The Maori Merchant of Venice in which the Jew (Shylock) has a long memory of oppression, but revenge is not so sweet." Valerie Wayne, in "The Contemporary Pacific", underlined the apparent parallel drawn by the film between the oppression suffered by Shylock because of his Judaism and the sometimes violent subjugation of Māori by the colonial authorities in nineteenth century New Zealand. Reviewing "The Maori Merchant of Venice" for "Te Kete Ipurangi", Lana Simmons-Donaldson described it as "an educational, even motivational tool" for Māori language learners, and provided glowing praise: The film won the audience award for best feature at the Hawaii International Film Festival
The Maori Merchant of Venice The Maori Merchant of Venice The Maori Merchant of Venice () is a 2002 New Zealand drama film in the Māori language (with English subtitles), directed by Don Selwyn. The play "The Merchant of Venice" was translated into Māori in 1945 by Pei Te Hurinui Jones, and his translation is used for the film. It is the first Māori-language film adaptation of any of William Shakespeare's plays. The film was shot in Auckland, but "recreate[d] 16th century Venice, with costumes and surroundings to fit the original setting". Almost all the film's actors are Māori, many of them acting for the