"Whale Rider" March 22, 7 pm
Come early for snacking and chatting
Whale
Rider presents a myth within a myth. While the story line in the film itself
presents a powerful myth, the myth within the myth is the Maori legend that
forms the framework for the story line. The legend has it that the original
leader of the Maori people in New Zealand arrived in New Zealand by riding on
the back of a whale (thus the title). The royal line has passed down through
the centuries and culminates in the film in the person of a young girl (Paikea)
who thinks she is born to lead her people out of darkness. (Think Joan of Arc.)
The problem is that her grandfather thinks that the notion of a female leader
is heresy.