Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie Review

"My name is Paikea Apirana, and I come from a long line of chiefs stretching all the way back to the whale rider."

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson August 21, 2017

Niko Caro's (The Zookeeper's Wife) second feature Whale Rider (2002) was a critics' darling on the international film festival circuit, receiving many awards and nominations at the world's top festivals and garnering several critics prizes. According to Variety, it was selected as an audience favorite out of almost 350 entries at the Toronto International Film Festival. It also was a huge success at home, sweeping the major categories at the New Zealand Film and TV Awards. At the American box office, Whale Rider grossed over $20 million, more than four times its budget.

Based on Witi Ihimaera's 1987 novel, Whale Rider recounts the titular journey of Paikea, one of the central myths of Maori culture. Legend has it that the first Maori sailed to New Zealand via a long vessel a thousand years ago. In contradistinction to that myth, the villagers of Whangara believe that Paikea, their direct ancestor, arrived on the back of a whale after his canoe tipped over. Ever since the rescue by the whale, the Maori of Whangara has had a longstanding tradition of male leaders. In an Oscar-nominated performance, Keisha Castle-Hughes plays the twelve-year-old Maori girl who strives to buck that trend. Although she is named Paikea (most often referred to as "Pai"), she is not considered a future candidate for village chief. Both her mother and twin brother died in childbirth. Since Pai's father Porourangi (Cliff Curtis) moved overseas to work as an artist, she has been raised by her adoring grandmother, Nanny Flowers (Vicky Haughton), as well as her uncle Rawiri (Grant Roa). Current village chief Koro (Rawiri Paratene), Pai's grandfather, is a strong paternal figure to the girl but he objects to her namesake and makes the pathway to chieftain as difficult as possible for Pai. Koro is stern, defiant, and a strict disciplinarian. He still wants a male to succeed him as chief but Pai's preternatural talent for dueling boys with a taiaha stick and swimming deep in the ocean leaves the village community impressed.

Pai and grandpa Koro take a bike ride around scenic East New Zealand.

In a fairly unfavorable review, Slant Magazine's Ed Gonzalez called Whale Rider "The Karate Kid Down Under. Gonzalez thought the film made a futile attempt to explore the Ngati Konohi people and failed to connect Pai with her spiritual descendants. I also infer that Gonzalez's implicit criticism is that although Whale Rider is an indie, it is no different from a Hollywood blockbuster because they both celebrate the heroism of a mythical individual. While I see where Gonzalez is coming from, Caro deserves credit for not making this Maori fable saccharine or overly sentimentalizing either Pai or Koro. Castle-Hughes was a cute adolescent when she made the picture but she uncannily summons a dramatic depth that makes her performance extraordinary. Moreover, composer Lisa Gerrard's ethereal and otherworldly score meshes magnificently with director of photography Leon Narbey's sweeping shots of the New Zealand landscapes and seas. Gerrad's seashell flutes have roots in Maori culture and their presence on the sound track make a calling to Paikea's ancestors. Whale Rider doesn't hit any false notes.

Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Whale Rider makes its North American debut courtesy of Shout Select (#27 in the sub-label's series) as a 15th Anniversary Edition. The acclaimed film has also been available on Blu-ray in Australia and Germany. The main feature is housed on a MPEG-4 AVC-encoded BD-50 and averages a bitrate of 31996 kbps. The full disc amasses 40.87 Mbps. The picture is presented in its Super 35mm 2.35:1 aspect ratio.

''We wanted a muted, almost mono-tonal quality for the film,'' cinematographer Leon Narbey told Jean Oppenheimer of The American Cinematographer. ''We certainly didn't want to create a glossy, artificial paradise. We wanted the setting to have a natural, elemental quality that reflected the slow rhythm of the ocean and the waves." The image on this disc generally reflects Narbey's descriptions. Though this transfer dates from the early 2000s, it is a true HD presentation that thankfully doesn't show any artificial sharpening techniques by Shout. Close-ups demonstrate a lot of detail in the faces (see Screenshot #s 3, 10-13). The grey-sky ocean scenes show nice texture. Film grain is present and is most pronounced in the hospital scene at the beginning and in the temple (#9). The master Shout licensed from Sony is in excellent condition.

