 Grub, a young surfer, is caught in a conflict between his boss, former surf legend Claw, and his passion for Vanessa, a mysterious Maori woman tattooist. Driven by his desire to be tattooed and  become a man , Grub ignores warnings that Vanessa could be  Hine Nui Te Po , the Maori sea goddess and mythical  Eater of Life . Rebelling against Claw, he is drawn ever deeper into Vanessa s ambiguous world of pleasure and pain, fantasy and reality, until finally the young surfer must face death in order to understand life.