Harlan County War

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Movie Info

The true story of one of the most contentious labor disputes of the 1970s is the basis for this made-for-cable drama. In 1973, many of the men of Harlan County, Kentucky, were employed by Brookside Mining, who operated a number of coal mines. Brookside paid its employees meager wages for dangerous, backbreaking work, and also controlled housing and retail sales in the area, boarding its workers in shacks without central heating or indoor plumbing, and selling them food and clothing at inflated prices. Warren Jakopovich (Stellan Skarsgard), an organizer for the United Mine Workers Association, encouraged Brookside's workers to join the union and go on strike for fair wages and better working conditions. Many of the miners simply couldn't afford the loss of income that a strike would mean, but when two workers died as a result of Brookside's willful ignorance of safety standards, most of Harlan County's mine workers finally went on strike. A judge formerly employed by Brookside handed down an order forbidding the workers to picket the mine sites, but Ruby Kincaid (Holly Hunter), whose husband Silas (Ted Levine) was fired for protesting dangerous conditions and whose father was attacked by scab laborers, organized the wives of striking miners to picket in their place. The Harlan County War was based on the same strike portrayed in the Academy Award-winning documentary Harlan County, USA.

Rating:

NR
Genre:

Drama, Television
Directed By:

Tony Bill
Written By:

Peter Silverman
In Theaters:

Jun 4, 2000 wide
On Disc/Streaming:

Jun 17, 2003
Runtime:

120 minutes
Studio:

Cort-Madden Company

Cast

Holly Hunter
as Ruby Kincaid

Ted Levine
as Silas Kincaid

Stellan Skarsgard
as Warren Jakopovich

Wayne Robson
as Tug Jones

Tom Barnett
as Floyd Jones

Alex House
as Buddy Kincaid

Charlotte Arnold
as Lucinda Kincaid

Ker Wells
as Little Lee

Jennifer Irwin
as Mary Ball

Rufus Crawford
as Bill Worthington

Cliff Saunders
as Lawrence Perkins

Deborah Pollit

Deborah Pollitt
as Ora Perkins

Tim Burd
as Dillard Ball

Tom Harvey
as Jerry Selvey

Reginald Doresa
as Bronce Breckenridge

Helen Hughes
as Aunt Melva Jones

Kirsten Kieferle
as Buelha May Belvins

Ingrid Veninger
as Becky Jones

Doug Lennox
as Nelms Hatton

Bruce McFee
as Leroy Gilly

Jim Bearden
as Claude Pennington

Lynne Griffin
as Mrs. Yarborough

John Jarvis

Bernard Kay

Peter Spence

Roger Dunn

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Critic Reviews for Harlan County War

All Critics (1) | Top Critics (1) | DVD (1)

Harlan County War... is that oddest of enterprises, a pretty good docudrama prompted by a superb documentary.

Feb 6, 2018 | Full Review…

John Leonard
New York Magazine/Vulture
Top Critic

View All Critic Reviews (1)

Audience Reviews for Harlan County War

Dec 13, 2006

[font=Century Gothic]"Harlan County War" takes place in 1973 in eastern Kentucky where Ruby(Holly Hunter) and Silas Kincaid(Ted Levine), a coal miner, have been married for almost ten years with two children. Coal mining at this point is a hazardous and low paying operation, and they occasionally talk about moving to Detroit where Silas could work in an auto factory. To add to their worries, Ruby's father(Wayne Robson) is suffering from black lung. [/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]With the utility raking in profits of about $90 million annually, the miners want to organize in order to negotiate a contract with the company to improve wages and working conditions but the owners refuse. When that happens, the miners affiliated with the United Mine Workers of America, represented by Warren Jakopovich(Stellan Skarsgard), vote to strike by a vast majority.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]Inspired by real events, "Harlan County War" is a solid drama that takes a personal approach by focusing on the travails of one family. Authentic performances and a good eye for detail help matters. It should be remembered that strikes are not tea parties and this film acts as a valuable reminder why unions are so absolutely necessary.[/font]

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