TINᾹ – the movie.

On By Katrina

On the whole, I’d say that if you get a chance to watch the New Zealand-made move Tinā, do so.

I’ve recently seen it, and can recommend it. The story plot is pretty much a tried and true formula, but it’s still engaging, and I came away feeling I’d seen something worthwhile. Others have gushed over it, and whilst I myself would hesitate to go that far, it remains a very good watch, perhaps even a must watch if you get the opportunity.

Tinā is the Samoan word for mother, and the movie features a Samoan-New Zealand woman, Mareta Percival, who loses her 20 year-old daughter in the 2011 Canterbury earthquake in Christchurch. She goes into a depression for a while, and then is forced to take a job as a substitute teacher at a posh school to keep the lights on at home. Against the wishes of some of the school’s staff, Mareta forms a school choir, and proceeds to teach them in a style they’d probably never encountered before. The contrasts, conflicts, and growing attachment between Mareta and her posh students is nicely played, funny, and touching.

The movie is set in Christchurch in the South Island, and if you’re hoping for some stunning fill-in scenery shots (for the tourism appeal) you won’t get them. But, there’s a lot to like about the movie, and I don’t think it will disappoint – although there’s always someone it will, of course – lol!

As someone who lived through the earthquake of 2011, I was surprised at how much it continues to affect me when I see some of the footage from that time, as shown in the early part of the movie. I don’t walk around being all traumatised from then, and I didn’t need smelling salts to revive me after seeing the earthquake footage in Tinā, but I suppose trauma always lurks around to some degree or other. I was one of the ‘lucky’ ones, and didn’t suffer the loss of home, family, or friends in the earthquake, but Mareta’s anguish at losing her daughter touched a raw spot, nevertheless.

Tinā opened the Hawai’i International Film Festival in October 2024, and I expect will be available in overseas cinemas soon. If you enjoy going to the movies, put this one on your list.

6 thoughts on “TINᾹ – the movie.”

  3. Gad, I was typing a comment here on my iPad when it suddenly disappeared, the comment, I mean. WordPress has decided I shouldn’t write here anymore, I guess. Anyway, I was saying it sounds like a good movie and I would like to see it, albeit foreign films don’t make the rounds here in my town, at least not for very long. I think the last movie out of New Zealand that showed here was The Lord of the Rings trilogy, if that counts, lol. My own patience with sitting through movies has declined with age, partly because I doze off if they’re too slow, and partly because I expect a film to tell me something new, and they so rarely do. Maybe it’s because so many movies in the US are sequels to popular ones, and they seldom try to do anything different from the original. Oh well, I hope Tina is a success both in its native land and in the US.

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    1. I wonder what WordPress has against you – lol!

      I’m much less forgiving about movies now, too, although I like the movie-going experience. The movie Tina has a tried and true storyline, but it still worked, imo. It was a bit too emotionally-laden for my complete endorsement, but some people LOVED that aspect. However, it was balanced out quite well. I’m too cynical now to recommend something which I think has too much shite in it, but, as you say, it’s not likely to come to your neck of the woods, anyway.

      I’m aghast that first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy was released 24 years ago!

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