Whale Rider
The Whangara people live on the east coast of New Zealand. They think they have been there for at least a thousand years, when their ancestor Paikea rode to shore on the back of a whale after his canoe capsized and he was about to die. Since then, Whangara chiefs, who were always the first-born and always men, have been thought of as direct descendants of Paikea. Pai, an 11-year-old girl from a patriarchal tribe in New Zealand, thinks she will be the next chief. Tradition says that her grandfather Koro must choose a man, though. Pai loves Koro more than anyone else in the world, but to fulfill her destiny, she has to fight him and a thousand years of tradition.
Released: 2003-01-30