Wow. This was a painful movie to watch with all the violence, from domestic abuse to rape to gang initiation beatings to homelessness to more. Saying that this movie requires a trigger warning would be an understatement. It’s gritty, harsh, and unfortunately a reality for some people, which also made it a good movie to watch and be exposed to another life to be appreciative of one’s own. The movie is based on a novel of the same name, has won several awards, and is the highest-grossing movie of all time in New Zealand. So despite the harshness of the movie, it’s definitely worth the watch.

The movie follows the Heke family in their life in Auckland, New Zealand. An urban Māori family living in poverty, the movie kicks off with the father of the family, Jake, announcing that he got laid off from his job. His wife, Beth, is not at all happy about it. Jake heads off to the bar, bemoaning women in general until he hears a woman singing and is entranced. But, when a guy interrupts her music by playing a (horrible) song on the jukebox, Jake kicks his ass so the woman can keep singing in peace. And that’s pretty much Jake. He’s a violent jerk fueled by alcohol and testosterone. Beth is better, but not by a ton, also turning to booze when things get rough and having her own angry outbursts. Their kids are also messed up in their own ways, though you can hardly blame them.

Really bad stuff happens, which leads to other really bad stuff. When you think it’s at its lowest, it seems to get worse somehow. I mentioned rape, but there’s more. Oh man, there’s more. Remember, I said this was a painful movie to watch? There were several times I almost just turned it off, but in the end I’m glad I didn’t. Why? Because there are some redeeming points and some great references to Māori culture. Plus, it really was a good movie. Gritty, painful, but good, nonetheless.

With respect to why this is a good movie to reflect Auckland, well, I don’t know that it is except that it’s at least real. We see several locations, across the suburbs of Glen Innes, Ōtara, and Onehunga. In Ōtara we see the inside of an actual state house (where the family lives). In fact, I read that the neighbors of where filming occurred complained about the late-night parties that were depicted in the movie.  And as I noted, we get some Māori bits, including a tangihanga (or more commonly a tangi), which is a traditional funeral rite practiced by Māori people, usually on a marae (sacred spots on tribal grounds). We also see one of the kids learn a haka (a ceremonial dance) and how to use a taiaha (a two-handed striking weapon) while he’s at a foster home. Another one of the kids gets a face tattoo (tā moko) at one point.

I will stop now. I’m going to go watch a nice cleansing wholesome episode of Golden Girls or something to try to cleanse my mind of some of the images I saw.