The Warriors Decoded

The 1979 cult classic film The Warriors was one of the rare works of art that managed to bridge the surreal and the familiar. This tale of a gang  thrown by unforeseen circumstances into a dire world of survival and are forced to embark on a long campaign, fraught with danger to reach their home.  The movie seems somehow relatable even though it is dressed in the fantastic, but it is in this way cinema is at its best allowing for a message to truly hit home with the viewer.    When we contemplate our lives and how quickly things can take a unexpected turn  do we understand The Warriors. Life  on the razors edge and the chaos we all navigate through has never been more relatable than today. In our modern world of disease, shortages, war and economic uncertainty, only the names have changed. 

The Tribes

 The Warriors:  The family of us. The Warriors, are not only the central gang of the film, they are us, a family with different facets, personalities and ideas. They are stuck in a bad situation, far from home and in this way the family is tested.  

The Rogues:  The Rogues represent chaos. They are the very random negativity that we encounter in

our day to day lives. This gang from Hells Kitchen is the symbolism of all chaotic evil of the world, uncaring of what becomes of the chaos they create.

The Gramercy Riffs:  They are the gang at the very top of the hierarchy. They represent the ruling class, the decision makers and control. Nothing happens without them. What the Riffs decide will have an effects everyone. Their power and resources keep them at the top.

Turnbull ACs: This mobile gang represent the skinheads, the far right. Militaristic in dress and shaved heads, they are out looking to dispense the justice they deem fit. The iconic school bus in which they travel is deeply symbolic of modern day far rights mobilization of violence  and the willingness to pursue and destroy all that  stand before them.

The Baseball Furies: The Furies are the celebrity's, and  athletes that represent a divide in cultures. They live in the nicest part of the gang map, over he top in dress and drunk on their own perceived power.  The Furies are defeated when their opponents refuse to play the game their way.

The Orphans: The Orphans are the proletariat. the very bottom rung of society. the orphans live in the worst part of economic map  They are both proud yet unaware of much of the world around them. In fact the orphans didn't  even get an invite to the Bronx meeting.  They are the real yet unseen segment of our society.

The Lizzies: This all females gang represent the wolf in sheep's clothing, betrayal found in the moment of letting your guard down. The Lizzies are the ego's voice soothing us to indulge, the Siren's of Homers Odyssey luring the us off course to our doom. The Lizzies came closest to defeating the Warriors and its only when they are forced to fight outside there specialty of cunning that they loose.

The Players

Swan: We are Swan. The story is told through his eyes. The delicate morality of Swan is a balancing high-wire act. he must juggle his own tribes conflict, with the ever changing outside world aligned against them. Like the territorial and protective bird, Swan is a powerful force to be reckoned with.

Cyrus:  The amalgamation of the lone activist, the voice of hope and unification. Cyrus is literally the voice in the dark with the message so powerful, he like many activists before him will be assassinated for daring to challenge the status quo. 

The DJ: The DJ is the media, it's how we get our information. . The DJ is the  communicator of information to a very niche listener base. Her word is gospel and has the power to sway the hearts and minds of her loyal followers. Throughout most of the Warriors journey the DJ is giving bad information. Only at the end when fate is safely decided does the DJ apologize. 

The Woman on the Bench: This character represents the unknown temptation we all must face and the

collector of consequence. She represents the moral struggle not to do what we know is wrong. The Woman on the Bench also represents justice and is fearless in her duty to it. 

The Prom Kids:  The two couples on the subway, dressed for the prom represent the uncomfortable space when opposing worlds sometimes meet and must acknowledge one another. In this moving enclosed space the wide gulf between rigid world of order, tradition and light and the world of survival,  chaos and dark must contemplate one another. 

The Night: The darkness itself plays a major role in The Warriors. The entire journey takes place under the shroud of darkness. The army's of the night exist along side the parallel world, asleep and unaware of the life or death struggle happening on its very streets. The darkness reveals the ugly and brutal truth. It's only at the end do we see the first rays of light when the journey is complete suggesting hope.

When we look at The Warriors through this lens we can relate to them, not as a gang fighting in a dystopian city, but as humans  much like ourselves fighting for ourselves and our family. We have all found ourselves lost in the unfamiliar with no-one but ourselves to rely on. That overwhelming feeling  that you just want to go home. The Warriors are an analogy, a sort of mirror that reflects what could be. The Warriors is the family of us with only the names changed. 

by Ted Dolby

Gamilon Staff Writer