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From the war-themed movies about Pearl Harbor to “50 First Dates” and “The White Lotus” and the recent addition of “Last Goal Wins,” Hawaii has been depicted onscreen in many different ways. Now, the Pacific tech paradise is viewed through a different camera lens with the new voice of Christopher Kahunahana in his feature debut, “Waikiki.”
Although the film clumsily grapples with large concepts such as the impact bringing tourism and suffers from a lack of coherent plot direction, “Waikiki” has managed to spotlight the thoughts of a Native Hawaiian about his homeland. Kahunahana, who has participated in the Sundance Lab, wrote and directed the drama that portrays a hula dancer, Kea (Danielle Zalopany), whose life is falling apart.
Kea tries to cover the black eye her boyfriend Branden (Jason Quinn) gave her; she attempts to smile while performing on stage and continues to remain in a good attitude to dodge questions about her injury from the young students she teaches. But it’s when Branden AKA “Dick Head” calls Kea while she’s driving at night that the film becomes more intense in its atmosphere: distracted by a phone call, Kea accidentally runs over a homeless man (Peter Shinkoda) and after she aids the man, who we later learn is Wo, they share a connection. Later on, Kea’s van gets towed and she snaps, drifting off to sleep next to Wo, under a tree on a piece of cardboard and mixing reality with memories of her grandmother.
Thanks to Soto’s unique use of color and framing, the film, which was shot in 2020, has a hazy feeling to it. “Waikiki” is a languid spiral into the depths of Kea’s mind, but actress Zalopany fails to successfully convey the feeling of desperation – the phrases sound like they’re packed full of stifled agony. Rather, it is her eyes that speak the emotions more strongly, as she gives a look of bewildered displacement while riding on the handlebars of Wo’s bike and scoffing at the cruise ships and airplanes bringing tourists to her country.
“Waikiki” rests upon the tension that exists in a serene and luxuriant island created for tourism and entertainment, yet the residents like Wo and Kea live in a self-imposed exile in the shadow.
“‘Waikiki’ is entirely based on my personal experiences,” writer-director Kahunahana shared with IndieWire. “During my full-time job, I faced episodic houselessness and would have had to live out of a van if not for my family’s support. Honolulu has one of the highest rates of homelessness and my family was living under the national average for income, yet it consistently ranks with New York City and San Francisco for the highest cost of living.”
He continued, “The reality is the majority of families in Hawaii barely scrape by and are one health crisis away from being homeless. Mental illness, abuse, and addiction are painfully real in our communities. This is often the consequence of unresolved intergenerational trauma and land dispossession stemming from the overthrowing of the Sovereign Nation of Hawaii and our Queen Lili’uokalani in eighteen ninety-three.”
“Waikiki,” is undeniably impactful, albeit in ways that are difficult to appreciate. Yet Native Hawaiians remain the best storytellers of Hawaii, and the only ones who can showcase the beauty that exists behind the pain.
The last shot of Kea hula dancing as she smiles into the camera with her arms outstretched was a welcoming moment for the audience, and I found it to be chillingly beautiful. It was a reminder that no matter how beautiful the show is, the real performance lies in staying functional underneath the pressures of generational trauma, the lack of financial stability, and the burden of satisfying the dreams of tourists.
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