Shout has included a unique code for digital download in the enclosed insert.

In a nice change of pace, Shout has provided a generous twenty-six chapter selections.

Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Shout has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround mix (3202 kbps, 24-bit) and a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo downsample (1617 kbps, 24-bit). While the cast for Whale Rider is entirely Maori, a majority of the film's sound track is delivered in English. Some lines are delivered in Maori and those are automatically subtitled in English. Dialogue is usually clear but for the windier outdoor moments, the optional English SDH come in handy. All speakers make use of Gerrard's score. There maybe could have been more discreet channels for the film's atmospheric f/x but the overall soundscape is sufficient.

Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Shout! has ported over six supplements from the Columbia Tristar/Sony "Special Edition" DVD of Whale Rider and also included the Keisha Castle-Hughes screen tests that appeared on the European editions. Shout!'s still gallery varies from the pictures displayed on the Region 1's gallery. The forty-five minute "Riding the Wave: The Whale Rider Story" that is on the R2 Swiss Ascot Elite disc seems to be a longer version of the making-of that Shout! licensed from Sony.

• Audio Commentary by Writer/Director Niki Caro - a mellow Caro broaches various aspects of the filmmaking process and how she brought Whale Rider to the screen. In English, not subtitled.

• "Behind the Scenes of Whale Rider" (27:03, upconverted to 1080p) - a traditional EPK making-of with voice-over (by Barry Jenkin) and talking-head interviews with Niki Caro, producers John Barnett and Tim Sanders, composer Lisa Gerrard, as well as actors Keisha Castle-Hughes, Cliff Curtis, Vicky Haughton, Witi Ihimaera, and Rawiri Paratene. Unfortunately, the piece seems truncated from South Pacific Pictures' original sixty-minute program that aired in New Zealand. Sony probably had to make cuts in order to fit it on the DVD. The 1.78:1 presentation appears windowboxed. In English, not subtitled.

• "Te-Waka: Building the Canoe" (11:16, upconverted to 1080i) - a featurette about the construction and painting of the ancient New Zealand vessel, Te-Waka a Māui. Shown in 1.66:1 non-anamorphic widescreen. In English, not subtitled.

• Eight Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Director Niki Caro and Editor David Coulson (8:34, upconverted to 1080i) - Eight scenes that landed on the cutting room floor before the wide theatrical release of Whale Rider. Unlike on the Sony DVD, Shout! does not provide scene names. They begin playing and roll in succession. They include: Welcome Home (1:05), Paikea Wakes Her Dad (1:46), Cleaning the Septic Tank (1:57), Flowers Won't Budge (0:56), Pai Singing (0:58), You Can Sleep on the Couch (0:36), Cards Again (0:25), and Pai Finds Hemi (0:47). The scenes can be viewed with or without commentary by Coulson and Caro. They're shown in non-anamorphic 2.35:1 widescreen. The SD video is noisy (they lower resolution stands out). In mostly English, not subtitled.

• Keisha Castle-Hughes Screen Tests (6:10, upconverted to 1080p) - screen tests with Castle-Hughes performing opposite other actors. The rehearsals are delivered in English without any subtitles.

• US Theatrical Trailers (2:57, 1080p) - an awards season trailer followed by Whale Rider's official theatrical trailer. They're presented in anamorphic widescreen and while in good shape, they contain some dirt. In English, not subtitled.

• TV Spots (2:38, upconverted to 1080i) - five US TV spots promoting Whale Rider with voice-over and critics' quotes. The spots are shown in letterbox. In English, not subtitled.

• Poster Art and Photo Gallery (1:58, 1080p) - a short slide show consisting of five US/international posters for Whale Rider and sixteen high-res color photographs.

Whale Rider Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Whale Rider has long been overdue for a North American Blu-ray release and Shout Select has added one of the better indies during the 2000s to their catalog. Shout's transfer and lossless audio deliver the requisite goods. Nearly all of the bonus materials from prior DVDs have been retained. It would have been good to get new interviews with both Niki Caro and Keisha Castle-Hughes, though. Still, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.