Ihaka: Blunt Instrument

Ok, I was up way too late last night. I turn on cable and look at the tv guide channel. This movie shows up with 0 stars. The didn't even give it a half star, though I'm not sure if they do that anyway. I've noticed that whoever does there rating system seems to really suck anyway as only extremely high budget movies ever get any stars. I went ahead and watched it and couldn't have been happier. This was a great movie for a low budget project. I gave it a 10, some movies are just too damned underrated.

Temuera Morrison and Rebecca Gibney do a lot with a little in this made-for-TV cop movie. Story, direction-and some performances-are a bit rough, but the two stars have the chops to carry the story.

Not a great flick. Mildly entertaining. Another reviewer described Temuera as acting "macho", which isn't very accurate. "Macho" implies a pretentious or exaggerated sense of masculinity. Neither Temuera nor his character in this movie project that bearing...he is merely self-confident and self-assured.

That being said, this show is not really very deep in overall quality, is just a quick something-to-watch-when nothing else is on. Rebecca and Temuera do a decent job of acting with what they're given.

"Ihaka: Blunt Instrument" is all about Ihaka (Morrison), a New Zealand no nonsense macho Maori cop with a penchant for taking matters into his own hands and solving problems with his fists. In this installment he his shipped off to Australia where he teams up with a beautiful desk jockey cop (Gibney) and together they go off to solve a murder. A banal, mediocre effort, this film suffers from stiff performances from the two leads, a sophomoric script, an unimaginative storyline, and more. What the minds behind the film wanted is obvious but what they deliver is a second rate waste of acting talent. Recommended for Aussies, Kiwi's, Maori's, and others with an interest in the regional TV fare. (C)

Note - Morrison's powerful performance in "Once Were Warriors" is evidence of potential which is wasted in "Ihaka".

Decent enough flick - quite entertaining for a movie of its limited production value and genre. It was interesting to see an Australian / Kiwi version of a "buddy flick". The title and character development led me to believe that it might have been part of a series of movies based upon the main character (or maybe a TV pilot) but sadly, it isn't. It is, however, worth a look if you catch it on cable - but I wouldn't adjust my schedule around seeing it.