Coal Miner's Daughter [25th Anniversary]

Director: Michael Apted Michael Apted

Overview

Loretta Lynn was one of the first female superstars in country music and remains a defining presence within the genre; with her strong, clear, hard-country voice and tough, no-nonsense songs about husbands who cheat and wives who weren't about to be pushed around, Lynn introduced a feminist mindset to Nashville years before the phrase "women's liberation" became common currency. Coal Miner's Daughter is a screen adaptation of Lynn's autobiography, starring Sissy Spacek as Loretta Lynn. One of eight children born to Ted Webb (Levon Helm), a coal miner raising a family despite grinding poverty in Butcher's Holler, KY, Loretta married Dolittle "Mooney" Lynn (Tommy Lee Jones) when she was only 13 years old. A mother of four by the time she was 20, Lynn began singing the occasional song at local honky-tonks on weekends, and at 25, she cut (at Mooney's suggestion) a demo tape that earned her a deal with an independent record label. Loretta and Mooney's tireless promotion of the record (including a long road trip through the south in which they stopped at every country radio station they could find) paid off -- Loretta's first single, "Honky Tonk Girl," hit the charts and earned her a spot on the Grand Ole Opry. Stardom called and Loretta never looked back, but success brought with it both joy (a long string of hit records and sold-out concerts and a close friendship with Patsy Cline) and sorrow (a nervous breakdown brought on by overwork and a great deal of stress to a marriage that endured -- but just barely). Sissy Spacek won an Academy award for her vivid, thoroughly natural performance as Loretta (she also did her own singing), and Levon Helm (drummer for the legendary rock group the Band) made an impressive screen debut as her father. Ernest Tubb makes a cameo appearance as himself.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/13/2005
UPC:	0025192675324
Original Release:	1980
Rating:	PG
Source:	STUDIO DISTRIBUTION SERVS LLC
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:05:00
Sales rank:	4,833

Special Features

Completely restored audio with enhanced 5.1 track; Limited edition photo journal inside; Feature commentary with Sissy Spacek and director Michael Apted; Tommy Lee Jones remembers Coal Miner's Daughter; An exclusive interview with Loretta Lynn and director Michael Apted; President George Bush Sr. salutes AFI and Coal Miner's Daughter

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Sissy Spacek	Loretta Lynn
Tommy Lee Jones	Doolittle Lynn
Beverly D'Angelo	Patsy Cline
Levon Helm	Ted
Phyllis Boyens	Clara
Bill Anderson Jr.	Webb Child
Foister Dickerson	Webb Child
Malla McCown	Webb Child,Webb Child
Kevin Salvilla	Webb Child
William Sanderson	Lee Dollarhide
Sissy Lucas	Loretta and Mooney's Child
Pat Patterson	Loretta and Mooney's Child
Brian Warf	Loretta and Mooney's Child
Elizabeth Watson	Loretta and Mooney's Child
Robert Elkins	Bobby Day
Bob Hannah	Charlie Dick
Ernest Tubb	Himself
Jennifer Beasley	Patsy Lynn,Peggy Lynn
Michael Baish	Storekeeper
Susan Kingsley	Girl at Fairgrounds
David Gray	Doc Turner,Doc Turner
Gary Parker	Radio Station Manager
Billy Strange	Speedy West
Bruce Newman	Opry Stage Manager
Grant Turner	Opry Announcer
Frank Mitchell	Washington Neighbor
Merle Kilgore	Cowboy at Tootsie's
Jackie Lynn Wright	Redhead at Tootsie's
Rhonda Rhoton	Lizzie
Vernon Oxford	Preacher
Ron Hensley	John Penn
Doug Bledsoe	Cowboy at Grange Hall
Aubrey Wells	Red Lynn
Russell Varner	Bidder at Pie Auction
Tommie O'Donnell	Teacher at Pie Auction
Lou Headley	Teacher at Pie Auction
Ruby Caudill	Teacher at Pie Auction
Charles Kahlenberg	Business Manager
Alice McGeachy	Woman With Doll
Ken Riley	Road Manager
Jim Webb	Bus Driver
Royce Clark	Hugh Cherry
David Thornhill	The Coal Miner's Band
Billy West	The Patsy Cline Band
Allison Caine	Voices
Owen Bradley	Composer

Technical Credits

Tom Rickman

Michael Apted	Director
Tom Rickman	Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Bernard Schwartz	Producer
Bob Larson	Executive Producer
Jim Alexander	Sound/Sound Designer
Tony Curtis	Producer

Editorial Reviews

One of the best music biopics ever made, this 1980 portrait of country singer Loretta Lynn features strong social commentary about Appalachian poverty and the hypocrisy of show business. Director Michael Apted seems to sneak these themes between the seams of a finely crafted melodrama that hews to the standard path of a star's rise, fall, and comeback. The intelligent, rangy actress Sissy Spacek gives it her all, demonstrating surprisingly strong musical skills. Spacek won several awards, including an Oscar, for her performance. The cinematography of Ralf Bode and Apted's piercing direction provide even those who aren't fans of country music with an unforgettable portrait of backwoods Kentucky. Coal Miner's Daughter received 7 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.