The Lost Tribe (1985 film)

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The Lost Tribe
Directed by John Laing
Written byJohn Laing
Produced by Gary Hannam
John Laing
Starring John Bach
Darien Takle
Don Selwyn
Martyn Sanderson
Emma Takle
Ian Watkin
Terry Connolly
Adele Chapman
Christopher Mills
Cinematography Thomas Burstyn
Edited by Phil McDonald
Music byDave Fraser
Production
companies
Meridian Films
Film Investment Corporation of New Zealand
New Zealand Film Commission
Distributed by Amalgamated Theatres
Release date
  • October 1983 (1983-10)(Spain)
Running time
114 minutes
CountryNew Zealand
LanguageEnglish

The Lost Tribe is a 1985 New Zealand horror film directed by John Laing. Starring John Bach and Darien Takle, it follows a man and his sister-in-law journeying into a mysterious island inhabited by the tribe Huwera Maori. It was produced in 1982 but not theatrically released in New Zealand until 1985.

Contents

Plot

Anthropologist Max Scarry (John Bach) vanishes while researching the reclusive Huwera Maori tribe on a remote Fjordland island. Authorities suspect foul play when they discover a murdered woman at his isolated retreat—leading them to accuse Max of murder imdb.com+9en.wikipedia.org+9hanwayfilms.com+9.

Max’s partner, Ruth Scarry (Darien Takle), teams up with his twin brother, Edward Scarry (also John Bach), to unravel the mystery. While Edward remains under suspicion, Ruth convinces him to voyage to the eerie island.

Upon arrival, the couple endures a series of supernatural occurrences: disembodied voices, unsettling tribal symbols, and aggressive attempts by the island’s inhabitants to deter them—suggesting a fiercely guarded secret harboring deep spiritual power. Their paranoia escalates as Edward begins to unravel, his grip on reality slipping in the oppressive isolation.

As tension peaks, Ruth witnesses Edward exhibiting physical and behavioral signs of Max’s personality. During a nightmarish Huwera Maori ritual, it appears Max’s spirit—or possibly the tribe’s curse—takes temporary control of Edward’s body.

In the end, Edward is left profoundly altered, his fate ambiguous. The island’s mysteries—and the true nature of the tribe’s supernatural presence—remain unresolved, leaving Ruth with haunting uncertainties and no clear resolution. [1]

Cast

Production

The Lost Tribe marked acclaimed New Zealand director John Laing's second directorial effort. [2] In addition, Laing wrote the script of the film and served as producer. [2] Thomas Burstyn signed on as cinematographer. [3] Principal photography ended in 1982. [2]

Release

The film was only released in 1985. [2] It had earlier on won the critics' approval after winning awards at both the 1983 Sitges Film Festival and the Orleans Film Festival. It was screened for some time in September 1985 at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA)'s New Zealand Cinema. [3] In evaluating the film, John Parker of Metro concluded that "[i]t is impossible to say much more without spoiling a very fine movie with an intriguing story for you to find out for yourselves". [4]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, The Lost Tribe holds no critic reviews and remains unrated, while audience ratings stand at 15 % based on over 250 votes, suggesting generally negative viewer sentiment.

Academic commentary emphasized the film's distinctive use of landscape as a Gothic element. A scholarly paper on New Zealand horror cinema highlighted The Lost Tribe as “one of the few instances in New Zealand horror cinema in which caves or holes are used for Gothic effect” [5]

Despite its visual strengths, some critics and viewers found the story’s progression slow and ambiguous. EOFFTV’s review remarked that it “isn’t a film that’s in any particular hurry to get anywhere,” though it acknowledged that it “deserves a wider audience”. [6]

The film garnered early acclaim at genre festivals. It won awards at the 1983 Sitges Film Festival and the Orleans Film Festival, though it struggled to find wider distribution and received only limited theatrical and video releases outside New Zealand.

References

  1. ↑ "The Lost Tribe (1982)". The EOFFTV Review. 13 February 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Ian Conrich; Stuart Murray (2007). New Zealand Filmmakers. Wayne State University Press. pp. 217, 234. ISBN   978-0-8143-3017-3.
  3. 1 2 "The Lost Tribe". BAM/PFA. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  4. ↑ "The Lost Tribe". The Film Archive. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  5. ↑ "Wayback Machine". mro.massey.ac.nz. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  6. ↑ "The Lost Tribe (1982)". The EOFFTV Review. 13 February 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2025.


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