Brilliant and touching

A lot of fun.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

It's interesting watching Once Were Warriors as someone who has grown up in New Zealand and lived in a suburb where many aspects of the movie, reflected much of what I saw going on around me. Crime, poverty, substance abuse, violence including domestic violence - all were staple components of where I grew up that relate well to the themes within OWW.Ironically, seeing it on the screen seemed to me, far more real than it had ever been before - despite knowing men like Jake Heke and women like Beth. Despite being friends with people like Grace and like Nig, it never seemed as real as what it did on-screen.That is a testament to the way this film was pulled together, but also to the many talented people involved - most especially the cast. Temuera's portrayal of Jake is stunning. You will laugh with him and at him, you will swear it him and you will curse him with every ounce of your body, wanting to walk across the room and reach out for Jake and stop him from striking out at Beth ... that is, if you aren't scared of him. Temuera's portrayal somehow manages to engage you with Jake's human side, seeing the love that he has for Beth whilst also showing you the absolutely monstrous and dark side of Jake the Muss.Rena Owen meanwhile does an equally astounding performance.This movie will grab your emotions by the fistful and throw them around the room, leaving them as battered and bruised as the fragile souls of Beth and Grace Heke.This movie is highly recommended, but it is also highly recommended that you watch this when you are in a space to do so.

When I attended the Telluride Film Festival in 1994, I picked 6 films on opening day as my choices. Once Were Warriors happened to be the first. By the end of the film, I was utterly stunned. I wanted to tell Rena Owen, the female star, how much I appreciated her brilliant work and the film itself, so I joined the line. By the time I got to the front, I couldn't think of a single word to say to her, instead standing there with tears streaming down my face. Rena stepped forward and put her arms around me and just let me cry. After a few moments, I thanked her and walked away, unable to speak any further.I spent the rest of the day wandering around just looking at people. I never saw the other five films. To say that OWW is a stunning film is just words. It's ability to connect with the audience and draw us in was simply magnificent.I rate this film in the top five I've seen all my life.I found it interesting, too, that when I checked Amazon to see if it were still available, the only copies were listed at $130, a real tribute to this brilliant film accomplishment.

Who do a warrior people war with when all the wars are vanquished? And the answer is in this instance; themselves. This is a depiction of The Maori peoples of New Zealand, a world in which masculine ferocity reigns supreme amongst social degradation, and those that are fragile and soulful are so often the heartbreaking collateral. This is searingly powerful stuff; with no excess stylisation in order in bring its message home, just fantastic performances and solid, no holds barred filmmaking. I can think of few films from any country in which domestic violence is so accurately portrayed, Temuera Morrison's startling realistic portrayal of a Jake The Muss, an incredibly violent and unpleasant father after all drew the attention of George Lucas (shame about the outcome, and yeah that's me kicking 'the sci-fi holy grail' in the balls.). Rena Owen as his beyond brave wife Beth, also demands much praise for her performance (haven't seen her in much since the little known sequel, and yes I could bring up a number of points about both ethnicity and gender.). Like all the great films 'Once Were Warriors' confronts a truth of matters that so often are so often hidden away and treated as social taboo's. In fact while the film very much remains a powerful depiction of The Maori peoples its themes transcend race or even necessarily class background. And in a world of crap, truth matters the most. It shimmers like gold.

Once were warriors" 1994 by LeeTamahori is one of the most powerful films I've seen.Violence seems to play a major role throughout the movie; however, I think violence come from a lack of education and low social communication skills.Jake always gets in a fight when he drinks, but that's the way Jake explains his emotion and also he is struggling to fit the society.The last scene, when Grace commit suicide, that was so sad but I think Grace didn't just gave up her life, she wanted to change her family and she saved her family.