Rent The Convert (2023)
3.3 of 5 from 53 ratings
1h 55min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
New Zealand in the 1830s is a Maori world, dominated by tribal wars. Seeking redemption from a dark past, lay preacher Thomas Munro (Guy Pearce) is on board a trading vessel heading to the newly established British Settlement, Epworth. When the ship anchors for repairs, Munro finds himself caught up in a battle between Maori tribes and witnesses the slaughter of innocents at the hands of chief Akatarawa (Lawrence Makoare). Munro manages to save the life of Rangimai (Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne), the daughter of Maianui (Antonio Te Maioha), a rival chief whose land Epworth leases in a delicate arrangement. As Munro begins to experience the white townsfolk's entrenched racism and paranoia towards the Maori, he finds himself increasingly ostracised within the community he is meant to serve and realises he has been brought to this isolated British outpost merely to add the veneer of civilisation. After one of Maianui's men is murdered under mysterious circumstances, Munro and Rangimai make the difficult journey into prohibited lands ruled by Maori warlords, in the hope of repairing the injustice. - Actors:
- Guy Pearce, Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne, Antonio Te Maioha, Jacqueline McKenzie, Te Kohe Tuhaka, Lawrence Makoare, Dean O'Gorman, Jared Turner, William Wallace, Kelly Vivian, Marris Collins, Duane Wichman-Evans, Andrew G Hill, Renee Lyons, Leonard Mathews, Madeleine McCarthy, Tania Nolan, Peata Panoho, Ariki Salvation-Turner, Mark Sole
- Directors:
- Lee Tamahori
- Producers:
- Troy Lum, Andrew Mason, Robin Scholes, Te Kohe Tuhaka
- Writers:
- Shane Danielsen, Lee Tamahori, Michael Bennett, Hamish Clayton
- Studio:
- Vertigo
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Drama
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 27/01/2025
- Run Time:
- 120 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.39:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
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Reviews (1) of The Convert
A powerful historical drama set in 1830s New Zealand - The Convert review by Philip in Paradiso
In 1830, Thomas Munro (Guy Pearce) is a lay minister from Britain who has just arrived in New Zealand. He is to perform missionary work and to live in a British settlement by the coast, called Epworth. But very quickly, Munro finds himself involved in the bloody clashes opposing 2 local Maori tribes: one led by Maianui, and the other by his arch-enemy, Akatarewa. The story develops from there.
The film is very good at re-creating the early days of the British colony in New Zealand. It also gives us an insight into the warrior culture of the Maori tribes that inhabited the country when the European settlers arrived. Finally, the landscapes are sumptuous: there is something striking, awe-inspiring, primeval and powerful about nature and the wilderness, as we see it through Munro's eyes, in the movie.
It is a very good film and the Maori actors have remarkable on-screen presence, more particularly Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne as Rangimai, daughter of Maianui. My only reservation would be that I found the ending of the film, on a certain level, a little bit flat and somehow underwhelming, as the expression goes: I do not want to say any more so as not to spoil the story for viewers. Overall, it is a rare and memorable film, which you are most unlikely to forget.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.