Once Were Warriors (film)

Once Were Warriors
Theatrical release poster
Directed byLee Tamahori
Written byRiwia Brown
Based onOnce Were Warriors by Alan Duff
Produced byRobin Scholes
StarringRena Owen
Temuera Morrison
Cliff Curtis
Julian Arahanga
Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell
CinematographyStuart Dryburgh
Edited byMichael J. Horton
Music byMurray Grindlay
Murray McNabb
Distributed byFootprint Films[1]
Release dates
  • May 1994 (1994-05) (New Zealand)
  • 3 May 1995 (1995-05-03) (United States)
Running time
102 minutes
CountryNew Zealand
LanguagesEnglish
Māori
Box officeNZ$6.7 million[2][3]

Once Were Warriors is a 1994 New Zealand tragic drama film based on New Zealand author Alan Duff's bestselling 1990 first novel.[4] The film tells the story of the Heke family, an urban Māori whānau living in South Auckland, and their problems with poverty, alcoholism, and domestic violence, mostly brought on by the patriarch, Jake. It explores the detrimental effects of the colonisation of New Zealand suffered by Māori, and the survival of Māori culture against all odds.[5]

The film was directed by Lee Tamahori, written by Riwia Brown, and stars Rena Owen, Temuera Morrison and Cliff Curtis.[6] It became the highest-grossing film of all-time in New Zealand, and has won numerous awards.[7]

  1. ^ "Once Were Warriors". 30 May 1994.
  2. ^ Martens, Emiel (28 November 2007). "Once Were Warriors: The Aftermath". Scoop.
  3. ^ Quirk, Kathryn (3 July 2017). "The New Zealand TV shows we loved the most". Stuff.
  4. ^ Maslin, Janet (24 February 1995). "Once Were Warriors (1994) FILM REVIEW; For a Family, the War at Home". The New York Times.
  5. ^ "Search Results for Once were warriors, the aftermath: the controversy of OWW in Aotearoa New Zealand Emiel Martens". ent.kotui.org.nz. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  6. ^ Thompson, K. M.; J. Stringer, eds. (2003). "Once Were Warriors: New Zealand's first indigenous blockbuster". Movie Blockbusters. London: Routledge. pp. 230–241.
  7. ^ "Awards | Once Were Warriors | Film". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 20 December 2019.