Review of Whale Rider (2003) by Neek G — 21 Apr 2012

The whale rider is such a remarkable movie. It began in a hospital; the current chief of a tribe was looking forward to a grandson. It shows where the father and his bride were going through a moment of panic. The mother giving birth to what should have been twins died on the table with the son as their daughter lived. The tribe came in to pray over her and the father to console his son. His empathy was telling his son it would be okay he could start over. The son left his daughter, family and home and moved. The movie later skips to the twin who survived birth. Her grandfather did not accept her at first and wanted nothing to do with her; he began to take to her. He blames her birth for many things going wrong in the tribe. The girls' father returned for a visit and it did not end to well and he wanted to take his daughter with him and as she left she looked to the water to see that the big whale had come up form the deep sea. She immediately told her father that she wanted to stay and she did. Her grandfather began to train the boys of the village to become chiefs, Pai wanted to be apart of this but her grandfather did not let her. The story continues with Pai fighting for her born right to be the next chief although she was a female and it was not allowed.

To the world of religion I would say it says that what the religion may have been in the past it is not in the modern day. Some things may have changed. However, some things also remain the same. That if one believes they hold the power or the traits necessary don't dismiss them. Thus tribe was sacred and tied their beliefs to earthly creatures, and prayers. Their rituals were sacred, and those things remain the same and are also important for the structure of this religion.