"Once Were Warriors" is a movie about a poor family in New Zealand and the struggles they encounter. The head of the household is Jake, a violent drunk who spends most of his time drinking with his buddies and neglecting his family. After a long binge at the bar one night, the party comes back to the families house where he ends up beating his wife to a pulp with the kids crying and listening upstairs. Jake's wife, Beth, with a swollen face misses her son's court appearance to protect her husband. As a result, the government takes her son away from the family. Later on when Beth is asleep, one of Jake's friends rapes Grace, Beth's oldest daughter. As a result, Grace hangs herself in the backyard. Everyone in the family attends Grace's funeral except Jake who is at a bar. When Beth is taping Grace's journal back together, she decides to read a story, but much to their surprise she finds that her deceased daughter had been raped. The family goes to the bar to confront Jake and his friends about the matter, which ends up in the rapist getting killed, and furthermore the family leaving Jake for good.
The movie "Once Were Warriors" is a common story with many more national elements that are not so common. Throughout the film the use of music and song was very prevalent to show emotion and feeling, or as an activity to connect with people in a social setting. This is not as common in American film or even globalized cinema unless it is a specialized production such as a musical. Also, I feel the Maori aspects of the film speak much more to New Zealanders, such as the older son joining the the Maori gang and getting tattoos all over his body, or the younger son in the camp when practicing the Maori arts. These things are not common knowledge around the world but I feel give the film more depth for someone who belongs to the nation.
I'd have to disagree with the statement that song was used to "show emotion and feeling". Song was used many times as a way to lower the rising action. It was used as a reset button in many of the scenes if they were getting too serious. When Jake hit his daughter the first thing Jake did when she left was hand the guitar to Bully and tell him to play a song. Jake and the rest of the guys aren't happy go lucky, they just sing to lighten the mood.
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