American Dream From:Jesse Jackson , Ray Rogers , Mike Kinney , Barbara Kopple , Cathy Caplan , Lawrence Silk , Thomas Haneke , Miramax Home Entertainment ,
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See larger picture. | | Amazon Sales Rank:# 52570 User Rating: Customer Reviews List Price:$14.99 Availability:Usually ships in 24 hours |
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Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0786936232721
Format: Anamorphic
Format: Color
Format: DVD-Video
Format: Widescreen
Format: NTSC
Label: Miramax Home Entertainment
Audio Format: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Manufacturer: Miramax Home Entertainment
Number Of Items: 1
Packaged Height: 58 hundredths-inches
Packaged Length: 710 hundredths-inches
Packaged Weight: 18 hundredths-pounds
Packaged Width: 542 hundredths-inches
Publisher: Miramax Home Entertainment
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2004-03-02
Running Time: 98 minutes
Studio: Miramax Home Entertainment
Product Description:
Academy Award(R) Winner for Best Documentary, 1990, this acclaimed motion picture captures the stark reality of working men and women making impossibly tough choices about survival during a time of extreme economic crisis. When workers at the Hormel meatpacking plant in Austin, Minnesota, are asked to take a substantial pay cut in a highly profitable year, the local labor union decides to go on strike and fight for a wage they believe is fair. But as the work stoppage drags on and the strikers face losing everything, friends become enemies, families are divided, and the very future of this typical mid-American town is threatened! Also honored with the Directors Guild of America Award for Best Feature Documentary as well as the Grand Jury Prize, Audience Award, and the Filmmakers Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival -- you'll be riveted by the compelling real-life drama in this powerful landmark film!
Customer Reviews:
 American Nightmare for struggling workers, 2008-09-17
Since FDR implemented the New Deal, it has been eroded year after year by the power of increasingly ruthless corporate profiteering and competition. Labor Unions have been under attack, largely by Republican administrations and policies, and the attitude of big business is less and less caring and humanitarian. In the face of job loss or massive wage cuts, one union fought back. But between such unequal bargaining partners, the union workers' only power was in their willingness to stand together and persevere.
This film follows one incident where a union group fought back against unfair treatment - and ultimately lost the battle. But the struggle goes on to have a life where hard work is fairly rewarded and families can keep up with the rising cost of living - let alone get ahead and prosper.
Barbara Kopple has somehow managed to capture an intimate portrait of the people involved in this incident. Her film takes us into the meetings, the conversations, and the interviews of the characters involved. We get an understanding of the dynamics and strategies, the positions and attitudes of both sides and the personal conflicts and pressures that face
workers who seek to take a stand against employer give backs and job cuts.
It is not a pretty picture or one with a rosy ending. Hopes and dreams get crushed; desperation, despair, and disunity challenge the union workers despite their efforts to stand together.
Without commentary, the film simply observes and records the history. The facts speak for themselves, and Ms. Kopple has done a fine job of covering the stories behind the headlines. It is a very good documentary of a sad situation.
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