The Warriors

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Warriors
The Warriors movie poster
Directed by	Walter Hill
Produced by	Lawrence Gordon Frank Marshall (executive producer) Joel Silver (associate Producer)
Written by	Sol Yurick (story) David Shaber Walter Hill
Starring	Michael Beck James Remar David Patrick Kelly
Music by	Barry De Vorzon
Cinematography	Andrew Laszlo
Editing by	David Holden
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	February 9, 1979
Running time	93 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$360,000
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

The Warriors is a 1979 film directed by Walter Hill and based on the 1965 novel by Sol Yurick.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Production/Background 2.1 Filming locations 3 Interpretation 4 Reception 5 Cast/Characters 5.1 The Warriors 5.2 Other notable gangs 6 Spinoffs 7 References to Movies 8 References in popular culture 8.1 Movies/Television 8.2 Music 8.3 Other 9 Footnotes 10 External links

[edit] Plot

Cyrus, leader of the Gramercy Riffs, declares a truce and calls a midnight summit with the intention of uniting all of the New York City area gangs against the dwindling power of the NYPD. However, during his speech he is fatally shot by Luther, leader of the Rogues. In the resulting chaos, Luther frames the Warriors for the murder. Riffs members kill the Warriors' leader Cleon and force the rest of the gang to flee the conclave. The Warriors now have a bounty on their heads, and the entire city's gang population is out hunting for them. With their second-in-command Swan now in charge, the Warriors battle through hostile gangs and police on their way home to Coney Island. Along the way, they lose members, split up, and gain a female companion named Mercy who becomes involved with Swan. The film ends in a final showdown with the Rogues at Coney Island. Swan faces off against the gun-toting Luther and throws a knife into his wrist, disarming him. At the same moment, the Riffs mass on the beach and acknowledge that they have learned the truth of Cyrus's murder. Their new leader compliments the remaining Warriors and lets them go. As the Riffs swarm on the Rogues, the Warriors head off down the shore.

[edit] Production/Background

The film is based on Sol Yurick's novel The Warriors, which, like the film, depicts a New York City gang attempting to return to its home territory in Coney Island after being framed for the assassination of a gang leader at a nighttime rally, instigating a city-wide manhunt for the surviving Warriors by gangs from all over the city. The novel was loosely based on Anabasis by Xenophon, which records how the Greek mercenary company the Ten Thousand made its way through enemy Persian territory to the Black Sea after the death of Cyrus the Younger.

It should be noted that, like other book-to-film adaptations, the story of Yurick's original novel is radically different from the film version, as Yurick himself observes in his introduction to the 2003 reprint, much to his dismay. From beginning to end, only a rough skeleton of the book is present in the movie. Significantly absent from the film version is an accurate recreation of the speech of the gang members, especially when they interact with each other. Moreover, the film version omits nearly all scenes where The Warriors (called the "Coney Island Dominators" in the book) struggle amongst themselves to maintain order, discipline, and a proper chain of command. Also missing from the film are two extremely violent scenes: the brutal murder of an innocent passer-by and the gang rape of a girl taken from a rival gang.

[edit] Filming locations

The Warriors was filmed in 1978 throughout many different locations in New York City, including the Bronx, Manhattan and Riverside Park.

• The gathering scene at the beginning of the film takes place in Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx. However, the scene was shot in Riverside Park on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

• The exterior shots of the 96th Street subway station (where the Warriors first encounter the Baseball Furies), were actually filmed at the station at 72nd Street and Broadway. The distinctive headhouse at 72nd Street was redressed with "96th St" signage for the film. The interior shots of the station were filmed at the Hoyt-Schermerhorn station in Brooklyn.

[edit] Interpretation

While ostensibly intended to reflect urban gang realities, the film has a number of dissonant notes. The gangs in The Warriors are dressed in flamboyant matching uniforms, usually with a recognizable theme, giving the film a surrealistic, comic book feel. The Warriors themselves are a gang composed of a careful racial balance, highly unusual for street gangs at the time. While the film contains violence, it is contained in scope, and while physical beatings are commonplace, actual serious injury and murder are restricted to the beginning and ending of the film.

