Whale Rider was a huge success and could be seen as a turning point in Niki Caro’s directing career. Having a relatively small budged the movie went on to win various awards, even an Oscar nomination for the best main actress. It is considered to quite successfully represent the Maori culture, and despite the movie’s inherent message of sexism, the director claims that the focus should be more on the role of leadership.
The movie’s success also stems from its raw portrayal of reality, in the sense that it avoids clichés. The characters have a depth and feel real, making the audience empathize. The director faced some backlash for being an Australian of European descent making a movie about Australian indigenous people, but she insists that it didn’t necessarily stem from the Maori people themselves. She states that her work was overlooked and approved by the Maori community, and she wanted to represent them as good as she could.
