I've been reading the comments that people have made on this brilliant piece of film making that makes me proud to be a kiwi. Although I'm not Maori, I have somewhat of an understanding of, and a very deep appreciation for Maori culture. It is after all a major contributor to the uniqueness of New Zealand, and it's what a lot of the tourists come here to see/experience.
Some people have commented that the character of Beth is "descended from Maori royalty" and that the character of Jake is "descended from slaves". That's not quite correct. Although there is a Maori monarch; (Dame Te Atairangikaahu, the current Maori queen lives at the Turangawaewae Marae in Ngaruawahia, her official residence.) the Maori monarchy only goes back to the 19th century, and its not really representative of all Maori as it only really affects Waikato iwi/hapu, (tribe/sub tribe) It is more likely that Beth would be descended from chiefly linage, and hence she and her whanau, (extended family) would be very much aware of and in tune with their whakapapa or ancestry. Beth's line near the end of the movie that her people "once were warriors" is an indicator of this.
(The facial and body tattoos, or Moko that one sometimes sees Maori wearing are in fact representative of their whakapapa. Also, the carvings that feature on Marae and other carved Maori buildings/gates etc are representative of tribal ancestors, much like Indian Totem poles.)
Jake on the other hand is obviously urbanized. He would most probably know little or nothing about his whakapapa, and in addition he probably would not even be able to identify with an iwi or hapu. This would explain why he makes several references to "Maori bulls***". He is disenfranchised from his culture, and probably doesn't even speak Maori that well. (Although Temurera Morrison himself speaks fluent Maori.) His family have obviously been living in Auckland for so long, and there has been such tribal intermingling, that he doesn't know whether he's Arthur or Martha. And what's more, he doesn't care either.
(For those of you who are interested, the motorway shown at the start of the movie is the Southern Motorway which runs right through South Auckland, which is where *a lot* of Maoris and Pacific Islanders live.)
As other people have said, this kind of thing is sadly not unique to Maori, as American/Canadian Indians and Australian Aborigines can testify. Likewise domestic violence itself is not only limited to minority ethnic groups.
This is easily one of the best movies that I have ever seen. So if you haven't had the privilege of seeing it yet, then I highly recommend that you do so. George Henare's stirring Taiaha scene alone is well worth the cost of getting the movie out.
(A Taiaha is a Maori spear. To use one of these, one must have immense mana, or importance. As Henare's character said, the British *feared* the highly skilled Taiaha warriors.)
