Mahana (2016)
- Directed by
- Lee Tamahori
- Genre
- drama film
- Country
- Australia, New Zealand
- Runtime
- 1h 43m
- Rated
- 12
- Rating
- 6.4 of 10 from 23 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
In 1950s New Zealand, two Māori families have been feuding for decades. A young man named Simeon clashes with his grandfather, the strict patriarch of the Mahana clan, while both families compete in the shearing business.
tensemelancholicvisually lushgrittyslow-burnfamily-drivenbittersweetearthy
What happens
Mahana (released outside New Zealand as The Patriarch) is a 2016 New Zealand period drama film directed by Lee Tamahori and written by John Collee, based on Witi Ihimaera's 2005 novel Bulibasha: King of the Gypsies. It stars Temuera Morrison, Nancy Brunning, Te Kohe Tuhaka, and Stephen Lovatt. The film tells the story of two rival Māori families, the Mahanas and the Poatas, whose enmity purportedly dates back to Tamihana Mahana falling in love with Ramona and rescuing her from her betrothed, Rupeni Poata, who she does not marry. By the late 1950s, Tamihana is the patriarch of the Mahana clan, running a successful sheep shearing family business, while his grandson Simeon chafes under his authoritarian rule. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
More like this
Lie of the Land
One Thousand Ropes (2017)
Juniper (2021)
The Promise of Piha (2016)
Whale Rider (2002)
The Justice of Bunny King (2021)
Pike River (2025)
The Power of the Dog (2021)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.