The Convert follows Thomas Munro a man who is set to become the lay preacher at a British settlement in New Zealand in the 1830s. Munro grapples with darkness in his past as he sees a war brewing between two Maori tribes. His faith and quest for redemption will be put to the test as he attempts to stop this war and opens himself to learning and understanding the ways of the Maori people.

The Convert is a brutal tale of war and faith that doesn’t play out the expected storyline of a preacher attempting to convert others to his faith. Guy Pearce gives an emotional performance full of heart and pathos. Lee Tamahori helmed The Convert as both director and co-writer, with Shane Danielsen, to show the Maori people in an authentic light as well as the brutality of war and how the desire for peace is not always enough.

Screen Rant interviewed Guy Pearce about his role in The Convert. He explained how his character, Munro, is broken at the start of the movie and how that dictates his actions. Pearce also shared how his desire to work with Tamahori first drew him to this project and how his dynamic with Ngatai-Melbourne bled into Munro’s dynamic with Rangimai.

Guy Pearce Explains How His Character Is A Man “Putting Back Together The Pieces Of The Man He Used To Be”

The Convert shows the Maori and the influence of Britain on New Zealand in a new light. As themes of redemption, sacrifice, and tragedy permeate this story, it also chronicles Indigenous issues through a perspective that many movies don’t touch upon. Pearce explained what drew him to this story and why he was excited to explore this tale.

Guy Pearce: Well, it was initially Lee Tamahori the director. Lee and I knew each other to a degree. We’d always talked about working together, never managed to do it. And then I got a call from him a couple of years ago now, and I just knew when he was calling that it was going to be for something that I was going to say yes to. I just had this feeling and he talked me through it.

It wasn’t even a question. It really was just, Okay, well when are we going to start? We had great conversations about trying to understand the character, et cetera. So that was the initial impetus. And of course, once I knew more about what the story was and the setting and why we were making it and what it was about, it only just added to my enthusiasm about it. I think Lee’s a beautifully sensitive historical nut.

So it was great to listen to him talk about the authenticity that he was looking for in this story. I just was really moved ultimately, I suppose selfishly by the character, by this guy who was traumatized from the past and was, I guess given a sort of a lifeline by being offered this job as a lay preacher and heading to an unknown land to see what that would bring. On a journey of self-discovery really. So it was great on all levels, really.

You play Munro, he’s a man escaping the horrors of war, but finds himself in the middle of warfare. Can you talk to me a little bit more about Munro and his desire to bring peace to the Maori people?

Guy Pearce: Well, I think one of the things we needed to be careful of in making this film that we avoided the white savior complex that we’ve seen so many times before in films. Of course on some level you can’t avoid it. Lee said, the thing is you can’t avoid it because it happened on many instances where this just would naturally kind of occur. The attempt would naturally occur, not necessarily successful, but in our case, it’s a man who has been faced with his own mortality and sees that an opportunity to express a different viewpoint in typical military action might have some value.

So it was important to try and get across that without it being condescending. Obviously his reason for being there in the first place had nothing to do with Maori people. It was to be a lay preacher for a white settlement town. But he’s of course then just thrust in the middle of this conflict and can’t help himself. So there is some sense of the white savior. What is it in us that makes us feel we can fix it?

Really what was beautiful, I suppose about the story was that rather than him converting them, it was about them converting him and him actually rebuilding himself, I suppose. Putting back together the pieces of the man he used to be. I think when someone suffers a trauma, they are sort of fractured. So this was a kind of opportunity for him to, as I say, rebuild and reunite his center and find a new life for himself.

Munro Is “Stripped Bare At The Start Of The Film” Without Ego Or Politics

The Convert shows a war between Maori tribes as well as the political and social structures of their culture. While Munro brings expectations and bias into his experience, he also opens his mind to learning and experiencing the Maori culture while still fighting to convince them that they should be striving for peace. Pearce discussed how The Convert explores these themes.

Guy Pearce: On a really simple level, it’s just about the fact that it doesn’t matter what culture you’re from, we’re all the same. We’re just emotional beings. We function under politics. We function via our emotions. We function via our survival techniques. They just are formed in different ways, in different places because of literally things like landscape or weather or finances or whatever it might be.

But at the bottom of it all, we are just two people looking each other in the eyes going, the only thing that’s different about us is what I’ve learned along the way and what you’ve learned along the way. But really we’re flesh and blood and that’s what we need to sort of honor. I think that’s what Munro, because in a way, as I say, he’s so stripped bare at the start of the film that I didn’t want him, and Lee certainly didn’t want him to have any ego or politics or anything get in the way and to sort of construct somebody based on that stuff.

He’s constructing. He’s just identifying himself through pure animal instinct and sort of moral ground, I suppose. So it was sort of about just finding a more raw version of a human being and seeing if he could relate to the raw versions of those Maori people.

You’re brilliant in this film, by the way, sir, but your screen partner for a lot of these scenes is phenomenal. Her name is Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne she is amazing in this film. She plays the chief’s daughter, Rangimai and it is at the center of the story with your character Munro. Can you talk about their dynamic throughout the course of the film and how their relationship evolves throughout the course of the film as well?

Guy Pearce: It’s funny because yes, I can talk about their relationship, but I ended up thinking so vividly about our relationship because she was so impressive and so centered and grounded for such a young person. I mean, I’ve told this story before, but she said to me early on, she had this sort of cheeky quality and she said something like, Alright, so you’ve done a lot of films, ay? And I went, Yeah. And she said something like, So maybe I’m supposed to learn something from you, am I? And I went, Oh no, not necessarily. And she said, Yeah, maybe you’re right. Maybe you learn something from me.

Just that in itself was really profound in relation to what we were doing, but it just said so much because she was full of humility, but full of confidence as well. And in a way it did kind of inform us as characters because she’s there on her home territory. She’s there with her own sense of morality. Here comes Munro, who is a broken man, but is what appears to be helping her out of a situation when very clearly from the outset it is her that is helping him. I mean, they’re helping each other, but really she brings so much support to him, I think, and helps him get put back together again. So it was delightful on both levels.

Guy Pearce Explains Why They Are Taking A Priscilla Queen Of The Desert Sequel Seriously

Pearce also touched on Priscilla Queen Of The Desert 2. While he didn’t have any updates about the potential sequel, he was quick to reassure fans that he and everyone involved appreciate how seriously they need to take it and will only move forward if the idea truly honors the original movie.

Guy Pearce: No updates at this stage. We’re talking about it. It’s something that we all think would be a great idea if it’s good. We don’t want to ruin the first one by making the second one any less than it should be, which nobody wants, of course.

We’re definitely very aware that we need to give the audience, it needs to feel authentic, but we need to give the audience something that we know they’re going to love, obviously. That film is a well-loved movie, so no updates, I’m afraid at this stage. There’s a script being worked on, and we’re in discussions about it.

About The Convert

A lay preacher arrives at a British settlement in 1830s. His violent past is soon drawn into question and his faith put to the test, as he finds himself caught in the middle of a bloody war between Maori tribes. A fight for peace.

Check back for our The Convert interview with Lee Tamahori.

Source: Screen Rant Plus