Leitis in Waiting (2018)
Tonga is a small island kingdom in the South Pacific, one of the few nations in the world never formally colonised by a European power, and it carries that distinction with considerable pride. It also carries a strong tradition of Christian observance, with churches representing a remarkable range of denominations for a country of roughly 100,000 people. Into that cultural fabric fits the figure of the fakaleiti, a social role with pre-colonial roots, broadly understood as a person assigned male at birth who lives, presents, and is received as a woman. For a long time, outside observers, particularly those familiar with the more visible acceptance of fa'afafine in Samoa or the mahu tradition in Hawai'i, tended to assume a similarly tolerant picture existed across Polynesia. Leitis in Waiting is, among other things, a firm correction of that assumption.
The documentary was released in 2018 and runs a trim 72 minutes, produced through the small independent outfit Waves. It is co-directed by three filmmakers: Dean Hamer, a scientist turned filmmaker with a background in genetics and health advocacy; Joe Wilson, a documentary producer with several Pacific-focused projects to his name; and Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, a Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, educator, and activist who also co-directed the earlier documentary Kumu Hina, a film that traced her own life navigating Hawaiian identity and the mahu tradition. That film covered ground that Leitis in Waiting often feels in direct conversation with, even where the social realities diverge sharply. The production is modest in scale, in the way many advocacy-driven documentaries are, shooting in Tonga on what is clearly a limited budget, and the resource constraints show at times in the technical execution.
The film's principal subject is Joey Joleen Mataele, the founder and driving force behind the Tonga Leitis Association, an organisation working to protect the welfare and rights of leitis in a country where legal and social pressures have tightened considerably as evangelical and conservative religious influence has grown. She is joined by a range of voices, including Eva Baron and the late Princess Salote Lupepau'u, a member of the Tongan royal family whose support carries symbolic weight within the kingdom, and Pastor Barry Taukolo, who represents the sort of opposition the community is actively pushing back against. The interplay between those perspectives, along with the leitis themselves, gives the film its backbone. For audiences already interested in Pacific island cultures and the specific tensions between indigenous social traditions and imported religious conservatism, there are clear connections to the anthology film Vai, which approached questions of identity across multiple Pacific nations with a different but related sensibility. There is also a useful companion piece in Aho'eitu, a short film rooted in Tongan mythology, for those wanting a broader cultural frame before watching.
I’ve sat through my fair share of LGBTQ documentaries and dramas set in the Polynesian islands, and if you’re like me, you probably came away from them with a very specific, heartwarming impression.
Pictures like the wonderful Kumu Hina or the engaging true story of Next Goal Wins paint a brilliant picture of a deeply progressive society, one where trans individuals are not just accepted but are integral to the culture. But Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu and Joe Wilson’s 2018 documentary Leitis in Waiting throws a massive spanner in that idyllic narrative, showing a starkly different, much harsher reality.
Instead of a utopian haven, we are dropped into the Kingdom of Tonga, where the local transgender community faces relentless persecution, largely driven by the region's powerful religious leaders. It’s a sobering watch, but honestly, the subjects themselves are absolutely cracking.
The film chronicles their journey to reclaim the originally derogatory term "Fakaleitis", flipping it on its head to become the empowering "Leitis". I fully support anyone in their decision to live life on their own terms, (provided they aren't hurting anyone else), and watching these individuals express themselves with such fierce, unapologetic pride was genuinely uplifting. The people on screen are highly watchable, carrying a quiet dignity that easily hooks you from the get-go.
If I have a gripe, it’s strictly with the filmmaking itself, which is frankly a little average. Wong-Kalu and Wilson haven't exactly reinvented the documentary wheel here; the pacing can drag, and the structural choices feel a bit safe and conventional. It lacks the cinematic polish or the narrative drive of a truly top-tier piece of non-fiction. But when your core subjects are this compelling, and the stakes regarding their daily survival and self-actualisation are this high, you can easily forgive a few technical shortcomings. The sheer weight of the content does the heavy lifting, turning a merely adequate film into a deeply engaging experience.
This is a picture that matters far more for what it says than how it says it. It’s a vital, eye-opening look at a community fighting for its right to exist in a deeply conservative environment, anchored by a cast of incredibly charismatic individuals. I stood by the Leitis throughout their journey, thoroughly enjoying their resilience and self-expression, even if the camera work didn't always do them full justice. It’s a highly watchable, important piece of cinema.
Leitis in Waiting is the kind of documentary that finds its strength not in formal invention but in the sheer force of the people it puts on screen. The filmmaking is competent rather than distinguished, polished but unremarkable in the way that a good number of socially minded documentaries tend to be, content to let testimony and circumstance carry the argument. Whether that feels like a missed opportunity or simply the right tool for the job probably depends on what you came looking for. What is harder to dispute is that the film brings genuine attention to a community whose situation is poorly understood outside the Pacific, and does so with warmth and clear-eyed purpose. You come away knowing more than you did, and caring about people you had not heard of an hour before. For a 72-minute documentary with a modest budget and no star power to speak of, that is not nothing. It is, in fact, rather the point.
Rating: ★★★½ | Year: 2018 | Watched: 2026-07-20
Trailer
▶ Watch the official trailer for Leitis in Waiting (2018) on YouTube
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