NATIVE HAWAIIAN VOICES
Image courtesy of NPR
Aloha (2015)
The ideas and information for this section are attributed to Richard Voeltz and his article, "Cameron Crowe's Aloha (2015): Hollywood and American Militourism in the Pacific."
Native Hawaiian Representation
Despite being a film set in HawaiÊ»i that centers around respecting Native Hawaiian culture, and includes a main character of Native Hawaiian decent, Aloha’s main characters are entirely made up of Caucasian actors. Captain Allison Ng, who is quarter Native Hawaiian and an advocate for Native Hawaiian culture throughout the movie, is played by Emma Stone, who lacks Native Hawaiian background. The movie aims to showcase the spirit and culture of Native Hawaiians, but this is difficult to do so when the main character is Caucasian.
Aloha features real-life Native Hawaiian activist Dennis “Bumpy” Kanahele who plays himself in the film as the leader of a self-proclaimed nation of HawaiÊ»i, PuÊ»uhonua O Waimanalo, which seeks independence from the United States. Bumpy Kanahele’s feature in Aloha is significant, but in a film that desires to give a voice to HawaiÊ»i and Native Hawaiians, the cast should have represented more Native Hawaiian actors.
Portrayal of Native Hawaiians
Although lacking in Native Hawaiian actors, the film doesn’t display negative stereotypes about Native Hawaiians, and even attempts to raise awareness about the struggles of independence that Native Hawaiians desire. Featuring Bumpy Kanahele and the PuÊ»uhonua O Waimanalo wasn’t a made-up storyline for the film, but rather a struggle that Native Hawaiian activists, such as Bumpy, fight for every day. Voicing this in the film is valuable, however confusing as the film also defends the major interest group that has kept HawaiÊ»i under occupation, the military. Throughout the rest of the film it’s clear that Native Hawaiians are being used as a colorful backdrop for a romantic comedy.
Depiction of Native Hawaiian Culture
The film attempts to showcase the beauty of Native Hawaiian culture, however, does so through a tourist view. Throughout the movie, the audience briefly learns about various aspects of Hawaiian culture, such as Hawaiian god, Lono, who is associated with fertility, agriculture, and peace, and menehune, who are a mischievous group of small people in Hawaiian legends. However, their mentioning in the movie seems out-of-place and forced.
The title of the film, Aloha, has created controversy between Native Hawaiians as it appropriates and simplifies a word rich with meaning. “Aloha” is recognized as being in each other’s presence exchanging the breath of life. For the purpose of the film the word is divorced from the Hawaiian context, romanticized for a romantic comedy about the military in HawaiÊ»i, and profited off of.
"The title indicates how white privilege functions to appropriate Native symbols ... in the service of rendering white presence welcome; without even speaking the Native language visitors can feel at home."