Eric Barnes
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.
joebuck3
I first saw OWW at the cinema back in the mid-nineties and it blew me away. I got it on video and remember re-watching it a number of times and still being struck by the power of the story and performances.However, I've just watched it for the first time in over 10 years on DVD and have to say that it doesn't seem quite as strong a film as I used to imagine. My old impression was that it avoided the clichés of the weaker 'ghetto' movies: particularly, those pieces of dialogue that are so clumsily shoehorned in to emphasise the social point being made, they make you wince. Maybe it's unfair to suggest this film can be rather glib or clichéd at times but there are some awkward moments, largely due to wooden acting from the young actors playing Grace and Boogie. I thought that Kerr-Bell was great when I first saw it but I wasn't quite so impressed this last time.It is a gripping and harrowing drama, though, and the leads are fantastic. Morrison's part could have been an exercise in scenery-chewing if not handled right, but it's a very assured performance and he brings such conviction to the role that his character is truly believable. Frightening but compelling, Jake is a horrendous, damaged and utterly selfish person but you feel his charisma and he can turn on the charm when he wants to. Owen's Beth starts the film displaying a weary playfulness as she tries to stay strong for her children while her disgust with Jake's selfish and violent behaviour is reaching the limits of tolerance. When it all spirals out of control, Owen brings a strength and dignity to the role that make Beth such a memorable heroine. Cliff Curtis as slimy Uncle Bully is pretty good, too.
jra1188
This movie was an epic experience. I have never experienced a movie with such insight to Maori culture in the 90's. Temeura Morrison's performance was spot on and who could forget Rena Owen. The storyline was superb and kept the audience engaged every second of the movie. One drawback is the outcome was rather predictable but still I was engaged. The insight to Maori culture was phenomenal however. Being a person of Poly decent I was drawn into the movie through cultural aspects and i enjoyed every minute of it. Nothing compares in my book. Great job to the director and it will be a classic in my eyes. All in all, great movie experience.
StephenBradleyJones
What an intense film! The violence that is contained in this project is not gratuitous, rather it is visceral and real to life. I noted that song, language, story and other aspects of culture are ways of combating ongoing colonization of the soul. The character arcs are truly remarkable, and I like the fact the even the villainous characters have some sympathetic traits to them. The sound track is amazing, a Maori-Reggae hybrid that truly rocks. The ending wraps things up in a hopeful message that overcomes tragedies. This film is so specific to the Maori plight post-colonization that it is a universally relevant film.Go and see for yourself!
AD
