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.

"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".

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.

I hadn't planned on watching this movie, so I actually missed the first couple of minutes. However, from the moment Temuera Morrison's character, the "knuckle-dragging" Det. Sgt. Ihaka, appeared on screen, I found myself hooked. The film isn't very PC in places, most notably in Ihaka's no-nonsense attitude towards criminals or his superiors, nor is it going to win any awards but the acting was generally above average and the plot was intriguing. I especially liked Rebecca Gibney's character and found her to be superior to her Halifax F.P. character. The last 20 minutes have a couple of surprises and I liked the ending.

I should also note that a lot of the humour is very Antipodean, so those outside of Australia and New Zealand might not get it.