Movielogr
Matewan (1987)
Directed by John Sayles
Overview
Filmed in the coal country of West Virginia, “Matewan” celebrates labor organizing in the context of a 1920s work stoppage. Union organizer, Joe Kenehan, a scab named “Few Clothes” Johnson and a sympathetic mayor and police chief heroically fight the power represented by a coal company and Matewan’s vested interests so that justice and workers’ rights need not take a back seat to squalid working conditions, exploitation and the bottom line.
Rated PG-13 | Length 132 minutes
Actors
Chris Cooper | James Earl Jones | Mary McDonnell | Will Oldham | David Strathairn | Ken Jenkins | Kevin Tighe | Gordon Clapp | Bob Gunton | Jace Alexander | Joe Grifasi | Nancy Mette | Jo Henderson | Josh Mostel | Gary McCleery | Maggie Renzi | Tom Wright | Michael B. Preston | Thomas A. Carlin | Jenni Cline | Michael Mantell | J.K. Kent Lilly | Ida Williams | James Kizer | Ronnie Stapleton | Davide Ferrario | Frank Payne Jr. | John Sayles | Hazel Dickens | Charles Haywood | Neale Clark | Mitch Scott | Hazel Pearl | Michael Frasher | Frank Hoyt Taylor | Fred Decker | Bill Morris | Delmas Lawhorn | William Dean | P. Michael Munsey | Thomas Hal Phillips | Stephen C. Hall | Percy Fruit | Thomas Poore | Tara Williams | Gerald Milnes | Mason Daring | Jim Costa | Phil Wiggins