I missed this one when it came out in 1994 and just saw it recently, and the first thing that came into my mind was: what the hell happened to the movie industry after 2000 ? It reminded me of how raw and exciting movies used to be until like 10 years ago.
To give you an idea of how much spunk this movie has, let's see what it crams beautifully in some 90 minutes: 1.A slice of New Zeeland (Maori) life, both urban and rural. 2.A social study of a certain New Zeeland social strata. 3.Great characters (very well developed in a very short time), they stick with you well after the movie ends. 4.A family drama and tragedy. 5.A twisted love story. 6.Action, violence and live music (yes, the actors sing and they do it well). 7.Fantastic photography, great shots. 8.Raw and uncompromising storytelling. 9.Great dialog (even quotable). 10.Great acting from some pretty unknown actors (I mean, there really are no big stars here).
In 1994 this had to compete with Natural Born Killers and Pulp Fiction, among others, and as far as I'm concerned it holds its ground pretty well, even with that monumental competition. It also reminded me that very good movies like this one were just another slice of a great pie in those years, we were so used to great movies that we were not easily impressed. NOW, if there are 3-5 movies worth getting excited per year, I consider myself lucky.
To give you an idea of how much spunk this movie has, let's see what it crams beautifully in some 90 minutes: 1.A slice of New Zeeland (Maori) life, both urban and rural. 2.A social study of a certain New Zeeland social strata. 3.Great characters (very well developed in a very short time), they stick with you well after the movie ends. 4.A family drama and tragedy. 5.A twisted love story. 6.Action, violence and live music (yes, the actors sing and they do it well). 7.Fantastic photography, great shots. 8.Raw and uncompromising storytelling. 9.Great dialog (even quotable). 10.Great acting from some pretty unknown actors (I mean, there really are no big stars here).
In 1994 this had to compete with Natural Born Killers and Pulp Fiction, among others, and as far as I'm concerned it holds its ground pretty well, even with that monumental competition. It also reminded me that very good movies like this one were just another slice of a great pie in those years, we were so used to great movies that we were not easily impressed. NOW, if there are 3-5 movies worth getting excited per year, I consider myself lucky.