‘Tina’ is uplifted by a powerhouse performance

Middle-aged Polynesian music teacher Mareta Percival (Anapela Polataivao) finds her groove teaching choir in “Tina.” Courtesy of Rialto Distribution

“Tina” — 2 stars

Sometimes a two-star rating means the critic thinks a movie is simply average across the board. At other times, the rating is truly an average, balancing the good parts of a film against the less good parts. So it is with “Tina” (“Mother”), an inspirational drama from New Zealand.

Directed and co-written by the Samoan filmmaker Miki Magasiva, the movie features a unique central character, a powerhouse star performance and some truly uplifting choral singing. Those are the good parts. The less good part is a script that pummels audiences with melodrama, manipulation and sentimental clichés until we all cry uncle.

The star