Fresh
In the rich umbers of Haskell Wexler's cinematography, Matewan does look great.
Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine
Matewan
It takes more than guns to kill a man.
1987 · 2h 12m · PG-13
Drama, History
Directed by
John Sayles
Overview
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.
Director and cast
- John Sayles Director
- Chris Cooper as Joe Kenehan
- James Earl Jones as 'Few Clothes' Johnson
- Mary McDonnell as Elma Radnor
- Will Oldham as Danny Radnor
- David Strathairn as Police Chief Sid Hatfield
- Ken Jenkins as Sephus Purcell
- Gordon Clapp as Griggs
- Kevin Tighe as Bill Hickey
- Bob Gunton Cast
- Jace Alexander Cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
94%
Tomatometer
Fresh
If Sayles's bite were as lethal as his bark, he might have given this a harder edge and a stronger conclusion. But the performances are uniformly fine.
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader
Fresh
In its grave clarity, it's as pure and plaintive as a mountain ballad.
Jay Carr, Boston Globe
Rotten
Sayles must have meant his movie to stir and provoke, but the self-contained look of it yields something else -- a sense of quaintness, of harmless nostalgia.
Dave Kehr, Chicago Tribune
Fresh
When this movie stumbles, it stumbles honestly and sympathetically, but, when it succeeds, it makes history sing.
Michael Wilmington, Los Angeles Times
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