PickFlick

The Green Chain

A Maori community afflicted by industrial chemical poisoning searches for truth and justice

2011•53m
Documentary

This homegrown Erin Brockovich story follows former Whakatāne sawmill worker Joe Harawira and his long battle to reveal the impact that workplace toxins have had on his community. In the '80s after being afflicted by health issues, Harawira noticed co-workers getting sick. In 1988 he helped found SWAP (Sawmill Workers Against Poisons) and began investigating the effects of exposure to dioxins, a byproduct of timber treatment.

Open in PickFlick

Production

Scottie Productions

Language

EN

Status

Released

Release Date

Cast

Joe Harawira

Self

Similar Movies

Hot Air

Hot Air

2014
Movie

In the years since New Zealand politicians began to grapple with climate change our greenhouse gas emissions have burgeoned. Alister Barry’s doco draws on TV archives and interviews with key participants to find out why.

Hot Air

2014
The Devil We Know

The Devil We Know

7.6
2018
Movie

Unraveling one of the biggest environmental scandals of our time, a group of citizens in West Virginia take on a powerful corporation after they discover it has knowingly been dumping a toxic chemical — now found in the blood of 99.7% of Americans — into the local drinking water supply.

The Devil We Know

2018
7.6
Erebus: Operation Overdue

Erebus: Operation Overdue

7.0
2014
Movie

On 28 November 1979, an Air New Zealand jet with 257 passengers went missing during a sightseeing tour over Antarctica. Within hours 11 ordinary police officers were called to duty to face the formidable Mount Erebus. As the police recovered the victims, an investigation team tried to uncover the mystery of how a jet could fly into a mountain in broad daylight. Did the airline have a secret it wanted to bury? This film tells the story of four New Zealand police officers who went to Antarctica as part of the police operation to recover the victims of the crash. Set in the beautiful yet hostile environment of Antarctica, this is the emotional and compelling true story of an extraordinary police operation.

Erebus: Operation Overdue

2014
7.0
Old Dog

Old Dog

2017
Movie

Retired New Zealand farmer and dog trainer Paul Sorenson passes his knowledge to the next generation of shepherds, and reflects on the sacrifices he's made to pursue his intense passion for dogs.

Old Dog

2017
Elementa

Elementa

6.5
2020
Movie

A black-and-white visual meditation of wilderness and the elements. Wildlife filmmaker Richard Sidey returns to the triptych format for a cinematic experience like no other.

Elementa

2020
6.5
But They Did: The Re-entry Of The Pike River Mine

But They Did: The Re-entry Of The Pike River Mine

2025
Movie

Anna Osborn and Sonia Rockhouse were forever changed when the Pike River Mine Disaster stole their loved ones, but instead of sitting down, they stood up! But They Did tells Anna and Sonia's story, following them through the period of time before and during the re-entry of the mine.

But They Did: The Re-entry Of The Pike River Mine

2025
Georgie Girl

Georgie Girl

1.0
2001
Movie

In 1999, the largely conservative Wairarapa district in New Zealand elected a former cabaret performer/actress named Georgina Beyer to the country's House of Parliament -- a seemingly unremarkable event in that country's history except for the fact that Beyer is a transsexual and may very well be the first transsexual in the world to be elected to a national office. In their 2002 biographical documentary Georgie Girl, co-directors Peter Wells and Annie Goldson highlight the popular Member of Parliament's rapid rise through local government to prominence in the New Zealand national government.

Georgie Girl

2001
1.0
No Image

Proof

2021
Movie

Two years ago Guyon Espiner stopped drinking. Now, the award-winning journalist and podcast-maker has made a documentary about New Zealand's drinking culture and the alcohol industry.

Proof

2021
Air Jaws: Back From The Dead

Air Jaws: Back From The Dead

5.3
2018
Movie

After great whites, known as "Air Jaws", vanished from their hunting grounds in South Africa, photographer Chris Fallows and filmmaker Jeff Kurr seek a new location in New Zealand.

Air Jaws: Back From The Dead

2018
5.3
Merata: How Mum Decolonised the Screen

Merata: How Mum Decolonised the Screen

6.7
2019
Movie

This film is an intimate portrayal of pioneering filmmaker Merata Mita told through the eyes of her children. Using hours of archive footage, some never before seen, her youngest child and director Hepi Mita discovers the filmmaker he never knew and shares the mother he lost, with the world.

Merata: How Mum Decolonised the Screen

2019
6.7
Navalny

Navalny

7.2
2022
Movie

Follows the man who survived an assassination attempt by poisoning with a lethal nerve agent in August 2020. During his months-long recovery, he makes shocking discoveries about the attempt on his life and decides to return home.

Navalny

2022
7.2
Belief: The Possession of Janet Moses

Belief: The Possession of Janet Moses

6.4
2015
Movie

This impressive doco disperses the fog of shame and sensationalism to shed light on the tragedy that made international headlines in 2007 when a young Wainuiomata woman died during a mākutu lifting.

Belief: The Possession of Janet Moses

2015
6.4