Whale Rider
Movie • 2003 • Drama
ReportSynopsis
On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand tribe, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.
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Your Triggers
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Needs More Answers
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Were animals harmed in the making?
228 supporters
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Real whales were not used in the filming and underwater footage was digital.
1 comment | Add comment
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Riding a whale into deep water could be seen as suicidal
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Abandonment
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Abuse
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Emotional abuse by grandfather.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there domestic violence?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
119 supporters
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6
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Addiction
Is there addiction?
32 supporters
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Women are seen smoking, then trying to hide the smell
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One character has a bag of weed and a pipe, which implies that he smoked marijuana before the scene. It is a very short scene.
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Animal
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During a scene involving beached whales, one whale dies
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Is there a dead animal?
195 supporters
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Dead whale
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Does a dragon die?
55 supporters
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No dragons in the movie
1 comment | Add comment
Are there bugs?
53 supporters
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A large crab is seen outside of the water. If you don't like looking at bugs, you might not like that either.
1 comment | Add comment
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Assault
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Bodily Harm
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Does someone struggle to breathe?
46 supporters
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There are a few underwater scenes, where you could be worried about that, but no struggling shown
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Children
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Does a kid die?
112 supporters
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During a scene where a woman dies giving birth, one of the babies die
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Family
Does a parent die?
42 supporters
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At the beginning of the movie, the mother of the protagonist dies during childbirth
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Fear
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Is there a shower scene?
14 supporters
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Female lead is shown in a bath. She is naked, but she's about eight years old and the scene is modest.
2 comments | Add comment
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Gross
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Is there farting?
20 supporters
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A boy farts audibly during a school performance. The audience laughs and the performance is disrupted.
1 comment | Add comment
Does someone spit?
19 supporters
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People spit out seawater
1 comment | Add comment
Medical
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Is there a hospital scene?
22 supporters
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The film opens with the protagonist's birth. She is also shown in the hospital near the end of the film. Minimal medical equipment is shown.
3 comments | Add comment
Mental Health
Does someone die by suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
130 supporters
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Noxious
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Pregnancy
Does someone miscarry?
44 supporters
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Not miscarriage, but at the very beginning of the movie, a woman dies while giving birth to twins and one of them dies too.
1 comment | Add comment
Does a pregnant person die?
37 supporters
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The protagonist's mother dies in childbirth, so not TECHNICALLY, but extremely likely triggering for this category.
1 comment | Add comment
Is there childbirth?
37 supporters
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Not graphic. We see the mother's upper body and her straining.
1 comment | Add comment
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Prejudice
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Are there fat jokes?
65 supporters
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Not exactly jokes, but there are comments about one character having gained weight.
3 comments | Add comment
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Sex
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Are there incestuous relationships?
National Sexual Assault Hotline 800.656.4673
100 supporters
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Spoiler
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Vehicular
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Violence
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Does someone drown?
48 supporters
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There are a couple of drowning scares, but no one drowns. In one scene, the protagonist dives into the sea and stays down off-camers for so long that another character goes in and begins searching for her, but then she pops back up and is completely fine. At the end of the movie, she rides a whale and it is clear that the community believes she has drowned, but they later receive a call from the hospital and, again, she is fine.
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Where to Watch
