The Convert

Writers: Shane Danielsen and Lee Tamahori, Michael Bennett screen story from the novel by Hamish Clayton

Director: Lee Tamahori

Lee Tamahori’s The Convert moves Unforgiven and Dances with Wolves from the USA to New Zealand.

The title character is former solider Thomas Munro (Guy Pearce) who, seeking redemption for atrocities committed during his time in the army, converts to a lay minister. He arrives in New Zealand in 1830 to perform missionary work but soon becomes involved in a clash between two Māori tribes. Munro attempts to be a go-between for the tribes and the white settlers who live on their land by agreement and also to secure peace between the tribes themselves. His growing disenchantment with the settlement and appreciation of Māori customs leads to the possibility he might convert again.

Munro is a contradictory character. Soft spoken with a poetic turn of phrase- comparing his new homeland to a sculpture in its early stages- but able to handle himself in armed conflict. The image of Guy Pearce on a galloping horse pounding along the shoreline is the first of cinematographer Gin Loane’s many love-letter images of the ravishing landscape. Munro’s conversion seems more practical – a revulsion with, and rejection of, his past behaviour- than theological, he shows no signs of religious zealotry.

The thorny issue of colonisation is kept in the background, the settlers and tribes maintaining a brittle polite peace and the former supplying arms to combatants in both tribes. The film makes a contrast between the hypocritical politics of the settlement, where anyone perceived as not fitting in is ostracised or- in the case of a surly independent shopkeeper- murdered and the more natural, welcoming approach of the tribes. It makes credible the possibility of Munro’s further conversion.

Guy Pearce underplays Munro in a manner that suggests the spiritual nature under his taciturn exterior. Yet Pearce is following a well-trodden cinematic path and so Monro is not as interesting as other characters – the action hero who renounces violence can be seen in umpteen classic westerns and at one point Pearce is shot framed in a doorway in the manner of John Wayne in The Searchers. It is easier to get emotionally involved with Jacqueline McKenzie’s Charlotte – a more expansive character whose dignified stance hides a fascinating backstory. The standout is, however, Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne’s Rangimai, who Munro is compelled to take as a ward. Ngatai-Melbourne’s passionate performance brings out Rangimai’s intense curiosity so although deeply committed to her own community she is willing to explore other cultures becoming, therefore, hope for the future.

The measured approach taken by Tamahori means the film is less tense than one might expect. The middle sequence becoming reflective as Munro explores Māori culture and considers his options. Yet The Convert remains a stimulating twist on a well-worn premise, well-acted against gorgeous scenery.

The Convert will be available on Digital Download from 14th October