Judy McIntosh Movies

Norman Fletcher plays an New Zealand medical-school graduate of the 1940s, who, at the request of his father, pays a visit to his home town. Fletcher has a particular affinity for the local Maori population--and small wonder, since his late mother was Maori (a fact hitherto unkown to him). After a young villager dies of leukemia, Fletcher decides to forego the posh practice that had been planned for him to remain with his new-found friends. Ngati is notable as the first film to be written and directed by Maoris. Despite a few technical and performing crudities, the results are well up to the high standards of other New Zealand-based productions of the era. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this undistinguished coming-of-age drama, Riki Nathan (Mitchell Manuel) has been sent to a boys' reform school and has to handle the vagaries of good and bad inmates as best he can. The young teens, mostly Maoris, only want to get out of there any way they can and go home, especially Willie (Junior Amigo) who has some unfortunate run-ins with the resident bully Karl (Nicholas Rogers). Riki resists getting into a scrape with Karl until Willie's misfortunes at Karl's hand make the showdown inevitable.
~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

From the producers of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and the mind of author Katherine Paterson comes a rousing fantasy adventure about family, friendship, and the wondrous power of imagination. A perpetual outsider both at home and at school, Jess Aarons (Josh Hutcherson) just never seems to fit in no matter how hard he tries. When his goal to become the fastest runner in middle school is unexpectedly thwarted by newly arrived classmate Leslie Burke (AnnaSophia Robb), who enters in an "all boys" race and leaves her competitors in the dust, Jess soon strikes up a friendship with the imaginative outsider. Their bond is soon cemented thanks to Leslie's love for storytelling and Jess' skill as an artist, and the two lonely kids create a secret kingdom called Terabithia that is only accessible by swinging over a stream on a nearby rope. Though Jess and Leslie may be considered outcasts by their classmates, their adventures in Terabithia find the pair doing battle against the dreaded Dark Master and his malevolent creatures while plotting revenge against the schoolyard bullies. Now, thanks to his adventures in Terabithia and his friendship with Leslie, Jess finally finds the confidence needed to stand tall and be himself. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide