Utu

Awesome.. You need to watch this film. Just do yourself a favour and watch it.

This film takes place during the New Zealand Land Wars and does justice to the portrayal of violence and revenge (hence the title). The setting is lively and convincing and the story shows the conflict between all people without oversimplifying.

Most reviewers have referred to this as a Western, but I feel that puts a label on it that is misleading. The setting involves a colonial power and subjugated indigenous people in 1870 New Zealand, but it could have been 1870 Australia or Canada or Mexico or United States or any number of other countries. It is a fiction based upon real people and events with a late 19th century New Zealand setting. One needs to view it without the preconceived notions and if so done, you will better enjoy it.

All that said, I would highly recommend viewing the recently released 'Utu Redux' version. It is a bit shorter with a greatly improved image and sound. It has been digitized and is now available on region free DVD and Blu-ray. Since its 1983 release, it was bastardized by various distributors with length changes and quality losses. The director, editor and original cinematographer spent much time and expense to get back the film they intended. 'Utu Redux' is that film.

To me, a good movie uses the introduction to snap your tether of disbelief; the middle to entertain you and deliver you to the end; and the end to make it worth the journey.

This movie does it better than any other movie that I've ever seen.

The story is about revenge ("utu"), how the cycle starts, how it changes, and the price to be paid to end it.

The time and the place are not important, though the movie is beautifully shot and historically valid. The action is only a device to tell the story, though it is compelling and riveting. The subject matter is profoundly serious, though there are elements of comedy even during the most serious scenes.

Overall, this is one of the best constructed films that I have ever seen. The pacing of the scenes, the respect for the intelligence of the audience, the dark endearing humor, and the impact of the message all make this one of my favorite movies.

The director's cut provides additional scenes that explain some of the details that are missing from the original, but these extra scenes foul the sharp pacing that makes the studio cut work so well.

Well-made actioner could have benefited from a script that took more time to establish characters and historical context. The film opens with a horrific massacre of a Maori village, which drives native soldier Te Wheke (Anzac Wallace) to swear a blood vendetta ('utu') against the white man. Unfortunately, there is no explanation given for the massacre, and we know nothing about Te Wheke except that until then he was a soldier in the white man's army.

Despite this narrative gap, the action which follows is reasonably compelling in the manner of a Don Siegel or John Sturges Western. Besides the strong performance by Wallace, Kelly Johnson is good as the baby-faced army lieutenant charged with introducing new-fangled 'commando' tactics from the Boer War, and Bruno Lawrence has a field day as a gun-obsessed homesteader who swears his own oath of vengeance against Te Wheke after his wife is killed. (Wait till you see the shotgun he puts together in his shed!) Geoff Murphy's direction is straightforward, if sometimes muddled during shootouts, and other pluses are the authentic period production design and weaponry, along with mobile camera-work by Graeme Cowley on rugged New Zealand landscapes.

Not a profound work, but entertaining for its historical milieu, based on real incidents. Be warned that the DVD transfer is not the best.