MovieChat Forums > Forever Strong (2008) Discussion > Get it Right!!!

Get it Right!!!

posted 16 years ago by hrrugbymom
14 replies | jump to latest

What everyone needs to know and understand about this movie is it is about Highland High School's Rugby team from Salt Lake City, Utah. It is about the high school level play. They are not trying to be the All Blacks or Scotland (although one of the teams in the movie is a high school team from Scotland, hence the sottish colors, Highland has played schools from all over the world) They have been the USA Rugby national high school champions 18 out of the last 23 years. They placed 3rd in the world in 1998 shocking everyone by beating Tonga. They have had the same coach for all 33 years of their existence!

I have been involved with the team for 8 years. My sons played for the team, and I work at the school. This movie is not just about Rugby. It is about what the team teaches young men.
Everything in the movie came from the coaches and the players 98% of it really happened. A few "Hollywood" story lines were added, but the rest is true!

To all the New Zealand people: The team only does the Haka for big games. Before the team is taught the Haka, the coaches explain the meaning and how sacred it is. It is not taken lightly by anyone associated with Highland Rugby.
We have about 3 students come from New Zealand every year that play with us.
We are not trying to be anyone but ourselves, but we respect the honor and tradition that is rugby!!!

[–] busted_1_89 16 years ago

I see you keep talking about tonga here...... tongans and maoris are different! those new zealanders who have allowed you to do the haka in that team are a disgrace because 98% of your general population have now idea what it means and just think its cool and doesnt mean anything. S T U P I D Y A N K S

CoRt - NZ

[–] mwundo25 16 years ago

Woah there buddy, did you even read the comment that she wrote? I play rugby for the University of Utah, and yeah i understand your frustration with people disrespecting the Haka. I hate it when others do it. But i have witnessed Highland as they are taught the Haka. they revere it as sacred, and understand teh importance of it to the Maori's. Larry Gelwix himself won't do it until the players fully understand what it means.

One more thing- she only mentioned Tonga once, and that's when she was talking about the world championships. she never mentioned that the Maori's and Tongans are the same. Why don't you read through it carefully before responding so rudely to a post?

[–] busted_1_89 16 years ago

Ok so i know that HHS is taught what it means and good for them thats ok but as you see inmy post i was talking about the general population they don't know what it means and that they have come on here and other places round the net dissing us for being upset by it when they don't know what it means and also the original postee wasn't the only person relating the haka to the tongans so i was just posting it up for others to read aswell. however the haka is from my country i have the right of way here...

CoRt - NZ

[–] jwsel 16 years ago

busted,

The problem is that there have been about a 100 posts on this board about how the movie is disrespecting the Haka simply because Americans are doing it. People have repeatedly explained the history of Highland High, its connections with New Zealand (and other Polynesian cultures), and its respect for the Haka. Yet these stupid "how dare they do the Haka" posts continue.

It's a movie based on real events and real people, and principles of the Haka and Maori culture play a fundamental role in the reality on which the movie is based.

[–] thehookah 15 years ago

Busted,

You are misinformed on so many levels.

[–] Mad_Gab 16 years ago

I'm glad to see that there are others on this board coming to HHS's defense. And you^ whatever your name is I have seen you post so many times on this board and I have to say you are the most ignorant person I think I have ever seen on a soap box. All arguements on our side have been started by you. Don't call us Yanks, that's disrespectful and uncalled for, and honestly I'd like to know how much time you've spent at Highland and how you know what the team does and does not understand?

You can have an opinion, I'm just sorry you feel the need to spew it all over

[–] bxmas13 16 years ago

Well said Mad Gab.

[–] DramaQueen218 16 years ago

RUGBY IS FOR GIRLS TOO!!!!

Cullen boys. Cause they dont make them like that anymore. <3

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] dounodamuffinman 15 years ago

Im from nz, im not to bothered with the haka situation if its done correctly.
I would actually like to see the states being good at rugby, because the sport needs more good teams. I'd also like to see the standard of the rugby played by Americans, i cant imagine it being very good though, as the USA rugby team is such a shambles.

