Matewan [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Director: John Sayles John Sayles

Overview

Independent filmmaker John Sayles, in concert with his intimidatingly efficient staff (especially art director Dan Bishop and cinematographer Haskell Wexler), performs miracles with the tight $4 million budget alotted to Matewan. The plot, related in flashback from the point of view of an elderly miner (Will Oldham), concerns a fictional 1920 labor action against the Stone Mountain Coal Company of Matewan, West Virginia. Chris Cooper plays a former WWI member sent by the United Mine Workers to organize the miners into a strike. Cooper has problems achieving solidarity at first; additionally, he is plagued by the underhanded activities of company spy Bob Gunton, and by a goonish detective agency hired by the company to "keep the peace." Framed on a phony rape charge, Cooper becomes a "Joe Hill" icon around whom the miners (joined by several sympathetic law officers) rally. The forces of Good assert themselves in a final shootout with the company's hired hooligans; the strike is won, but at the cost of Cooper's life. Sayles' recreation of the era in which Matewan is set is impeccable; adding to the authenticity are several rousing pro-labor songs, written in the style of the period by Sayles himself. The superb cast of Matewan is comprised of several stalwarts of the John Sayles stock company, including David Strathairn, Jace Alexander, Gordon Clapp and Maggie Renzi (who also coproduced the film).

Product Details

Release Date:	10/29/2019
UPC:	0715515236010
Original Release:	1987
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	2:13:00
Sales rank:	8,753

Special Features

English SDH Subtitles; New 4K digital restoration, supervised by director John Sayles, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack; Audio commentary from 2013 featuring Sayles and cinematographer Haskell Wexler; Two new documentaries on the making of the film featuring Sayles, producer Maggie Renzi, production designer Nora Chavooshian, and actors Chris Cooper, James Earl Jones, Mary McDonnell, Will Oldham, and David Strathairn; New interview with composer mason Daring; Short documentary on the impact that Matewan's production had on West Virginia; New program on the film's production design featuring Chavooshian; Trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

John Sayles	Preacher
Chris Cooper	Joe
James Earl Jones	'Few Clothes' Johnson
Will Oldham	Danny
Mary McDonnell	Elma Radnor
Kevin Tighe	Hickey
Jace Alexander	Hillard
Ken Jenkins	Sephus
Bob Gunton	C.E. Lively
Gary McCleery	Ludie
Gordon Clapp	Griggs
James Kizer	Tolbert
Mike Preston	Ellix,Ellix
Jo Henderson	Mrs. Elkins
Nancy Mette	Bridey Mae
Joe Grifasi	Fausto
Ronnie Stapleton	Stennis
David Strathairn	Police Chief Sid Hatfield
Ida Williams	Mrs. Knightes,Woman
Maggie Renzi	Rosaria
Thomas A. Carlin	Turley
Tom Wright	Tom
Josh Mostel	Mayor Cabell Testerman
Davide Ferrario	Gianni
Frank Payne Jr.	Old Miner
Stephen C. Hall	Redneck Miner
Bill Morris	Bass
Michael A. Mantel	Doolin
Charles Haywood	Sheb
Neale Clark	Issac
Fred Decker	James
Michael Frasher	Lee Felts
Jenni Cline	Luann
Delmas Lawhorn	Conductor
Hazel Dickens	MT Singer
Thomas Poore	Injured Black Man
Hazel Pearl	Missus
Hal Phillips	Boxcar Guard
Mitch Scott	Mister
Percy Fruit	Black Miner
Gerald Milnes	Fiddler
William Dean	Broker
P. Michael Munsey	Broker
Mason Daring	Picker,Picker,Composer
Michael Mantell	Doolin
Michael Munsey	Broker
Frank Taylor	Al Felts

Technical Credits

John Sayles

John Sayles	Director,Screenwriter
Mark Balsam	Executive Producer,Producer
Amir Jacob Malin	Executive Producer,Executive Producer
Peggy Rajski	Producer
Maggie Renzi	Producer
Jerry Silva	Executive Producer,Producer
Ira Deutchman	Producer
Barbara Hewson Shapiro	Casting

Editorial Reviews

Writer-director John Sayles specializes in recasting American history through the eyes of overlooked working-class heroes, and his story of striking West Virginia coal miners in the 1920s is one of his most polished and accessible achievements. Based on a bloody battle in the town of Matewan, the film examines labor unions from a critical perspective, shedding light on racial and cultural attitudes that hampered the movement. James Earl Jones gives a powerful, minimalist performance as the miners' leader. Sayles appears in a minor role, as he often does in his own films, as a conservative minister who preaches against the union organizers. Thanks to cinematographer Haskell Wexler, the film is visually rich. Sayles's dialogue and the period settings and costumes are wonderfully authentic, and the customary low budget of a Sayles movie never seems obvious.

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