Meet Tame Iti (Tuhoe, Maori): Meet the Prick 2008
Distributed by Chip Taylor Communications, 2 East View Drive, Derry, NH 03038-4812; 800-876-CHIP (2447)
Produced by Golem Productions
Director n/a
DVD, color, 30 min.
Jr. High - Adult
Anthropology, Biography, Area Studies, Ethics, History, Human Rights, Multicultural Studies, Postcolonialism, Sociology, Storytelling
Date Entered: 01/29/2009
Reviewed by Brad Eden, Associate University Librarian for Technical Services and Scholarly Communication, University of California, Santa BarbaraThis film is a part of Chip Taylor’s Biographies Series: World Studies. It is the story of Tame Iti, whose first loyalty is to his Tuhoe background, then his Maori roots, and finally to his country Aotearoa (now a part of New Zealand). He is literally covered in tattoos, and therefore his label as "prick." The word "prick" has two connotations: one for his body art, and the other more pejorative phrase used by a conservative politician when referring to Iti. This video documents the clash of cultures in New Zealand as typified by Iti, who is a very outspoken and zealous promoter of his ancestral and Tuhoe roots. The film does raise a couple of questions. What is wrong with individuals not wanting to be part of today's modern societies? Or rather, why are we still pushing modern values and culture onto those who do not wish to participate in them? A very thought-provoking film