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Movies & TV Movies & TV Reviews

The Dead Lands

THE DEAD LANDS (Toa Fraser). 108 minutes. Subtitled. Opens Friday (April 17). For venues and times, see Movies, page 59. Rating: NNN

Where to watch: Netflix, iTunes


Maori warriors split many, many skulls in The Dead Lands, but the violence is not nearly as thrilling as the theatrical taunting before the fights. Sporting loin cloths and decorative fur, men lunge, flex and twitch, inviting their enemies to tango with their flicking tongues before whacking them with weapons that look like ancient ping-pong paddles.

They’re practising mau rakau, the Maori martial art that sets Toa Fraser‘s primal revenge story apart from the usual excuses to watch blood splatter. The tale of warring tribes in pre-colonial New Zealand embraces Maori language and mysticism. Ethnography is its purpose, but a fine cast makes sure this modest movie has a pulse.

James Rolleston stars as Hongi, a sensitive young teenager turned vengeful head-splitter after an opposing clan wipes out his tribe. He enlists help from a monstrous cannibal (Lawrence Makoare) who seems to exist between the living and the dead but shows a surprising kindly side when it comes to aiding Hongi.

Fraser balances the culturally specific but rather redundant action with affecting moments where Hongi and the monster debate warmongering buzzwords like “honour” and “nobility.”

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