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Her only chance for the future is to embrace the power of her past.

Once Were Warriors is a powerful and deeply affecting story of a contemporary Maori family in urban New Zealand. Beth Heke (Rena Owen) is a feisty, beautiful mother of five who, after eighteen years of marriage, is still deeply in love with her volatile husband Jake (Temuera Morrison).

Jake spends most of his time at the local pub, guzzling beer and proving his masculinity with his fists. If Beth dares to question or challenge him, her answer often comes in a similarly violent form. But Beth is a survivor; it will take more than a few knocks to conquer her spirit. In spite of his violence, Beth is still in love with her husband, but is losing daily battles against the violent forces in and outside her home that desperately threaten to pull her family apart.