[edit] Reception

The film's subject matter was controversial upon release and was linked to several incidents of gang violence at theaters. Shortly after the film's release, there was a flurry of press reporting incidents of teenage violence, including three murders, apparently related to the film's "incendiary" subject matter. Further media pressure prompted Paramount to remove advertisements from all print sources, though subway posters and film trailers were unaffected. When advertisements resumed after six days, the "inflammatory" images of the original ads were gone, the new ads consisting of the film's showtimes and reviews from reputable critics. (Pauline Kael of The New Yorker and Janet Maslin of the New York Times). Due to safety concerns, theater owners were relieved of their contractual obligations if they did not want to show the film and Paramount offered to pay costs for additional security and damages due to vandalism. Despite the film's bad reputation, most theaters continued to show the movie and enjoyed packed houses. ^[1]

A mild commercial success on its initial release, the film was panned by many critics as exploitative and superficial. In recent years, The Warriors has acquired the status of a cult film, along with a re-examination of its standing with some film critics. As of March 2007, the film has garnered a 92% "fresh" rating at Rotten Tomatoes.^[2]

[edit] Cast/Characters

Characters	Actors
Swan	Michael Beck
Ajax	James Remar
Cleon	Dorsey Wright
Snow	Brian Tyler
Cochise	David Harris
Cowboy	Tom McKitterick
Rembrandt	Marcelino Sanchez
Vermin	Terry Michos
Fox	Thomas G. Waites
Mercy	Deborah Van Valkenburgh
Luther	David Patrick Kelly
Cyrus	Roger Hill
Policewoman in Riverside Park	Mercedes Ruehl
Radio DJ	Lynne Thigpen
Masai	Edward Sewer

[edit] The Warriors

The Warriors gang is based in the western neighborhoods of Coney Island, on the edge of Brooklyn. Their gang uniform consists of a red-orange pleather vest embroidered with the Warriors' logo on the back. The gang has an overall Native American theme, and their logo consists of a death's head with an Indian war bonnet shaped like eagle wings. This theme is accented by the Indian-style bead necklaces and armbands worn by some members. Their main stomping ground and base turf is among the many amusement park areas of Coney Island, particularly the landmark that is Deno's Wonder Wheel, a now-iconic symbol synonymous with Coney Island and The Warriors.

In a deleted scene that is included in some TV versions of the film, Cleon mentions that the Warriors is a street family of 120 members, but only nine are shown in the film. The nine principal members in the film are:

• Cleon: The Warlord, leader of the gang. Named after the Ancient Greek politician. After Cyrus's assassination, he is beaten to death according to the script by the Gramercy Riffs, though the film is not completely clear on this point. Cleon is African-American.
• Swan: The Warchief, second-in-command of the gang. Assuming control after the loss of Cleon, Swan makes the decision for the gang to continue wearing their colors and fight their way back home, though in general his leadership is more level-headed and practical than his brothers-in-arms. After successfully leading the group back to Coney, he wins a gunfight against Luther using only a knife. During filming, the script was changed so that he ends up with Mercy. Swan is Caucasian, and is the only blond member of the gang.
• Fox: The Scout, Fox is very familiar with other gangs' tactics, territory, and numbers. He dies when he's thrown in front of a speeding train while struggling with a police officer, although Mercy later tells Swan that "the cops got him". In the script, Fox was originally the love interest of Mercy, but the two actors had no chemistry. Fox is Caucasian.
• Rembrandt: The Writer, the gang's graffiti artist, he wears the standard Warrior's vest along with a messenger bag and an afro. The youngest member, Rembrandt is far less battle-hardened and is frequently looked after by the other members of the gang. He is most likely named after the famous painter. Rembrandt appears to be of mixed racial descent.
• Ajax: A cocky, loud, womanizing Warrior always up for a fight. After the death of Cleon at the conclave, he engages in a short confrontation with Swan over who should assume command. He is said to be the strongest warrior, and is certainly the most aggressive. He wears fingerless leather gloves and a black tank-top under his Warriors vest. Ajax is arrested when he tries to force himself on an undercover female police officer. He is named after the legendary Greek hero. Ajax is Caucasian.
• Snow: A stoic, African-American Warrior with an afro. In the script and deleted intro scene, Snow is referred to as "Snowball". A bit more reserved, he's still a talented fighter, proving his worth in the fight with the Baseball Furies, and The Punks.
• Vermin: Quick with a smile and a joke, Vermin is the most cynical member of the gang, but a solid soldier and extremely loyal. In an early script, he was supposed to be shot and killed by the Lizzies. Vermin is Caucasian.
• Cochise: A high-kicking Warrior who wears Native American-style jewelry, leather pants and boots. He sports an afro with a red bandanna tied around it. He is named after the Apache Chief. Like Vermin, he was scripted to die, and then thrown into the Hudson River. Cochise is African-American.
• Cowboy: A Warrior who wears a Stetson cowboy hat. He is an optimistic, happy-go-lucky Warrior. The part in the film was originally offered to Crossroads' Paul Henry (Benny). Cowboy is Caucasian.

