Utu (1984)

In New Zealand in the 1860s the native Maori people fought the British colonials to keep the land guaranteed to them by treaty. The warrior Te Wheke fights for the British until betrayal ... See full summary »

Director:

Geoff Murphy

Writers:

Keith Aberdein, Geoff Murphy

Stars:

Anzac Wallace, Bruno Lawrence, Tim Elliott

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anzac Wallace	...	Te Wheke
Bruno Lawrence	...	Williamson
Tim Elliott	...	Col. Elliot
Kelly Johnson	...	Lt. Scott
Wi Kuki Kaa	...	Wiremu
Tania Bristowe	...	Kura
Ilona Rodgers	...	Emily Williamson
Merata Mita	...	Matu
Faenza Reuben	...	Hersare
Tom Poata	...	Puni
Martyn Sanderson	...	Vicar
John Bach	...	Belcher
Dick Puanaki	...	Eru
Sean Duffy	...	Cpl. Jones
Ian Watkin	...	Doorman

Storyline

In New Zealand in the 1860s the native Maori people fought the British colonials to keep the land guaranteed to them by treaty. The warrior Te Wheke fights for the British until betrayal leads him to seek utu (revenge). The settler Williamson in turn seeks revenge after Te Wheke attacks his homestead. Meanwhile Wiremu, an officer for the British, seems to think that resistance is futile.

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Plot Keywords:

revenge | new zealand | treaty | settler | betrayal | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

New Zealand

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 June 1984 (France)

Also Known As:

Hämnden

Filming Locations:

New Zealand

Company Credits

Production Co:

Glitteron

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Utu is translated (by the Maori people) not as revenge, but as balanced exchange or reciprocity.

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Connections

Featured in Cinema of Unease: A Personal Journey by Sam Neill (1995)

User Reviews

Blood for blood

Utu – Maori for 'Blood for Blood' - is almost a great film. It's certainly a terrific 'Western,' even if it is set in New Zealand in 1870. It's a Maori version of any number of Westerns where Geronimo jumps the reservation and starts a private war, with Anzac Wallace's army tracker Te Wheke deserting when he finds the British Army have destroyed his peaceful village and seeking revenge on all the 'Pakehas.' As his guerrilla war continues, more and more Maori soldiers desert to Te Wheke's cause (not always welcome, either), preconceived notions of right and wrong are challenged as alliances and agendas shift until nobody's hands are clean.

Director and co-writer Geoff Murphy knows how to use the camera and uses the landscape superbly, capturing the wet humid feel of a country at once half-built and already decaying, but more than that he tells a great story with some terrific scenes that hark back to a style of classic but morally complex storytelling that went out of fashion in the late 60s and early 70s. There's also a level of savagery that's long been lost in American cinema – not only does he hang the verger from bell rope but he also hacks off the head of the vicar in front of his congregation and then delivers a sermon of his own with the head resting beside him on the pulpit. The action scenes are superbly handled, at once brutally realistic and engrossing. Unfortunately he miscalculates with Bruno Lawrence's initially intriguing settler seeking revenge of his own, overplaying the comedy in his madness. It's not enough to overbalance the film but it does undermine the character, and it's often unnecessary in a film which has a lot of dry wit in the script already. Sadly the Kino DVD copy is pretty disgraceful, a real pity for a film that looks this good.