Ngatahi -Know The Links: Parts 1 and 2 (DVD)

Reviewed by Simon Sweetman, THE DOMINION POST, Friday October 24, 2003

Dean Hapeta (also known as Te Kupu and D-Word) is an influential hip-hop artist and multi-media performer/producer, having created this country's first successful hip-hop band: Upper Hutt Posse.

Know The Links is subtitled "a rapumentary" - it is a documentary (parts one and two of a proposed four-part project) that sees Hapeta travel through ten countries, tracing the links between minority cultures, exploring the rich diversity of musical, political and social cultures. For Hapeta (writer/director/editor/producer) this is clearly a labour of love. More than that however, the results are rewarding, for Ngatahi (which he explains, "means 'togetherness' or 'one-ness'") is a compelling sequence of cut'n'paste documentary filmmaking.

Beginning with shots of New Zealand, the camera wisks through America, England, Cuba, France, Jamaica, Columbia, Hawaii, Canada and Australia, before concluding back home. The loose structure works well; what may at first seem occassionally fleeting, is never haphazard or flimsy. Letting the camera roll for stream-of-consciousness and grab-them-as-you-can interviews and sequences from international poetry festivals, performances and demonstrations -as well as on the street vox pop styled polls - Hapeta proves to be more than just a keen observer. His concept is to show the depth of history (the social and policital -as well as the musical) towards understanding the birth of any culture - not just the culture of hip-hop. From there, it can be understood where hip-hop as a reflection - as a response - comes from.

Taking in the methods of vaguely related documentaries, Know The Links is similar in concept and execution to 1 Giant Leap, with a more political leaning. The feel of this guerilla-filmmaking can also be compared to Style Wars (an underground film concerning birth-of-hip-hop graffiti artists). But the flow of the camera and the strong use of contrasting images of hope and happiness; despair and fragility - with music used and seen as both a social necessity and a prime means of communication - links this film also with the classic documentaries Baraka and Koyaanisqatsi.

Racism is a strong theme - and it is dealt with articulately and compassionately. If you find yourself not agreeing with some of the viewpoints in this film it will only add to your understanding of the filmmaking process. This is bold, inventive and challenging. Rewarding viewing that reflects a wide-range of cross-cultural attitudes and unfolds like a musical Lonely Planet video diary. And for those in need of a more concrete narrative, Hapeta offers an enthusiastic, passionate and candid commentary track.

4 Stars