[edit] Other notable gangs

Along the way, the Warriors encounter the following fanciful gangs, from north to south:

• The Turnbull A.C.s: (Also going by the names Turnbulls, Bulls, or A.C.s) A skinhead gang, they travel in large numbers (in a spraypainted bus) and wear denim jackets with matching jeans and patches. Their turf is around Gun Hill Road, in the Bronx. According to Rembrandt even the Gramercy Riffs are afraid to go toe-to-toe with the bulls. Curiously for a skinhead gang, the Turnbulls have both black and white members.

• The Orphans: A bottom-of-the-barrel gang, the Orphans were not invited to Cyrus's conclave, nor even knew about it. Their full strength is about thirty members. They wear green shirts with "ORPHANS" stitched into the back, and blue jeans. Their turf is Tremont. Their leader, Sully, is a coward, with a weakness for flattery.

• The Baseball Furies: (or simply The Furies) A gang in pinstriped baseball uniforms wielding baseball bats and wearing facial makeup similar to that of the rock group KISS, only multicolored instead of black and white. The Furies are never heard to speak. They are an intimidating presence as they chase the Warriors down, but prove ineffective fighters during the ensuing brawl in Riverside Park; The Furies were created because of Walter Hill's love for baseball. In Greek mythology, the Furies were the embodiment of vengeance.

• The Lizzies: An all-female gang, they attempt to seduce the Warriors and lure them into their Bowery apartment to kill them. They are also one of the few gangs with firearms, though they are poor shots. Their name may double as a reference to Lizzie Borden. It may also suggest their lesbian tendencies ("lezzies" being a derogatory slang word for lesbians), which are implied by a suggestive dance scene between two of the gang members.

• The Punks: A gang with a leader who strolls around on rollerskates. The Warriors fight them in a men's room in 14th Street–Union Square subway station. Each member wears denim overalls over a different-colored striped shirt. All the Punks are Caucasian, and most are fair-haired. The Punks are never referred to by name except in the credits. They share the Bowery with the Lizzies.

• The Rogues: The gang that framed the Warriors for Cyrus’s assassination. They wear primarily deep-blue leathers and drive an old Cadillac hearse. The leader, Luther, is a small man with extremely violent and psychopathic tendencies. He possesses one of the few firearms seen in the film, but is also something of a coward. The Rogues' turf is Hell's Kitchen.

• The Gramercy Riffs: A disciplined, well-organized gang from around Gramercy Park, said to be the biggest gang in the city. Cyrus was the leader of this gang before he was assassinated. After his death, the second in command, Masai, takes over. They are dressed in karategi; at the end of the film, however, they are seen wearing black t-shirts and matching jeans. The Riffs' members seem to be entirely or almost entirely African-American.

[edit] Spinoffs

While itself adapted from a novel, the film has been adapted into a number of other products as well. The film's soundtrack was released in the same year as the film. In 2005, Mezco Toyz released Warriors action figures, including Swan, Cleon, Cochise, Ajax, Luther, and a Baseball Fury.^[3]

The Warriors video game, based on the movie, was released by Rockstar Games in October 2005. Most of the game acts as a prequel to the film, creating backstory and embellishing on the characters from the film. The ending recreates much of the film's events. Several of the actors from the movie returned to perform the voices for their original characters.

A modern-day remake of the film is set to be directed by Tony Scott, with a tentative release date of 2008. The remake will include real gang members and try to create a modern version of the story, set in LA and without the campy feeling of the original.^[4]

[edit] References to Movies

At the conclusion of the film, The Warriors confront Luther and the Rogues at the beachfront in a shot-for-shot homage to Akira Kurosawa's samurai film, Yojimbo. The hero in both films disarms the pistol armed villain with a thrown knife, after which the villain clutches an impaled wrist.

