Keisha Castle-Hughes
Paikea "Pai" Apirana
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Whale Rider is a 2002 New Zealand drama film written and directed by Niki Caro. Based on the 1987 novel The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera , the film stars Keisha Castle-Hughes as Kahu Paikea Apirana, a twelve-year-old Māori girl whose ambition is to become the chief of the tribe.
On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale.
Jun 20, 2003 · "Whale Rider" arrives in theaters already proven as one of the great audience-grabbers of recent years. It won the audience awards as the most popular film at both the Toronto and Sundance film festivals, played to standing ovations, left audiences in tears.
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Jun 6, 2003 · Only males are allowed to ascend to chiefdom in a Maori tribe in New Zealand. This ancient custom is upset when the child selected to be the next chief dies at birth. However his twin sister, Pai...
- (157)
- Niki Caro
- PG-13
- Keisha Castle-Hughes
Whale Rider: Directed by Niki Caro. With Keisha Castle-Hughes, Rawiri Paratene, Vicky Haughton, Cliff Curtis. A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.
- Niki Caro
- 2 min
Parents need to know that Whale Rider is a New Zealand coming-of-age film based on a book by Witi Ihimaera and features Māori leads. The film has some intense moments, including the deaths of whales and young characters learning fighting techniques, but nothing bloody is shown.
