Once Were Warriors Essay

In the film ‘Once Were Warriors’ directed by Lee Tamahori is a very iconic film in New Zealand. It is very relevant to other post colonial countries. It raises issues in the New Zealand culture regarding domestic violence and the effects it has on families. This issue has effects on the youth who are in these situations in rather negative ways. Tamahori uses the character Grace as a fine example of how violence infused with alcohol kills the potential of young people and the effects it has on them and society. This idea is developed through symbolism and Grace’s personality.
One way Tamahori uses Grace to develop the message of violence infused with alcohol kills the potential of young people and the effects it has on them and society is by using symbolism. In the film he used colour to its full potential which helped the viewer analyse the film better. For example Jake wore the clothes of black in the movie. Black symbolizes power and anger which is how he was portrayed in the film. This contrasted to how Grace was portrayed, where she was wearing white. White symbolizes optimism, joy and innocence. These words perfectly describe how Grace was as a character. In the film there were several examples of her associated with the colour white and why it was symbolic. An important example of this was when she got raped by her Uncle Bully. Leading up to the rape she was wearing a white nightie. This shows her as being innocent and unaware of what is about to occur. When she was getting raped the sheets were also white which made more of an impact to the viewer. Bully had been drinking all night leading up to the moment and had previously witnessed the beating of Jake and ‘Rhino’. The symbolism is then continued effectively by Tamahori the next morning. In the bathroom Grace tries to wash the blood off her wounded body and off the white sheets. Unfortunately the blood cannot come off. These stains are symbolic as they show how once something like this is done you can