[edit] References in popular culture

[edit] Movies/Television

• In Spider-Man, when Peter Parker answers the pay phone in hospital, the Green Goblin quotes, "Can Spider-Man come out to play?"

• In Mystery Men, the 1970's-themed villain Casanova Frankenstein delivers a speech to the various gangs he has assembled and ends it with Cyrus's rallying cry "Can you dig it?"

• In the 1997 Ronny Yu film Warriors of Virtue, the main villain, Komodo quotes Luther's line, "Warriors, come out and play-ay!"

• In the 2003 cartoon of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Casey Jones picked a fight with the Purple Dragons gang with the line, "Purple Dragons, come out and play-ay!"

• In the "Three Gays of the Condo" episode of The Simpsons from season 14, Homer says, "Puzzle piece, come out to play..."

• In an episode of the Rugrats, Angelica quotes Luther's famous line while believing that Chuckie is an "aliem", saying, "Oh aliem... come out to play-ay!"

• In an episode of Chappelle's Show, Dave Chappelle, in the persona of Sean Combs, drinks breast milk and bangs the empty bottles together, chanting, "Breast milk, you've made my da-ay!".

• In the 1999 Batman comics storyline "No Man's Land", Gotham City police officer Petit attracts the attention of the Demonz street gang by shouting, "Deeeeemoooooons... come out and play-ay!"

• In the animated show Sealab 2021, an episode features the characters Sparks and Stormy cruising down one of the corridors while Sparks bangs his pipe against his cart and says, "Sufferers! Come out and play-ay!"

• In The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy episode "Hurter Monkey", Grim mimics Luther's famous line by saying, "Dicki, come out to play-ay!" during a cleaning contest.

• "Warriors, come out and play-yay!" is one of the lines used to spoof an action scene in the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode featuring Cave Dwellers.

• In an episode of the TV show Scrubs, Turk, having just beaten his wife Carla at arm wrestling, references Sully's line and screams, "Do you see what you get Carla?! Do you see what you get when you mess with the warrior?!"

• In the 2005 Spike TV Video Game Awards, Samuel L Jackson reenacted Cyrus's speech and the gang gathering in the same location but gathered many characters from various videogames.

• The opening theme appeared in the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards.

• In the 2004 WWE Tough Enough, one of the contestants call out The Big Show by responding "Big Show, come out and play-ay!"

• The Korean film The City of Violence features an appearance by a gang called the Warriors that dress in a similar fashion to the Baseball Furies.

• In a second season episode Sifl and Olly Sifl is heard to open the episode with a call of "Waaaaaaarriors..come out to plaaay-ay!"

• In the 2007 film Wild Hogs, when riding the bikes towards the Del Fuegos, Bobby yells "Del Fuegos, come out and play!"

[edit] Music

• The band Biohazard created a song titled "Wrong Side Of The Tracks". At the end of the song, the famous line said by Cyrus, "Can you dig it?", plus the cheering is included.

• The 1985 Twisted Sister album Come Out and Play features lead singer Dee Snider chanting a version of the film's famous line, "Twisted Sister...come out and play...Twisted Sister...come out and play-yee!"

• In the Wu-Tang Clan song "Shame On A Nigga" from their first album Enter the Wu-Tang rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard uses a Warriors line in a battle rap, Crews be actin like they gangs anyway / Be like, "Warriors! Come out and play-ay!"

• Diddy's popular phrase "Bad Boys, come out and play-ay" is taken from this movie. He uses this line in the beginning of the song "Flava in Ya Ear Remix" by Craig Mack.

• In the single "Gangbangin 101", Snoop Dogg makes a references to Cyrus, saying that he shot him and doesn't care because he isn't from the West Coast.

• The Diplomats' "Crunk Muzik" music video features an elderly black man making a statement to a group of gangs, similar to Cyrus. The video also features the line "Dipset, come out and play! Dipset, come out and play!" followed by the clanking of two alcohol bottles.

• Fat Joe Gangbang Interlude from his Jealous Ones Envy LP is Cyrus's speech from the Playground.

