The Map Reader: Movie Review

The Map Reader: Movie Review

Rating 6/10
Cast: Rebecca Gibney, Bonnie Soper, Jordan Selwyn, Mikaila Hutchison
Director: Harold Brodie
New Zealand is a long way from the rest of the world.
A fairly obvious statement but one which forms a major part of Harold Brodie's film The Map Reader, shot on Auckland's North Shore.
16-year-old Michael (Jordan Selwyn) has spent his life immersed in and surrounded by maps - they're his only way to escape from the mundanities of small town New Zealand life as he grows up without a father.
His single mum Amelia (Rebecca Gibney) is desperate to get him out into the world and see him socialize more - while at the same time, she's terrified of the day coming when he will leave.
Michael's an introverted character who's happy in his isolation - but that is shattered with the arrival of two women in his life; both from completely different walks of life.
The first is Mary (Shortland Street's Bonnie Soper), a blind and flirtatious woman who's on the verge of finding her own way in the world.
The second is his class mate, Alison (Mikaila Hutchison) whose happy outlook on life masks the reality of mocking from her peers and a more tragically dark domestic life.
However, both these different woman bring out another side to Michael - as he begins to work out what he wants from life.
The Map Reader is a pleasantly plotted film and a slightly different take on the traditional coming of age, rites of passage flick.
The main actors (Jordan Selwyn and Mikaila Hutchison) are both impressive in their respective roles and clearly have a bright future in film - Hutchison in particular manages to convey the awkwardness of growing up in New Zealand while trying to be accepted by her peers - and all the time, hiding the horrors of a violent father.
The Map Reader's director Harold Brodie says he wanted to make a film about people coming into lives and going out of them - and enjoying them while they're around.
He's certainly managed to do that as Michael is only really animated when he's surrounded by characters other than his maps.

Granted, The Map Reader does show a side of New Zealand which is a shameful one (the domestic violence); however, it's also responsible for showing how small time life can nurture people and bring out the best of them.