Top billed cast

1. 

   Rena Owen

   Beth Heke

2. 

   Temuera Morrison

   Jake Heke

3. 

   Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell

   Grace Heke

4. 

   Julian Arahanga

   Nig Heke

5. 

   Taungaroa Emile

   Mark 'Boogie' Heke

6. 

   Rachael Morris Jr.

   Polly Heke

7. 

   Joseph Kairau

   Huata Heke

8. 

   Cliff Curtis

   Bully

9. 

   Pete Smith

   Dooley

10. View more

Reviews

A review by Filipe Manuel Neto

Written by Filipe Manuel Neto on 2023-05-29

**The power and importance of cultural roots.**

This was the first New Zealand film I saw, at least as far as I remember and am aware of that. It's a violent film, with a raw brutality that shocks us by how authentic it sounds. Domestic violence? Child rape? It's not something you only see in the movies. It's something you see in a newspaper. That's what shocks us the most: knowing it's something real. And I warn you now: there are violent films, but this one is really intense and shocking... a lot.

The film takes place in Auckland, in a poor suburb built by the State for people with ver...read the rest

Recommendations

1. Snowtown63%
2. In My Father's Den70%
3. The Nightingale70%
4. This Boy's Life71%
5. 2:3765%
6. The Last Samurai76%
7. For Colored Girls67%
8. Mammal62%
9. The Convert61%
10. Holler60%
11. Thirteen66%
12. Ordinary People74%
13. Eye for an Eye62%
14. Apocalypto76%
15. Life After Fighting72%
16. Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl72%
17. Bastard Out of Carolina71%
18. Luckiest Girl Alive65%
19. The Rover62%
20. Never Back Down67%

Status
Released

Original Language
English

Budget
$950,000.00

Revenue
$6,700,000.00

Keywords

• individual
• suicide
• rape
• strong woman
• tattoo
• slum
• funeral
• alcohol
• tradition
• approved school
• loss of loved one
• despair
• indigenous
• ghetto
• violent husband
• new zealand
• maori
• lack of prospects
• maori tradition
• teacher
• youth gang
• crush
• domestic violence
• rebellious youth
• alcohol abuse
• incest
• unemployment
• auckland