Question regarding "Once Were Warriors"- Att: Kiwis

[Stranger]

I was watching this movie yet again last night, and I am a big fan. I have watched documentaries on the making of the film, read up more on Maori culture and current socio-economic issues, etc. I still, however, have no clue what "the Mus" means in Jake the Mus's name. Is this a Maori word, NZ slang, or just short for something stupidly obvious like "the Muscle"?

Thanks for any info.

[brothernumber9]

I have no idea what it means, but Jakey "Wakey" was a serious bad a@@. That was an excellent film that finally put maori culture on the media map, at least not in some jungle man aboriginal way.

[Toby]

Originally posted by Stranger
just short for something stupidly obvious like "the Muscle"? I'm no Kiwi and ut's been a couple of years sunce I saw ut, but I'm prutty sure ut's Jake the Mus(cle), cuz. Choice fluck eh, bro?

[mickey]

Greetings,

I loved this movie so much that I bought the video when it came out.

Stranger,

I never gave Jakes nickname much thought until your thread. I do not think that it is short for muscle since he beat up that musclebound guy and commented that the guy had all bulk. I gave this a lot of thought and got this:

"Mus" is short for mussel; that seashell creature that has a hard, tough, exterior but is really weak, soft, and vulnerable inside. I think that fits the character of Jake in the facets the character reflected throughout that film. The film begins with his shell and ends, when his family abandons him, with him totally ripped open, exposed and weak: a soft pulpy mess.

mickey

[mickey]

Hey,

If you are going to use this in a book or paper, I want props!!!

mickey

[MasterKiller]

Whale Rider is good, too.

[Toby]

Originally posted by mickey
"Mus" is short for mussel; that seashell creature that has a hard, tough, exterior but is really weak, soft, and vulnerable inside. I think that fits the character of Jake in the facets the character reflected throughout that film. The film begins with his shell and ends, when his family abandons him, with him totally ripped open, exposed and weak: a soft pulpy mess.Wtf? Are you a literature major or something? :p His mates call him Jake the Muss. You think his mates are going to think "Yeah, he seems tough on the outside, but I'll bet an upcoming family crisis will expose his soft interior. Let's give him a nickname reflecting his similarity to a small saltwater bivalve mollusk."

He's a tough guy - he's named for his muscles. His comments about the psycho guy are that he does too much weights and not enough speed work. You reckon Jake's not well-built himself?

[mickey]

Hi Toby,

"Wtf" HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Don't forget that this is a movie. Hidden meanings are often put in them as well as in books. If you tried to break open mussel with your bare hands good luck. If you can do that you are one tough dude.We need to hear from someone from NZ to find out if being called a mussel is derogatory. Yet, if you watch the movie Jake's eventual breakdown has been in the works for a very long time. His family was able to find salvation within their own Maori culture. Jake was different-- he was descended from slaves. For him there was nothing but an inner turmoil fostered by the socio/cultural disconnect created by slavery and colonialism.

Mussel and Muscle both work as interpretations for Jake's nickname. They both indicate that there is something internally weak and lacking that the naked eye cannot readily see.

Now that was literary,

mickey

[Toby]

I'd be willing to put money on it being muscle, not mussel.

[mickey]

Toby,

Check my edit above.

mickey

[Toby]

Originally posted by Toby
I'd be willing to put money on it being muscle, not mussel.

[MasterKiller]

Jake (“the Muss” – for muscle), the father of the family, has an extremely volatile personality and likes to prove his machismo with his fists.

http://www.uwrf.edu/library/media/ifc/oncewerewarriors.html

[mickey]

MasterKiller,

I am still interested in where they got that from. That review does not go too deep. I guess that is what a summary is.

Thank you, but I still prefer mussel. For me, it has a deeper meaning that relates to the story.

Toby, looking at what that guy wrote, I should go for that literary degree.

mickey

[Toby]

:eek:

Stop mickey, you're scaring me. That last post especially has a very *shiver* BL-feel to it.

:p

[mickey]

:)

If you think that was BL style, check out my poetry in the "Other.." forum.

mickey

[Stranger]

mickey,

I am not writing a paper, just talking about a cool movie with friends and the question came up. I had never even wondered, myself, until then.

I understand the whole tough on the outside, soft on the inside theory, but I don't think Jake would proudly use the nickname,as he does,if it suggested weakness. He doesn't seem like a character in touch with his inner child.

Oddly, however, the movie's opening scene with Jake shows him eating some snotty sea mollusk- no dialogue, just him eating away.

[mickey]

Hi Stranger,

Welcome back and Happy New Year.

Remember, this is a movie. The nickname may have been more symbolic to the nature of the character than an actual nickname that is used in real life. The nickname foreshadows the end result. In real life, one stands to get serious beat downs from "Jake" types to old Maori women and in between!

In the end, such nicknames encourage healthy discussion geared toward understanding the hidden meanings of the movie/book/play. And this is what happened in this thread.

For me , the answer is in that scene that you described. I also accept that it is both: an intended pun.

Thank you for such a good time, Stranger.

mickey