Review of Tanna (2015) by Michael T — 01 Feb 2017

This is a love story set on Tanna, one of the islands of Vanuatu in the Pacific off the coast of Queensland. It is a contemporary story, not that it matters, little has changed in thousands of years for the traditional tribes living barely clad in the jungles. Dain, the Yakel chief's son, loves Wawa but she is promised to another by custom. The love marriage that the two want will surely lead to war between the tribes. What will the tribal chiefs do?

Made by Australian film makers Martin Butler & Bentley Dean while living and working with the Yakel tribe, the result is a lushly beautiful, suspenseful and uniquely rewarding story. The island setting is cinematic with its active volcano, dense jungle, ash plains and sandy beaches. The untrained, brown-skinned actors bring both realism and natural charm to this mythic, Romeo & Juliet story imbued with traditional cultural elements. The medicine man plays the medicine man, Chief Charlie plays himself and Dain, the acknowledged most handsome was put forward to play the lead role.

Outstanding.