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Once Were Warriors, published in 1990, was New Zealand author Alan Duff's bestselling first novel. It was the basis for the 1994 film directed by Lee Tamahori, starring Rena Owen and Temuera Morrison. It tells the story of an urban Māori family, the Hekes, and portrays the reality of domestic violence.
Plot summary The novel is set in the fictional town of Two Lakes, clearly based on the town of Rotorua where Alan Duff grew up ("Rotorua" literally translates as "lake two"), while the film takes place in an urban area of Auckland. The story deals with domestic violence and degradation within a contemporary Māori family. Beth Heke (Rena Owen) left her village and despite the disapproval of her parents she married Jake "the Muss" Heke (Temuera Morrison) - Muss being short for Muscles. After eighteen years they live in a slum and have five children. Their interpretations of life and being Māori are tested. Since Beth is from a more traditional background she related to the old ways, while Jake, whose family are descended from slavery, is an interpretation of what some Māori have become. Jake is unemployed and spends most of the day getting drunk at the local pub with his friends. Here, he is in his element, buying drinks, singing songs and savagely beating any other patron who he considers to have stepped out of line (Hence his nickname of 'the Muss'). He often invites huge crowds of friends back from the bar to his home for wild parties. While Jake portrays himself as an easy going man, out for a good time, he has a vicious temper, especially when drunk, as revealed when his wife dares to 'get lippy' at one of his parties and he beats her to a pulp in front of their shocked friends. Nig (Julian Arahanga), the Hekes' eldest son, moves out to join a street gang whose rituals include facial tattoos. He is subjected to a savage beating by the gang members, then embraced as a new brother by the leader and is later seen sporting the gang's tattoos. Nig cares about his siblings, but despises his father for his thoughtless brutality, a feeling returned by the elder Heke. The second son, Mark 'Boogie' Heke (Taungaroa Emile), has a history of minor criminal offenses, and is placed in a foster home due to the situation with his parents. Despite his initial anger, Mark finds a new niche for himself, as the foster home's manager instructs him in his Maori heritage. Grace (Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell), the Heke's thirteen-year-old daughter, loves writing stories, as an escape from the brutality of her real life. Her best friend is a drug-addicted homeless boy named Toot who lives in a car carcass. He is the one who really cares for her. In the film, Grace is raped one night by her father's friend 'Uncle' Bully (Cliff Curtis). After wandering through the city streets one night Grace comes home to an angry Jake. She is about to go to bed, when Bully asks for "a kiss goodnight"; Grace refuses and is nearly beaten by her enraged father, before running out to the backyard. Beth returns home a minute later and goes outside, to find that Grace has hanged herself. In the novel, the reader is left to judge who was the rapist, though Jake is generally considered to have been guilty. Jake is soon kicked out of home by a newly-defiant Beth after he refuses to change his lifestyle, and stays in the pub with his mates while the rest of the family is attending Grace's funeral, a mix of Christian and Maori tradition. When Beth reads Grace's diary later that day she finds out about the rape and confronts Jake in the pub. Jake at first threatens Beth, but Nig hands him Grace's diary, and Jake, true to form, reacts by beating 'Uncle' Bully to a pulp. The film ends with Beth and the rest of her family leaving Jake and returning to her Māori village and traditions. Major Characters Beth Heke - Rena Owen Jake "the Muss" Heke - Temuera Morrison Grace Heke - Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell Nig Heke - Julian Arahanga Boogie Heke - Taungaroa Emile Polly Heke - Rachael Morris Jr. Huata Heke - Joseph Kairau Minor Characters Bully - Cliff Curtis Dooley - Pete Smith Bennett - George Henare Mavis - Mere Boynton Toot - Shannon Williams Taka (Gang Leader) - Calvin Tuteao King Hitter - Ray Bishop Judge - Ian Mune Production and awards The film was produced by Communicado Productions, its first feature film. The film won best film at the New Zealand Film & Television Awards, Durban International Film Festival, Montreal Film Festival and Rotterdam Film Festival. It also became at the time the highest grossing film in New Zealand, surpassing The Piano. A disturbingly real exposé of the results of poor communication skills, Once Were Warriors impacted strongly on audiences, many of whom recognised and were forced to confront the parallel events in their own lives. The book had a sequel released in 1996, What Becomes of The Broken Hearted?, which was also released as a film in 1999. It had a less angry feel to it and was poorly received compared to the original. A third book in the trilogy, Jake's Long Shadow, was released in 2002 but has not been made into a movie. Popular and critical reception This film is highly controversial, and led to government reports on domestic violence in New Zealand. See also Reference | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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