MatewanRating:
Release Date: 14 August, 2001 Retail Price: $14.98 OUR Price: $10.99 You SAVE: $3.99! Cast: Complete Cast (17 total) |
Matewan Reviews
Matewan- Historical Drama
Filmed in the 80's this movie stars some of todays more prolific character actors. James Earl Jones and Chris Cooper are both outstanding in this movie. The DVD itself was very poorly done the sound went up and down. I had to keep the remote in my hand so i wouldn't go deaf when i went from a quiet scene to a louder one. I felt that it was worth the monies paid for it and i would recommend it to anyone interested in 1920's West Virginia and a great piece of acting from all the stars involved.
Don't let the poor quality of the DVD dissuade you from watching this
The West Virginia mine war is an essential piece of a history that is left out in most accounts of the period. For an explanation why this and most other labor conflicts are conveniently ommitted read James Loewen's "Lies my Teacher Told Me."
Even without reflecting deeper philosophical and historical trends, the story of Matewan and the mine wars stand alone as a fascinatingly true event. In fact, even if the story was made up it, the entertainment value alone would make it worthwhile. The film is exciting and poignant, rife with memorable moments (the hillbillies saving Joe from the Baldwin Felts). Sayle's does an amazing job capturing the flavor of West Virginia "holler" country (employing several local actors and contributors). Furthermoe, as others have mentioned, the cinematography is excellent.
Strictly from a historical perspective, the film is rife with foibles. For example, the 14 year old preacher and his mom were thread into history as an artificial linchpin. On a more picky note, the historical Matewan would not be surrounded by beautiful mountains (the film was shot in the New River Gorge.) Instead, the hollows at the time were treeless and repugnant from timbering--first by timber companies, then by the railroad companies to build tracks, and finally by coal companies to build towns and tipples. That being said, the central events were delineated with pinpoint accuracy. Also, the plot and screenplay made vivid the underlying themes and surrounding context of the time.
Some commenters have complained that the portrayal of the workers vs. owners and operators was too simplistic and biased. Whatever Sayle's personal politics may be, the capitalists were truly that ruthless. Obviously unions are also prone to flaws, but I thought Sayles shed plenty of light on this fact by showing the racist, xenophobic, and violent elements. Also, there wasn't much of a "communist" element ever in Southern West Virginia. What trifling Marxist sentiment that did exist was introduced by the Italian immigrants. Just because union leaders "preached" themes reminiscient of socialism (resisting exploitation, working class unity), doesn't mean they were controlled from Moscow.
Unfortunately, the West Virginia mine war was a microcosm of American History for the time (and maybe even today). Huge corporations pulled the puppet strings of local, state, and even the federal government. The state police and even the Federal Army were sent in to break up the strike before the mine war was over. What is more amazing, I did not know that the largest labor uprising in American history occurred in WV until I took a class in West Virginia History. Being a resident in the state, I was shocked to hear that the federal gov't used chemical and aerial warfare against its own citizens.
Most of the major "war" elements happened after Matewan (in fact, the battle of blair mountain was triggered by the assassination of Sid Hatfield). For a in depth non-fiction account of the period, read "Thunder in the Mountains" by Lon Savage. For a historical fiction account, read Denise Giardina's "Storming Heaven." Like Matewan, "Storming Heaven" is historically accurate to the point of describing the themes and happenings, however it too is given fake characters for coherency.
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