Expecting something light-weight and knockabout, I came out completely charmed - and even a little moved.
Mama s Music Box sees Vaiaoga-Ioasa back on familiar ground, in the suburban streets and malls of Mangere, unfurling a simple, but happily watchable tale of two grown grandchildren trying to retrieve a much-loved music box from somewhere in the clutches of their grandmother’s much-divided family. Mama has had a falling out, the reasons for which are murky and labyrinthine, with all of her siblings. Now showing the first cracks of dementia, she is fixated on getting this family heirloom back on her mantelpiece for Christmas. So good-hearted Sam (Sieni Leo O olo) and her slightly less-than-willing brother Matai (Unaloto Funaki) set off on a trip around the neighbourhood to try and understand and repair the feud, while Matai pines for a new love and wonders how he s ever going to afford the expensive gifts he s promised her.