• In the Redman song "Noorotic" from the album Dare Iz A Darkside he says "I'm a warrior, to the heart, but I didn't kill Cyrus."

• The British band Pop Will Eat Itself feature samples of the film on several tracks including "Can you dig it?"

• The music video for D12's single "Fight Music" has several references from the movie, involving all members of D12 running through New York City from other gangs. Ice T plays Cyrus, radio DJ Angie Martinez plays the DJ.

• Anybody Killa, former Psychopathic Records artist, used samples from the movie at the end of many of his songs off of his CD, "Hatchet Warrior," and even has a cover of the end theme, In The City, as the last track on the album.

• Non Phixion's 2005 album The Green starts with a long sample of Cyrus' speech, starting at "The problem in the past..." and ending with his triple repetition of "Can you dig it?!"

• In 2002 electronica musicians Jam X & DeLeon released "Can U Dig It?" featuring sound samples from the movie.

• Before Mudvayne performs their song "Dig" in concert, Chad Gray will ask, "Can you dig it?!" Mudvayne also sells a shirt featuring the band dressed in the Baseball Furies' outfit.

• Garage punk band, The Baseball Furies, take their band name from the Baseball Furies gang. They also dressed up like the gang during their early live shows.^[5]

• The 1980's Japanese Oi! band The Baseball Furies also took their name from the movie.

• The name of greaser punk band The Turbo A.C.'s is a reference to the Turnbull AC's gang.

• Argentine band Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas called The Warriors visually in their 1999 video for the song Culo.

• Lloyd Banks's song "Warriors" uses a sample of the line, "Warriors, come out to pla-ay" from the movie.

• The name of the hardcore/punk band The Warriors is a reference to the Warriors gang.

• The British Techno group, Messiah, also uses several samples from The Warriors in their album, 21st Century Jesus.

• The Danish hardcore band Barcode uses a sample of the line "That's 20,000 hardcore members ready to fight. Can you dig it?" in their song "End the War".

• Punk band American Distress uses an audio sample of Luther's famous exchange with the candy shop girl ("Hey, what about the money you owe?" "FOR WHAT?!") at the beginning of their song "Fraudulent Times".

• Tha Eastsidaz with Snoop Dogg used the line "Eastsiders Come-Out To Play" for the intro for the song I Luv It

• Rap group N.W.A. cast Lynne Thigpen to reprise her role of the radio DJ for their song "100 Miles and Runnin". In the song, she plays "Nowhere to Run" as she did in the movie.

• Guitarist Buckethead released a song entitled "Baseball Furies" on his 2006 tour only CD The Elephant Man's Alarm Clock.

• Punk band Alexisonfire's music video Waterwings (And Other Poolside Fashion Faux Pas) is based on the meeting of the gangs.

• MC Ren uses the "Can you dig it?" sample in the intro to his album "Shock of the hour"

• UK Post-Hardcore band Enter Shikari use samples from the film frequently in their live sets.

• Rap group Delinquent Habits on their first and self titled LP uses a cover image with gang members dressed in similar clothing to the Baseball Furies and others.

[edit] Other

• WWE wrestler Booker T's first entrance music included several of Cyrus's lines, the most notable being, "Can you dig it?"

• In the video game Serious Sam II, Sam shouts "Kleers, come out to play!!" while waiting on Planet Kleer.

• The video game City of Heroes features a street gang named the Warriors on Talos Island and Striga Island. Like their counterparts, this gang is frequently attacked by other gangs. The game also feature multiple nods to the film in its scripted missions.

• Shaquille O'Neal has named The Warriors as his favorite movie and frequently references it during interviews, particularly Cyrus's line, "Can you dig it?"

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] External links

• The Warriors (original) at the Internet Movie Database
• The Warriors (remake) at the Internet Movie Database
• The Warriors (video game) at the Internet Movie Database
• The Warriors fan site
• Goons of New York
• Fader magazine's oral history of The Warriors
• "The Warriors Trip From Coney Island to Dyre Avenue in the Bronx Revisited"
• Autographed Pictures of Swan and Mercy 2006
• 2006 Warriors Cast Reunion Pictures Swan/Mercy/Vermin/Cyrus/Cleon/Cochise/Snow/Apache