Amazon.com essential video: A little-known chapter of American labor history is brought vividly to life in this period drama from writer-director John Sayles. It's a fictional story about labor wars among West Virginia coal miners during the 1920's, but every detail is so right that the film has the unmistakable ring of truth. The tension begins when the Stone Mountain Coal Company of Matewan, West Virginia, announces a lower pay rate for miners, who respond by calling a strike under the leadership of a United Mine Workers representative (Chris Cooper). Proving strength in numbers, the miners are joined by black and Italian miners who initially resist the strike, and a fateful battle ensues when detectives hired by the coal company attempt to evict miners from company housing. Violence erupts in a sequence of astonishing, cathartic intensity, and Matewan achieves a rare degree of moral complexity combined with gut-wrenching tragedy. The film salutes a pacifist ideal while recognizing that personal and political convictions often must be defended with violence. To illustrate this point, Sayles enlisted master cinematographer Haskell Wexler, who creates the film's authentic visual texture--a triumph of artistry over limited resources. The result is a milestone of independent filmmaking, and Matewan remains one of Sayles's finest achievements. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - The Matewan Massacre is in here somewhere . . .
This is a great movie. That being said, the events it is alleged to portray are only a small part of THIS film. There's a story being told by Mr. Sayles about the conditions in which the miners and their ... Read More
Rating: - Incredible movie.
My mom's family is actually from McDowell County W. Va. and still live there, which is just to the east of Mingo County. The performances are right on with the Appalachian population that lives there. My grandfather ... Read More
Rating: - HIGH NOON FOR JOE HILL
MATEWAN is set in a small West Virginia coal mining town of the same name, where in May of 1920 an armed conflict between striking miners and thugs sent in by the Baldwin-Felts organization to break the ... Read More
Rating: - West Virginia's Roots In All Its Glory
This movie is a great one. Why? It brings West Virginia's history to life. West Virginia is an odd mix of people who come from very different backgrounds. You see how this was played out in the Mountain state's early days. ... Read More
Rating: - Matewan
Good history movie of the early years of coal mining and the way the people were owned by the mining companies. Also the bloody way they fought the early union organizers, who were trying to get some respect and benefits for ... Read More
- The Matewan Massacre is in here somewhere . . .
- Incredible movie.