Talk us through itWe open with two effective prologue pieces. A forgotten battle at some forgotten river sees a Maori chief lead his warriors to victory over another tribe, we then cut to an isolated house in England where some old dude is killed late one night by an intruder wielding a patu, (a Maori hand club). At an auction in Auckland the patu, from the murder English dude's state, is the next item on the agenda. Bidding is fierce but Jonathon, a Maori artist, after basically intimidating the Pakeha bidders buys the artefact for $120k. We learn the weapon is called Te Ngarara and belong to a local Iwi ancestor called Rangihauao, we assume he was the Maori chieftain in the first prologue. Jonathon is purchasing the artefact due to it being sacred. Unfortunately for the local Marae Jonathon is pulling a swift one. Along with his partner in crime Petra, Jonathon is replacing Maori artefacts with copies he has made, and selling the real deal to foreign collectors. Unfortunately for Jonathon and Petra Te Ngarara is tabu and really wants to get back home. A study in the punishment fitting the crime ensues. Ready to wield a Patu?
Review"Not proved according to Pakehi law!" - JonathonToday's Lesson; in Maori culture an inanimate object can be ascribed it's own protecting spirit and thus becomes tabu (sacred) to the Iwi (tribe) who hold the object in awe. In Heirloom a patu, Maori hand weapon, has become tabu and is named Te Ngarara. Director Michael Bennett steps up to the plate for the second episode of Mataku and keeps the high standard of the first episode very much in focus. Bennett is basically telling a morality story from the script by himself and Bradford Haami that is current in it's underlying premise. On both sides of the Tasman traditional landowners are campaigning for the return of ancestral artefacts from overseas collections. Mixing it up we also have a fair swag of Maori traditional beliefs and of course the requisite supernatural elements to keep horror fans baying at the moon. Writers Bennett and Haami really have crafted a skillful blend of elements here to leave most viewers with something to take home with them. I was intrigued by Director Bennett's opening prologue pieces and it took a couple of viewings to work out what he was doing with them. In the first Bennett opens with a view of the New Zealand primordial bush before a sudden cut presents us with a Maori warrior, adorn with ta moko (traditional tattoos) and wielding a wicked looking patu, who is just finishing off his opponent. We later surmise the scene is from a battle famous to the local Iwi. Bennett then expertly cuts to an isolated looking house in London, England. Nice use of weather and a switch from day to night to reinforce the changed location. The Director pretty much then presents a lesson in how to shot a gothic horror piece. From the sudden noise downstairs to the raised and threatening patu. Nice conclusion there with bullets doing nothing to stop the late night intruder. Besides reinforcing the idea that the patu is the Maori equivalent to the cursed object Bennett is setting us up for the resolution, and folks we aren't exactly thinking this will be a garden tea party. We're talking about weapons of mass destruction here, Maori style! Director Bennett expertly establishes the boundaries of his morality tale without taking toll of limited screen time. Interesting enough, and I am wondering if we are looking at a recurrent theme in Mataku, we then dive head first into a dark and disturbed pond made famous by Once Were Warriors, the concept the displaced Maori overwhelmed by Pakeha culture. You get the feeling, and this may have been just me, that Jonathon is simply following Petra's lead in acquiring artefacts for the foreign market. The plan the two have concocted is certainly clever enough but Petra seems to have all the contacts while Jonathon is using his ethnic background to dubious advantage. During the course of Heirloom Jonathon is hearing voices from his heritage urging him to do the right things and return the patu to it's rightful owners. Director Bennett manages to make that both a strange and a slightly chilling experience, when you take into account how Jonathon hears the voices. Petra for her own part remains blissfully unaware that the duo have crossed a tabu line, underlining I think that her Pakeha heritage precludes her understanding of what exactly they are transgressing. Jonathon does at one stage decide to return the patu to it's owners but is talked out of doing so by the ever resourceful Petra. Whether or not I'm reading a cultural significance into Heirloom that doesn't in fact exist is something I guess we'll only ever find out if I can get an interview with the writers 
Bennett finished his episode with just the right touch of irony, Jonathon recognising the calls of a culture slightly too late and being unable to voice what happened to a sceptical Pakeha Detective. Looks to be a shut and closed case, wonder what they'll make of the forensics. Tamati Rice (Jonathon) will have female hearts beating just a little quicker one feels and is all over his role. I wasn't expecting a couple of twists in the plot due to Rice nailing his role. Sara Wiseman (Petra) plays it slightly venal and is matching Rice scene for scene. Excellent casting of the lead actors for mine. Kipa Royal and Frank Marinthe deliver an excellent score that matches Director Bennett's visuals and which adds just the right amount of juice to proceedings. Once again Hirini Melbourne provides traditional Maori Instruments.
Summary ExecutionDirector Michael Bennett had me grooving to his beat almost from the first few frames, that opening scene gets you right between the eyes, and didn't let me off the hook for the entire running time of Heirloom. There's a fair amount of violence in this one, mostly off screen, but Bennett keeps it just slightly off screen. The story is interesting and who doesn't mind the odd morality play from time to time.Looks like the format of Mataku is half an hour per episode. Surprisingly the first two episodes have used the time well without needing more or indeed less running time. In fact the episodes seem to run a lot longer than they actually do, due no doubt to the amount being piled into each outing. You are certainly not getting short changed here friends and neighbours. Another gem of an episode and a full recommendation. You don't need to have seen the first episode, The Sisters, in order to enjoy Heirloom. Besides delivering an education on Maori culture Mataku is certainly striding purposely through the supernatural with to date a new slant of the whole revenant thing. Considering Maori Mythology is littered with Taniwhas and the like we could be in for some fun times ahead. If you haven't already got a copy of this excellent series then get the tribe together and go on the warpath to your local movie outlet demanding they hand one over.
ScaryMinds Rates this episode as ... Mataku is pretty quickly becoming tabu around my neck of the woods.
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