Muru

What’s it about?

When an armed raid is launched on the remote Te Urewera community, local Police Sergeant ‘Taffy’ Tāwharau (Cliff Curtis) must choose between his job or his people.

The facts

• Directed by Tearepa Kahi (Mt. Zion, Poi E: The Story of a Song).
• English & Māori language
• Runtime: 104 minutes
• Inspired by the 2007 Ngāi Tūhoe police raids

Why did it get this rating?

Violence

Guns, and characters physically fighting, are frequently shown throughout the film.

Two particularly strong scenes involve guns. Two characters are violently shot by a sniper, with one being shot in the head. While wounds are not shown, we can see the glass stained with their blood and a motionless dead body shown in the next scene.

In the other strong scene we see two characters fighting. This ends with one of them holding a pistol in the other person’s mouth.

A lot of blood is shown throughout the film, mostly in the fight scenes. One of the main characters is operated on to remove a bullet from their back. Although the wound isn’t shown in close up there is still lots of blood in this brief scene.

Offensive language

There is limited swearing used for emphasis in the film, such as “f**k” and “sh*t”. Offensive gestures are also shown such as a character pointing the finger.

Nudity

A woman’s breasts are briefly shown in one scene.

Further information

• Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau?
• Muru: A poetic, wildly clever, mischievous 'response' to more than just a raid