Enlivening the dead lands

Maori spirituality and myth are to the fore in The Dead Lands, starring Xavier Horan.

Action-buff Xavier Horan is on a roll in the latest Kiwi kick-ass action movie. By Barney McDonald.

Xavier Horan is developing a reputation as a good right-hand man to have around. With strong supporting roles in The Last Saint and The Dead Lands, he comes across as a tough guy with something intriguing going on behind the eyes. He has depth. And in these two performances, it shows.

"I'm a South Auckland boy who went to Papatoetoe High School then left to perfect his Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jean-Claude Van Damme impersonations," he jokes.

"In 2004, I realised my impersonations were only any good if they were actually seen, so I made a cold call to an agent and the rest is history. Ten years I've been in the game."

Although The Last Saint, with its P-fuelled intensity, was always going to be a hard sell to the New Zealand public, Horan impressed as Tiger, the sergeant-in-arms to the film's central crime boss. As if to prove he's on a roll in this kind of role, Horan reappears on the big screen just a couple of months after the release of The Last Saint, this time as pre-colonial Maori lieutenant Rangi to Wirepa (Te Kohe Tuhaka), the son of a Maori chief who embarks on a murderous rampage.

"I've had the great fortune of working on some great projects over the years, with juicy roles," enthuses Horan, who is of Ngati Awa and Te Patuwai descent. "I think The Dead Lands is cool. I grew up on a diet of action films like Commando and Die Hard, and the common cliche storylines that assisted them. To finally have our own kick-ass action film set in our land, with warriors and ways that only we could ever depict, is choice."

Directed by Toa Fraser, The Dead Lands is an ultraviolent revenge tragedy that accesses elements of Maori spirituality and myth to augment a much more contemporary filmic take on action and violence. Like The Last Saint, its subject isn't for everyone, but for Horan, who also played bad boy Tai Scott on Shortland Street, it's right up his proverbial alley.

"I love blood," he gushes. "I'm an action buff, so all the violence and fighting was beautiful to me. Also, that was the world back then. Mana or honour was a strong motivation for war, especially when it was about protecting those you love. And if that meant stabbing someone in the face who was trying to kill your children, ah well, had to be done.

"Our Maori culture has so much depth and quality wrapped within rich whakapapa, with amazing stories to tell," he continues. "But of course, interest in The Dead Lands has only been made possible by pioneering films like Utu and River Queen, which presented audiences with glimpses of our land and Maori people. So it's taken time, but hopefully it's been worth the wait."

Although Tai and Rangi are tough characters, with both possessing certain moral ambiguities, Horan doesn't see distinct similarities between them, and it's easier for an audience to draw comparisons between Tiger and Rangi.

"There's a difference between the characters," he says. "Rangi is a man of honour. He's dangerous and possesses great fighting skills and ability.

"He's also second in charge to Wirepa, who often tests Rangi's personal morale with the task of following through with the villainous leader's selfish decisions.

"Tai Scott was rather selfish himself due to his own personal troubles and misfortunes. He chose to take it out on those who loved and tried to help him. Not a very nice guy."

With so many unlikable characters to his credit, is he ready for something softer? Forget about it. Despite being cast in Outrageous Fortunes prequel Westside Story, he still likes 'em tough.

"I'd love to play a bad-ass cop who just kicks ass all day," he laughs. "I wouldn't mind a go at a Hispanic gangster like Cliff Curtis in Training Day."

The Dead Lands opens nationwide on Thursday.