The Warriors is aboslutily unlike any other movie I have ever seen. While not my favorite movie we have seen so far, I see why it was hailed an instint cult classic. However, what I found most interesting about the film was the social context which it was based off of, and its reception when first released.
In March 1979, Peoples magazine did an article about The Warriors reception by audiences, stating “Critical response to The Warriors, a new $4 million movie about New York City street gangs, has ranged from mild disdain to modest praise. Audience reaction, on the other hand, has been far less restrained: Within a week of its release, three youngsters were dead and numerous incidents of violence had apparently been triggered by the film.”
Insane as it sounds, teenagers took the most influence from the film, and not in the best way. David Holden, editor of The Warriors, responded to this by stating that the film its self was not at fault for these incidences, stating “If someone comes to a movie with a gun, who’s at fault?” While The Warriors was in not way at fault for the criminal behavior of these sick minded individuals, that did not stop the back lash Warriors faced in the eyes of the media and government. Looking back, its kinda of hilarious (in a twisted, dark humor sort of way) that the film was almost banned in Boston Massachusetts. Yet at that time, gang violence was a very real, very present danger in not just New York City, but many other urban areas.
While I agree with must of what is stated in The Warriors paper, I disagree with one key statement on the first page—that many of the characters have heroic traits similar to that of Greek heroes. In my own opinion, while I respected the loyalty the members shared with each other, I didn’t find anyone besides the first leader (who is killed in the start of the film) and the young kid who could read the subway lines likeable. Swan may have been a good leader, but I didn’t find his relationship with Mercy to be very…encouraging. The whole time I was watching the film, I was both entertained but constantly wanting to role my eyes. Even when the Warrios survive the gang fights, their victories were…empty. What were they even fighting for? Their ‘tuft of land’? The Warriors doesn’t praise the gang life style, it reflects the mindset of those in it—no outside world except the one they live in, full of violence, sex, and comradery.
The Warriors gained a wonderful cult following since its first release, which brings us to our second reading–“The Cult Economy of Fandom” by John Fiske. Now, I for one LIVE in the world of fandoms, so this was by far my favorite paper that we read so far. To me fandoms is just a term for fans to love a paritcule form of entertainment—books, movies, podcasts, webtoons, video games, etc. So I was a bit surprised to see that someone wrote an accidemic paper studying the meaning and celebration of fandoms. The line that stuck with me the most was “Fandom is a peculair mix of cultural determinations. On one hand it is an intensification of popular culture which is formed outside and often against official culture, on the other it expropriates and reworks certain values and characteristics of that official culture to which it is opposed,”. There is very much an ‘us vs. them’ within the mentality of fandoms. For example lets use the Avatar the Last Airbender series. Originally released in 2005, I grew up with this show and many of my classmates did as well. Those of use who were ‘in’ on having watched Avatar had shared an experience that others did not. Some fandoms, like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Star Wars are embraced by pop culture with open arms and hungry wallets. These fandoms could even be considered ‘main stream’ in their popularity. But some fandoms, like The Warriors, Rocky Horror, or even Back to the Future are a bit more exclusive. What does it take to be considered a true Rocky Horror fan? After you’ve seen the film once, or after you first live participation viewing? Can you really call yourself a Back to the Future fan is you own at least one t-shirt that says “Great Scott”! Each fandom is as unique and diverse as the stories they are formed around. And, without fandoms, where would be cult films?
Cult Movies 
I mean how could teenagers not take inspiration from a film like this. We have talked about the teen exploitations and the idea of being a rebel that AIP got so well for. So, the idea of gangs made up of young men running wild in the city seems pretty fun. No rules, no parents and no respect for authority is a dream for some teens. I never thought that this film could get banned, but I know there are helicopter parents who would hate to see their kids get mixed ideas from a film like this.
The map that lays out the different territories that the gangs occupy is a great find. With the crossing and all the different stops, can really show the struggle of getting home. Especially, when one train after the next had some issues. It makes the one car that the one gang traveled in look pretty nice, other than the fact it would be easy to spot.
I spoke about my childhood and the films I look back at with glee. Avatar: The Last Airbender was a great example because I still will watch an episode or a clip and remember where I was when I saw it. I didn’t like the sequel or the failed movie that was an awful representation of the cartoon. There are too many fandoms that you can say have fandoms.
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With every passing week, I look forward to reading your blog post. You really go into your own thoughts, bringing in more than just what we get from class and readings and I love it. I absolutely love that map, it really helps you visualize the adventure they went on. The course is a lot longer than the movie depicts it.
Avatar: The Last Airbender was so good. I have seen the entire series and I tried very hard to enjoy the sequel series, but it just wasn’t the same. No one can beat the trio from the original tv series. I agree the movie was a complete failure, to the point it couldn’t even pronounce the main character’s name properly.
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that map was so cool dude i personally have never set foot even near New York City so i for one have ZERO clue what it looks like let alone know how far coney island is from the bronx. also very interesting that you mention Back to the Future as one of the more exclusive fandoms because that is my favorite movie ever lmao.
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