{"product_id":"eye-of-the-taika-new-zealand-comedy-and-the-films-of-taika-waititi-9780814345337","title":"Eye of the Taika: New Zealand Comedy and the Films of Taika Waititi","description":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eInnovative study of Taika Waititi, whose Maori and Jewish roots influence his distinctive New Zealand comedic style.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003eEye of the Taika: New Zealand Comedy and the Films of Taika Waititi\u003c\/i\u003e is the first book-length study of comic film director and media celebrity Taika Waititi. Author Matthew Bannister analyses Waititi's feature films and places his other works and performances--short films, TV series, advertisements, music videos, and media appearances--in the fabric of popular culture. The book's thesis is that Waititi's playful comic style draws on an ironic reading of NZ identity as Antipodean camp, a style which reflects NZ's historic status as colonial underdog.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe first four chapters of \u003ci\u003eEye of the Taika\u003c\/i\u003e explore Waititi's early life and career, the history of New Zealand and its film industry, the history of local comedy and its undervaluation in favor of more \"serious\" art, and ethnicity in New Zealand comedy. Bannister then focuses on Waititi's films, beginning with \u003ci\u003eEagle vs Shark\u003c\/i\u003e (2007) and its place in \"New Geek Cinema,\" despite being an outsider even in this realm. Bannister uses \u003ci\u003eBoy\u003c\/i\u003e (2010) to address the \"comedian comedy,\" arguing that Waititi is a comedic entertainer before being a director. With \u003ci\u003eWhat We Do in The Shadows \u003c\/i\u003e(2014), Bannister explores Waititi's use of the vampire as the archetypal immigrant struggling to fit into mainstream society, under the guise of a mockumentary. Waititi's \u003ci\u003eHunt for the Wilderpeople \u003c\/i\u003e(2016), Bannister argues, is a family-friendly, rural-based romp that plays on and ironizes aspects of Aotearoa\/New Zealand identity. \u003ci\u003eThor: Ragnarok \u003c\/i\u003e(2017) launched Waititi into the Hollywood realm, while introducing a Polynesian perspective on Western superhero ideology. Finally, Bannister addresses \u003ci\u003eJojo Rabbit\u003c\/i\u003e (2019) as an \"anti-hate satire\" and questions its quality versus its topicality and timeliness in Hollywood.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBy viewing Waititi's career and filmography as a series of pranks, Bannister identifies Waititi's playful balance between dominant art worlds and emergent postcolonial innovations, New Zealand national identity and indigenous Aotearoan (and Jewish) roots, and masculinity and androgyny. \u003ci\u003eEye of the Taika\u003c\/i\u003e is intended for film scholars and film lovers alike.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eMatthew Bannister is a postgraduate theory supervisor in media arts at Waikato Institute of Technology Kirikiriroa\/Hamilton, Aotearoa\/New Zealand. He has written two previous books: \u003ci\u003ePositively George Street: Sneaky Feelings and the Dunedin Sound \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eWhite Boys White Noise: Masculinities and 1980s Guitar Rock\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Hamilton with his partner Alice Bulmer and has two sons.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Wayne State University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50482862686482,"sku":"9780814345337","price":40.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_93293f0c-0235-4d36-ae44-27aa9a7d4ddf.jpg?v=1730351226","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/eye-of-the-taika-new-zealand-comedy-and-the-films-of-taika-waititi-9780814345337","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}