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Film Analysis : Once Were Warriors

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Description of Film The movie Once Were Warriors was released in New Zealand in 1994. The film focuses on an urban family of Maori descent, the Hekes. Within the family there is a lot of poverty and domestic violence, primarily from the father, Jake. The family also includes the mom (Beth), oldest son (Nig), teenage son (Mark aka Boogie), 13 year old daughter (Gracie), and a very young son and daughter. Although any family member would make for an interesting case study, I choose to focus on the mom, Beth.
Context: Cultural, Environmental, and Other Factors Impacting the Character Beth has been married to Jake for 18 years. At the beginning of the film, Beth’s husband Jake got laid off from his job and immediately said he signed up for …show more content…

On top of this, her oldest son Nig joined a violent gang and distances himself from the family, trying not to be like his dad. Gracie tried to hold the family together and take care of them when Beth couldn’t, but it proved too much. She was raped by one of Jake’s drinking buddies and then took off to visit her “best mate” Toot. Later that night, while Beth had been out for hours looking for her, Gracie came home only to be terrorized by Jake. When Beth came home, Jake told her Gracie went out back. Beth went out there only to find Gracie hanging from a tree. She cut her down from the tree, but it was too late, she was dead. At first, Beth didn’t realize the rape had happened. Not until she reads Gracie’s journal does she find out, and she immediately goes with Nig to the bar where Jake drinks and confronts Jake’s drinking buddy. After seeing the journal entry, Jake believes the story and assaults his drinking buddy, beating him near to death. After this, Beth takes her family, minus Jake, to live with her aunt on a small Maori island where she grew up. Just before leaving, she remarked to Jake that he is still a slave: “To your fists, to the drink, to yourself,” and, “If I can survive living with you for 18 years, I can survive anything.” The biggest factors affecting Beth’s mental health have been the persistent, complex trauma resulting from the domestic violence, abuse, and poverty. Although she tried many times to do

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