Ihimaera. Beautiful and dramatic New Zealand landscapes and dreamy underwater whale photography cement the formula of the film and add to its magic.

Sound sourceDolby Digital

Movie/TV TitleWhale Rider

Consumer AdviceContains mild language and emotional intensity