[–] gomi28 15 years ago

Until the US gets behind rugby like NZ or Australia you will not see a good USA national team. It takes a lot of time and energy to get to that level of play. The guys with the dedication and talent to take the USA to that level can not afford to train as much as the All Blacks. They need to support themselves and families. The money is just not there to buy the best players. Rugby is growing fast in the US now like soccer did a while back, but people don't want to pay the $50 a seat for soccer or rugby right now like they will for football, basketball, baseball. Once you can pack a stadium like an NFL arena you will start to see better rugby getting played here.

[–] damnativeNZ 15 years ago

If economic sports-mad superpowers like the US are even remotely interested in the NZ national sport (religion, even) then it can only be good for the game. No matter how bad you play it.

As for the haka... I'm a native of NZ, not just being a born and bred resident but of the indigenous people. Haka has been a part of my life since my earliest memories can recall. My opinion about it all is this: if the haka "Ka Mate" is being engaged in places as far away from NZ as Utah, or Italy, or England, I see it as a great way for my culture to be shared around the world. Whether it is done right or not can only be judged by one very select group of people; not the Maori people as a whole, but the Ngati Toa Rangatira tribe of the Maori whose ancestor Te Rauparaha composed that haka. As for accuracy of the haka, the version you see the All Blacks and others performing is only about the last third of the entire haka that was composed, so the haka is invariably performed incomplete by everyone but those who know the entire haka these days.

For interests sake, here is the haka in its entirety:

Ki ki ki, ka ka ka
Kau ana kei waniwani ai taku tara kei tara wahia kei te rua i te kerokero
He pounga rahui te uira kararapa ketekete kau ana to peru kei riri mau aue
E koro e
Hi ha ka wehi aua ka matakana
Ko wai te tangata kia rere ure tirohanga nga rua rerarera
Nga rua kuri kaka nui raro ahaha...
Ka mate ka mate ka ora ka ora
Ka mate ka mate ka ora ka ora
Tenei te tangata puhuru huru nana i tiki mai whakawhiti te ra
Hupane kaupane
Hupahe kaupane
Whiti te ra...

I could give the full explanation of the reasons for Te Rauparaha composing this haka and the situation he was in at the time of its composition, but maybe that is best left for those who know better than I - the Ngati Toa Rangatira.

[–] gomi28 10 years ago

I was adjusting some settings on my account and stumbled across this thread again, 5 years later almost to the day! hahah!! Anyway, I really appreciated your comment! I am as white as you can get, 6 ancestors from the Mayflower (the ship that basically started America as we know it today, for those not familiar with US history) but my dad danced in the New Zealand section of the PCC (Laie, Hawaii) back when it was just a few years old. I grew up and worked the night show and loved watching the haka, the emotion and power they put out was spine tingling every frekn night! I heard that Ka Mate has been adopted by most of the tribes (clans? not sure the proper term) as a common haka and not as guarded as others, which is why it is the one taught to the pakeha. We are trying to get things set to visit NZ this summer (your winter) to see the All Blacks dominate South Africa!! We will only be there a week or so, but I wish I could live there for a couple of years and get to see what it is really like. I have a few friends there, maybe I can figure out a way to stay longer ;-)

[–] darlene_seymour 15 years ago

I've only just recently watched the movie and enjoyed it. I did however, cringe when they did the haka. I guess its because I'm not used to seeing anyone else doing it besides NZers. Personally I hate the KaMate haka. 1, because it's been overdone by both NZers and foreigners alike and 2 because there are so much better ones out there that can be used to "challenge" or "prepare for war" as such.

I think it's great that they've embraced our culture and decided to use it in a movie but let's not get carried away by this instead the focus should be on trying to help youth stay of trouble by teaching them how to do this.

It also wouldn't hurt rugby league players across the trans-tasman to adopt some of their rules...