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

The gag in which the old Maori rebel sticks his face in flour and pretends to be a pakeha is very likely based on a stand up bit by Godfrey Cambridge from the 1960s in which his young son uses his mother's makeup to appear white. The punchline in both cases is almost identical.

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Connections

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

User Reviews

Interesting morality tale

Utu is quite a good film. Having said that, it is quite possible that we have seen it before in other settings.

Utu is unique in that it is one of the few films available in North America dealing with the Maori culture of New Zealand. Other than that, the film is basically an anti colonial sentimented film which could have taken place almost anywhere else in the world where colonialism was experienced.

Utu still manages to pack a punch in the very earnest way the main character sets out to rid his country of the white invaders. Utu, meaning revenge, is the basic theme of this story. The colonial army in the film pillages Maori villages. The Maori corporal who quits the army to fight against it seeks revenge. The story is simple, yet compelling.

The film examines imperialism in a light not uncommon to stories of this nature, but it is better in the sense that it does not try to gloss over the anger of the natives by arming them conveniently with western values. That is a crime many movies are guilty of. The level of violence in the film is typical by genre standards, and it actually lends itself to the films raw emotion. This one's worth a look.