Popular Kiwi movie, Poi E, hits $1m mark
‘‘I've received so many messages from New Zealanders over the past five weeks, young and old, whose eyes have been opened by Dalvanius.’’
The film about New Zealand’s unofficial anthem, Poi E, hit the $1 million mark at the NZ box office at the weekend.
POI E: The Story of Our Song, has become the third NZ documentary to reach the $1m milestone, the filmmakers say, after The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls (2009) and Gaylene Preston’s Home By Christmas (2009).
Now in its fifth week of release, the film follows the origins of the 1984 smash hit song by the group Patea Maori Club.
Tearepa Kahi, the film’s director, producer and writer, said the milestone for ‘‘our little documentary’’ was very rewarding because it showed Kiwis were connecting to the story.
‘‘I’ve received so many messages from New Zealanders over the past five weeks, young and old, whose eyes have been opened by Dalvanius, Ngoi and the Patea Maori Club.
‘‘People from all walks of life have been moved emotionally and culturally.
‘‘I believe when we all understand how far they took our language and culture, it gives us all strength to take it that much further today.’’
Meanwhile, the film’s soundtrack, which features the original version of the song Poi E, has reached No 4 on the NZ music charts.
It is the fourth time the title track has made its way into the top 10.
After its 1984 debut, Poi E reached No 1 and remained in the charts for 34 weeks, out-selling Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
The film’s soundtrack includes the first-ever performance of the song Poi E sung by its composers, Ngoi Pewhairangi and Dalvanius Prime and family members, on a cassette recording discovered in a sock drawer during research for the movie.