Matewan
United States • 1987 • 2h 12m
Director
#999Criterion Collection →Synopsis
Filmed in the coal country of West Virginia, "Matewan" celebrates labor organizing in the context of a 1920s work stoppage. Union organizer, Joe Kenehan, a scab named "Few Clothes" Johnson and a sympathetic mayor and police chief heroically fight the power represented by a coal company and Matewan's vested interests so that justice and workers' rights need not take a back seat to squalid working conditions, exploitation and the bottom line.
Synopsis
Filmed in the coal country of West Virginia, "Matewan" celebrates labor organizing in the context of a 1920s work stoppage. Union organizer, Joe Kenehan, a scab named "Few Clothes" Johnson and a sympathetic mayor and police chief heroically fight the power represented by a coal company and Matewan's vested interests so that justice and workers' rights need not take a back seat to squalid working conditions, exploitation and the bottom line.
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Credits
Crew
DirectorJohn Sayles
WriterJohn Sayles
CinematographerHaskell Wexler
ComposerMason Daring
EditorSonya Polonsky
ProducerPeggy Rajski, Maggie Renzi
