Once Were Warriors (1994)

OWW is a truly great film. However I feel that people have missed one of the main ideas of the film. That is the fact domestic violence is truly horrifying. And it doesn't just happen in Maori families, it happens all over the world! I am Maori myself and first saw this film at the theatres with a mostly Maori audience. It was very well recieved. I was surprised to read the commentary by Glamwog when she said all of her Maori friends hate it. Oh and by the way not all Maori are as depicted in the movie!

If you haven't seen this film, do yourself a favour...watch it.

Fmovies: "Once Were Warriors" tells of one woman's struggle to free herself and her family from the fist of abuse, the grip of oppression, and the slow assassination of self esteem at the hands of an alcoholic husband. This film's story of a Maori (indigenous New Zealanders) underclass family shows the male turning to violence and self destruction to vent frustration with his plight while the female draws strength from her cultural heritage in an attempt to save her children and restore their dignity. Gripping, intense, and powerful, "Once Were Warriors" is a critically acclaimed must see for anyone into serious human drama. (A)

As a Pacific Islander (Samoan), I could relate to the characters in this film, especially the father Jake The Muss. As a warrior people, Islander life is hard, and it comes with the damage that was introduced to our people from European intervention back when Island people first had contact with the expeditious Europeans.

The Pacific Island people of Maori, Tonga, Hawaii, Fiji, Tokelau, Easter Island, Tahiti, and Samoa to name a few, have all felt the results of European and American intervention. This film epitomizes the lifestyle of people who were once chiefs, warriors, and royalty, and the results of the alcohol and western ways that produced characters like Jake and many Islanders like him.

Our people were a race of proud warriors, and this film is powerful in it's depiction of a family torn apart due to the effect of substance abuse on the warrior and his family. It is sad, but I can relate because I was that way with my first wife. I drank, and confided in the comfort of my Samoan brothers placing them first before my family. I beat my wife constantly and with little or no provocation, and was able to hold a reputation as a gang elder and fighter within my hood in Los Angeles, CA. This ripped my family apart, as the Heke family in the story. The guilt of my past life appeared before me when I saw the film, and even now I cringe from the life I lead 12 years ago.

The depiction of Maori lifestyle is on point, as a large number of my people live in those conditions. Among Samoans, there are more of us on mainland USA than back home. Many Samoans (like the Maori's in the film)live in urban areas, infected with substance abuse, and gangs. Violence is an everyday thing, and the movie depicted all of these points. NOT FAR FROM FACT.

Once Were Warriors fmovies. This movie is almost 10 years old and I just saw it tonight and I was left emotionally drained. This movie is one of the best I have ever seen the acting was first rate and the emotions left me drained I would recommend this to anyone but beware or it's stark reality. This is a wonderfully directed and acted film.

This is one of the most powerful and realistic movies I have ever seen.

A true modern-day tragedy, this movie shows the negative aspects of one indigenous culture in today's society. This is a very important movie as it forces you to look at issues that some have to live with on a daily basis.

This movie literally left me feeling sick in the stomach. Particularly with the knowledge that there are families out there living through this. The performance by Temuera Morrison was incredible.

This movie is based on a modern day New Zealand family, dealing with near poverty and violence from all sides, including the often inebriated father.

The acting in this movie was just plain amazing. I was hooked from beginning to end, entranced with the wide range of feelings and emotions the movie evoked in me.

You will cry, laugh, sing, and rage right along with the characters, and you will find it hard not to restart the movie just to watch it again.

This is just one of the few movies that stayed with me all these years, since first seeing it back in 1995. I will never forget this movie, and if you watch it, I can guarantee that neither will you.