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Cousins (2021 film)

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Wikipedia article




'Cousins' is a 2021 New Zealand film directed by Ainsley Gardiner and Briar Grace-Smith. It is an adaptation of the 1992 novel of the same name by Patricia Grace.

Plot



The film is told through flashbacks spread across Mata's childhood and current life.

At a young age, Mata is sent by her Pkeh (European) father to the Mercy Home for Desolate Children. There, she is renamed May Parker and grows up ignorant of her Mori culture, language, and family.

When a Mori staff member at the Mercy Home recognises Mata as a member of the Pairama clan, Mata is allowed to spend the summer with her "grandparents." Following a train journey to Rotorua, she meets to her Aunt Gloria and cousins Missy and Makareta, who expose her to her Mori culture and heritage. Mata also learns that her Mori mother did not abandon her as her father had claimed but that he had taken her from her mother. Mata is shocked to learn that her grieving mother had died the previous year, still longing to see her lost daughter.

Although Gloria and her cousins want to adopt her into the Pairama clan, Mrs Parker, the guardian appointed by her father, objects to it. As a result, Mata is separated from her Mori relatives and grows up into an extremely repressed young woman who is ashamed of her Mori background, brown skin and curly hair. Following a failed marriage to a young Mori man named Sonny, Mata falls into depression and becomes homeless in the streets of Wellington.

Meanwhile, Makareta flees an arranged marriage to study law in Wellington. Missy takes the role of the guardian of the Pairama clan's land, which is locked in a dispute with property developers. As adults, Makareta and Missy resolve to find their lost cousin Mata. After years of searching, Makareta and Mata reunite following a chance encounter in Wellington. Makareta tells Mata she will bring her back to the land and their home, but passes away shortly after. Mata returns to the Pairama lands with Makareta's body and has an emotional reunion with Missy. The film ends with Mata and Missy sitting by Makareta's casket.

Cast



* Rachel House as Missy

*Briar Grace-Smith as Makareta

*Tanea Heke as Mata

*Chelsie Preston Crayford as Adult Jean

*Tioreore Ngatai Melbourne as Makareta

*Ana Scotney as Mata

*Hariata Moriarty as Missy

*Cohen Holloway as Adult Bobby

*Cian Elyse White as Adult Gloria

* Miriama Smith as Keita

*Erroll Anderson as Ripi

*Jim Moriarty as Maori Caregiver

*Cohen Holloway as Bobby

*Kirk Torrance as Sonny

*Calvin Tuteao as Hamuera

*Sylvia Rands as Mrs. Parkinson

Production



'Cousins' was directed by Ainsley Gardiner and Briar Grace-Smith. Gardiner, Georgina Conder and Libby Hakaraia served as producers. Music was composed by Warren Maxwell. It is an adaptation of the 1992 novel 'Cousins' by Patricia Grace. The film was produced by Miss Conception Films. 'Cousins' was filmed in Rotorua and Wellington.

Distribution



'Cousins' was distributed in New Zealand by Vendetta Films, and premiered on 3 March 2021 at the Reading Cinema in Rotorua. The decision to host the premiere in Rotorua was made because several Rotorua shooting locations are featured in the film and casting was conducted in the city. The film earned at the New Zealand box office in its first three weeks.

ARRAY acquired the rights to distribute 'Cousins' in North America, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. 'Cousins' was released in United States movie theatres on 2 July and on Netflix on 22 July.

Reception



The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes surveyed and, categorizing the reviews as positive or negative, assessed all 21 as positive for a 100 percent rating. Among the reviews, it determined an average rating of 8.50 out of 10. 'The New York Times' Devika Girish said the film "trembles with sound, color and feeling, deriving much of its power from an excellent ensemble cast".

Stuff reviewer James Croot praised the film for its "compelling narrative, evocative sense of space and place and terrific performances," awarding it four and half stars. He credited the main cast members Merata Mita, Irihapeti Ramsden and Nancy Brunning with bringing the three protagonists Mata, Makareta and Missy to life. Croot praised the directors Ainsley Gardiner and Briar Grace-Smith for their immersive style of filming, which in his view brought the viewer into the world of the story. He also gave a favourable appraisal of Gardiner, Grace-Smith and casting director Tinary's decision to have three sets of actors playing the main protagonists at different stages of their life.

'Variety' reviewer Alissa Simon praised Grace-Smith's screen-play as a faithful adaptation of her late mother-in-law Patricia Grace's novel. She also gave a favourable appraisal cinematographer Raymond Edwards's use of close-up photography for depicting the world of the Pairama clan. Simon also praised editor Angela Boyd's non-linear storytelling of the three main protagonists' lives over a period of fifty years between the 1940s and 1950s. Simon also credited composer Warren Maxwell's musical score and incorporation of Mori songs for immersing viewers in Mori. She also likened 'Cousins' to other films such as the Australian 'Rabbit-Proof Fence' and Swedish 'Smi Blood', which raised awareness of the hurt suffered by indigenous "stolen generations" who were uprooted from their families.

References




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