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Boy - James Rolleston, Taika Waititi, Te Aho Aho Eketone-Whitu, Taika Waititi

Threat advisory: High - High risk of entertaining activities

Movie propaganda

The year is 1984, and on the rural East Coast of New Zealand "Thriller" is changing kids' lives. Boy (James Rolleston) is a dreamer who loves Michael Jackson. He lives with his brother Rocky (Te Aho Aho Eketone-Whitu), a tribe of deserted cousins and his Nan (Mavis Paenga).

Boy's other hero, his father, Alamein (Taika Waititi), is the subject of Boy's fantasies, and he imagines him as a deep sea diver, war hero and a close relation of Michael Jackson (he can even dance like him). In reality he's "in the can for robbery".

When Alamein returns home after 7 years away, Boy is forced to confront the man he thought he remembered, find his own potential and learn to get along without the hero he had been hoping for.

Theatrical propaganda posters

Target demographic movie keyword propaganda

Film comedy coming-of-age NZ East Coast Maori father son Eighties crime innocence childhood

Persons of interest

Te Aho Aho Eketone-Whitu .... Rocky
Maakariini Butler .... Murray
Manaia Callaghan .... Miria
Tainui Callaghan .... Kiko
Ngapaki Emery .... Mum
Rajvinder Eria .... Tane
Darcy Ray Flavell-Hudson .... Holden
Craig Hall .... Mr Langston
Pana Hema Taylor .... Juju
Cohen Holloway .... Chuppa
Waimihi Hotere .... Teacher
Rachel House .... Aunty Gracey
Cherilee Martin .... Kelly
Mavis Paenga .... Nan
Ngaru-toa Puru .... Che
Rangiteaorere Raki .... Young Darcy
Manihera Rangiuaia .... Kingi
Tuhoro Ranihera Christie .... Mr Nepia
Haze Reweti .... Dallas
James Rolleston .... Boy
Waihoroi Shortland .... Weirdo
Hoanihuhi Takotohiwi .... Hucks
Montana Te Kani-Williams .... Falcon Crest
Moerangi Tihore .... Dynasty
RickyLee Waipuka-Russell .... Chardonnay
Te Urikore Waititi-Lake .... Noodle
Taika Waititi .... Alamein
Taika Waititi .... Screenwriter
Taika Waititi .... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

Boy official movie sites:

Boy film production notes
Boy movie trailers:

QuickTime
YouTube

Awards and film festivals:

Berlin International Film Festival 2010: Won: Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Grand Prix Best Feature Film (Taika Waititi)
Sundance Film Festival 2010: Nominated: Grand Jury Prize World Cinema - Dramatic (Taika Waititi)

Studios and distributors:

Transmission Films

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Theatrical report

Oh, boy. Boy is a perfect snapshot of the East Coast Maori culture of the 1980s. Even though it's unrelated, it ties in perfectly with Whale Rider; Boy could be Pai's next-door neighbour. Awesome.

What's even better is that Boy is written entirely from the point of view of the eponymous hero (I like that word: eponymous) so the story is as full of innocence and fantasy and misunderstanding as only a child can have. By the time we are old enough to make, critique or watch a movie like this, it's beyond our ability to make it real. We're too cynical, too caught up in adult concerns to create such a world (see What becomes of the broken hearted?). Choice.

Meanwhile, the cast is perfectly cast, and by that, I mean the entire cast, from Boy to Rocky to Alamein, to Falcon Crest, to Chardonnay. Every character comes straight off the streets of a small country town and every actor was born to play their role. Aw-eh, bro.

You don't have to be a kiwiphile to enjoy this film but it certainly helps. The situation is so bizarre that it seems infeasible, but I assure you, it is not. Boy is as much a documentary as it is a comedy. I'm beached az.

The comedy, coming-of-age, NZ movie Boy is directed by Taika Waititi and stars James Rolleston, Taika Waititi, Te Aho Aho Eketone-Whitu.