The Land Has Eyes

Infobox Film
name = The Land Has Eyes


image_size =
caption =
director = Vilsoni Hereniko
producer = Jeannette Paulson Hereniko, Corey Tong, Vilsoni Hereniko
writer = Vilsoni Hereniko
narrator =
starring = Sapeta Taito,
Rena Owen
music = Clive Cockburn,
Audy Kimura
cinematography = Paul Atkins
editing = Jonathan Woodford-Robinson
distributor = , other international
released = 2004
runtime = 87 mins.
country = Fiji
language = Rotuman, English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website = http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0390179

"The Land Has Eyes" ("Pear ta ma 'on maf" in Rotuman) is a 2004 Fiji Islander film written and directed by Vilsoni Hereniko. It is the first ever (and so far only) feature film from Fiji. [ [http://www.abc.net.au/rn/deepend/stories/2004/1172918.htm "Fijian Film"] , ABC Radio Australia]

Plot

The main character, Viki (Sapeta Taito), is a young Rotuman woman shamed as the daughter of a man wrongly accused of being a thief. She finds inspiration in a mysterious "Warrior Woman" (Rena Owen) from her people's legends. [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/story.html Plot synopsis on the film's official website] ] [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390179/ IMDB] ]

Production

The film was shot on Rotuma, homeland of director Vilsoni Hereniko. [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/production.html "Production"] , official website] Lead actress Sapeta Taito is Rotuman, and "The Land Has Eyes" is her first film appearance. [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/cast.html "The Cast"] , official website] She had, in fact, never seen a film before acting in this one. [ [http://www.seattleweekly.com/2006-04-12/film/the-land-has-eyes.php "The Land Has Eyes" (review)] , Tim Appelo, "Seattle Weekly", April 12, 2006]

Rena Owen is best known for playing the lead female role in "Once Were Warriors". The film also stars John Fatiaki as a corrupt court official.

Reception

"The Land Has Eyes" was presented at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004, as well as a number of other international film festivals. [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/festivals.html "The Land Has Eyes" at film festivals and special events"] , official website] It was Fiji's official submission to the 2006 Academy Awards. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390179/ IMDB] ]

The "Star Bulletin" (Hawai'i) praised the film, "made on a shoestring budget". [ [http://starbulletin.com/2003/12/05/editorial/index.html "Hearty praise goes to isle filmmaker"] , "Star Bulletin", December 5, 2003] The "Honolulu Advertiser" noted that it "received an enthusiastic reception from the audience" at the Sundance Festival. [ [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2004/Jan/21/il/il01a.html "Hawai'i contingent helps heat up Sundance festival"] , Don Brown, "Honolulu Advertiser", January 21, 2004] A reviewer for the "Advertiser" explained that "All but two cast members were recruited from Rotuma. Most had never seen a movie before, much less acted in one. When the film was finished, Hereniko brought it back to Rotuma, borrowed a sheet from the hospital to use as a screen, and showed it eight times around the island." The reviewer recommended the film, and concluded::"Go see this movie if you have ever cringed over an outsider's misinterpretation of island culture. Go see this movie if you have ever cried over the systemic injustice visited upon poor, honest families. Go see this movie if your heart needs to hear that justice can prevail and that a force greater than all of us is watching and keeping score. Go see this movie if you want to be reminded that hard work leads to success. Go see this movie." [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/reviews/0305Cataluna.htm "A 'go see' movie that leaves you feeling good"] , Lee Cataluna, "Honolulu Advertiser", March 20, 2005]

A reviewer from the "Seattle Weekly" wrote::"The film is weak in conventional narrative and production values. [...] Yet that very authenticity is what gives "Land" its power. Hereniko captures the everyday texture of Polynesian life: the clan connections that make nobody want to rock the boat [...] , the tension between pagan and Christian beliefs, the power of ancient stories and rituals. [...] "Land" reminds us of the power of film to take us to another world." [ [http://www.seattleweekly.com/2006-04-12/film/the-land-has-eyes.php "The Land Has Eyes" (review)] , Tim Appelo, "Seattle Weekly", April 12, 2006]

"The Land Has Eyes" received the "Best Overall Entry" award at the 2005 Wairoa Maori Film Festival, and the "Best Dramatic Feature" award at the 2004 Toronto ImagineNative Film & Media Arts Festival. [ [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/index.html Official website homepage] ]

External links

* [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/index.html Official website]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0390179/ "The Land Has Eyes"] on IMDB
* [http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/pear_ta_ma_on_maf/ "The Land Has Eyes"] on Rotten Tomatoes
* [http://www.thelandhaseyes.com/reviews/0405AsianReporter.pdf "What Would the Warrior Woman Do?"] , Josephine Bridges, "The Asian Reporter", April 12, 2005 (review)

References