Talk us through itEighteen years ago five friends were playing in the surf at a local beach when a prank almost ended up with fatal consequences. Ron, the largest of the boys, almost drowns Luke after the later hit him in the head with a rugby ball. In the present day the five friends are drawn together again for a fishing trip in Luke's new boat, with Ron wondering if Luke is still looking for some payback. They cruise out to an island and drop anchor, Pia, who Luke had apparently forgotten to invite, warns that the island is tabu and maybe it isn't such a good idea to fish in the area. The other four don't agree as they land snapper by the bucket load and enjoy the sun and beers. A warning comes in on the boat radio that a storm is forming. Ron hooks something huge and after a struggle manages to land a massive fish head, the rest of the fish having been devoured by something unseen. As the five contemplate the fish remains something unseen rams the boat knocking them off their feet. Deciding that enough is enough Luke tries to get out of dodge, but even though the engine turns over the boat isn't going anywhere. Turns out breaking tabu isn't something you should do as the five friends fish up something more than they bargained for. Ready to see what might be taking the bait?
Review"What is it Jaws? Maybe it's the Creature from the Black Lagoon!" - RonLesson for the day: The traditional of a sea going Iwi held that some Islands were the home to ponaturi, sea demons, and other spirits. Naturally this meant those Islands were tabu and if you wanted to gain access you needed to make an offering. This was generally in the form of the first kumara you dug up or the first fish you caught. Simply rocking on up to a tabu Island without an offering would leave you open to something that may hurt you. Director Carey Carter starts The Fishing Trip with a wide angle static view of a beach and the ocean, a story from Maori mythology is being narrated as the scene gradually brightens. With hindsight the narration actually does have some relevance to the episode, it comes full circle, but at the time I thought Mr Carter simply went slightly too mythical on us. On the bright side of the shark jaws we don't get hobbits or wizards or anything. The use of wide angle is impressive and the viewer is left with the knowledge they are in very capable hands as the episode rolls. Interestingly Carter does spend some time with the background of his five main characters, covering Luke almost drowning rather than showing it in flash back style during the present day action. We learn Ron is a bully, doesn't change in the intervening years, and Pia is a good bloke. Whether or not Writer/Director Carter is perhaps pointing to the good and bad sides of Luke's character remain unclear. There's a sense of history repeating in Carter's work here, though the results of Luke almost being lost at sea are completely different. Having established that Ron almost drowned Luke eighteen years ago, because it's shown it must be important, Carter catches us up with the here and now in concise fashion. Four of the lads stayed where they were born while Luke sought his fortune elsewhere, apparently pearl diving. Judging by his boat Luke must have been pretty bloody good at the diving caper. They are now all going on a fishing expedition though Carter points out Luke didn't invite Pia along for the adventure. The dude is dropping hints all over the place of what might go down and I missed the clues all the way. Just when we think we might be getting into an utu type situation Carter tosses some underwater shots our way via the Spielberg school of upping the tension by use of creature POVs. Excellent use of underwater shots, Carter has a firm handle on this aspect of the movie. The water is murky, with a sort of greenish tinge, and the camera gradually moves closer to the boat. Carter isn't whipping his ace out just yet, you don't see anything, but there's definitely some lurkage going down to keep things on a simmer. 
When Carter gets his team onto the Island, that Pia helpfully informs everyone is considered tabu by the local Iwi elders, the Director simply goes butt naked wild with things. From our nautical challenges of the deep we sort of get into a Maori demonic slasher with the victims disappearing one by one. And just to ensure we are getting the full cultural experience here Carter is not allowing anyone to remain safe, breaking tabu is a serious offence in Maori culture and the Director doesn't shy away from what that involves in term of his plot. What I was particular impressed with was Director Carter's use of light during his nocturnal scenes. Rather than employing the backlight approach that some movies do to sort of cheat, Carter goes with the natural light generated by a torch and by a fire. Added bonus there of course is that Carter can add to his atmosphere by limiting just what the audience sees. Just what is out there in the dark just beyond the light's reach? Towards the end of the episode Carter unleashes a pretty realistic looking down pour, that storm that has been threatening pretty much from the first ten minutes of the episode arrives. Once again the visibility is reduced and an ironic touch is being added where one of our survivors has his safety net of fires extinguished at the same time. Carter isn't allowing anyone off the hook, no pun intended, and no one is safe. Finally a big vote of thanks to the makeup and props department that really went over the top in The Fishing Trip. Ron's hand is bitten by our unseen denizen of the deep, and through the rest of the episode it get's noticeably worse. That's some infection going down there. We also get some pretty decent sea demon suites, with only a glimpse of the creatures afforded the viewer beyond their large shining eyes. And the icing on the cake here is one demon who would not have looked out of place over at Regan's house of pea soup. Hemi Rudolph (Luke) notches it passed the keeper for a winner. Solid performance that captured the central tenet of the movie. Sonny Kirikiri (Pia) was excellent as the modern Maori bloke influenced by the old ways. Geoffrey Dolan (Ron) went over the top with his obnoxious character to the sound of applause. And Phil Adams (Bill) and Michael Dwyer (Golly) were not letting the home crowd down either. Excellent stuff from the full cast, no problems in that direction. Hirini Melbourne once again provided the traditional Maori instruments, used to perfection in the underwater shots, and Kipa Royal and Frank Mainthe chimed in with a pretty decent drum driven score that got the job done.
Summary ExecutionI had a pretty good time with The Fishing Trip and it did blindside me a tad. Director Carter has his horror on and nails that aspect of the episode. I was equally digging the fact that the Maori mythology, considered bogus by the Pakeha characters, came home with a vengeance toward the end of the episode. Excellent stuff and I watched it a couple of times.Nothing new to report on season 3, am assume we will eventually get it but haven't seen the season listed anywhere retail wise as yet. Full recommendation on this episode it rocked the house down. What else can I say, go grab a look at it today you just never know what might be lurking just below the surface.
ScaryMinds Rates this episode as ... Well worth a look, take a trip into the tabu.
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