"Once Were Warriors"

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the vicious cycle of poverty, crime and domestic abuse in director Lee Tamahori's film "Once Were Warriors" which is set in New Zealand. The writer of this paper focuses on the film's main character Jack, a surprisingly complex character which is a tribute to the director who avoided the temptation to make him completely unsympathetic. Jack the patriarch is an abusive man with a penchant for alcohol, parties and using his fists whenever he can, even on his own wife. This paper details and analyzes the film's plot as well as Tamahori's witty use of symbolism which is displayed at the end of the film when layers of illusion are peeled away.

From the Paper:

"Jack is a surprisingly complex character, a tribute to the writer and director who avoided the temptation to make him a completely unsympathetic character from the beginning. At first, we see Jack as a relatively nice guy, working his fish shop job and doing it well. There is an undertone of darkness even here, though, when Jack gets into a bump-and-stare conflict with a clumsy passer by. His anger here was easily provoked, but since nothing came of it, we can still believe that he is a generally good person."

More papers on "Once Were Warriors":

• Film Review # 111681 : "Once Were Warriors"
• Book Review # 150387 : "Violence Effect in Literature"
• Analytical Essay # 130403 : "Intimate Partner Violence in Films"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: