Matewan (1987)

Director:

John Sayles

Writer:

John Sayles (writer)

Release Date:

28 August 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History

Tagline:

It takes more than guns to kill a man

Plot:

A labor union organizer comes to an embattled mining community brutally and violently dominated and harassed by the mining company.

Plot Keywords:

Union | Miner | Labor | 1920s | Coal Miner

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Chris Cooper	...	Joe Kenehan
James Earl Jones	...	'Few Clothes' Johnson
Mary McDonnell	...	Elma Radnor
Will Oldham	...	Danny Radnor
David Strathairn	...	Police Chief Sid Hatfield
Ken Jenkins	...	Sephus Purcell
Gordon Clapp	...	Griggs
Kevin Tighe	...	Hickey
John Sayles	...	Hardshell Preacher
Bob Gunton	...	C.E. Lively
Josh Mostel	...	Mayor Cabell Testerman
Nancy Mette	...	Bridey Mae
Jace Alexander	...	Hillard Elkins
Joe Grifasi	...	Fausto
Gary McCleery	...	Ludie

Runtime:

135 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:14 (Ontario) | Australia:M | USA:PG-13 | Finland:K-16

Filming Locations:

New River Gorge, New River Gorge National River, West Virginia, USA

Company:

Cinecom Entertainment Group

Trivia:

The movie was actually filmed in a town in central West Virginia known as Thurmond. This town is located on the New River. It is about 100 miles from the real city of Matewan.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the scene where the coal company executives are trying to bribe the Mayor and Sid Hatfield, the calendar behind the mayor reads September 1920. The historical shootout at the climax occurred in May of 1920, four months beforehand.

Quotes:

Joe Kenehan: You think this man is the enemy? Huh? This is a worker! Any union keeps this man out ain't a union, it's a goddam club! They got you fightin' white against colored, native against foreign, hollow against hollow, when you know there ain't but two sides in this world - them that work and them that don't. You work, they don't. That's all you get to know about the enemy.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Game-On: (#3.2)" (1998)

Soundtrack:

FIRE IN THE HOLE

Great movie about my hometown!

If you are from Matewan, you know the shock of having this movie be about your hometown. I can't help but wonder if James Earl Jones was thinking "Why the hell are we making a movie about this place??" I think the population when I lived there (most of my life) was somewhere around 1200. Probably hasn't grown much. I still keep in contact with a few people from there. My dad owned a bar there called the Silver Dollar, and he worked in the mines at one time, as did my mother and grandfather. I've heard stories of how the real Matewan Massacre went, along with Bloody Mingo and all the rest, and from what I've heard from my family, this movie is pretty close to the truth. Matewan has always been a rough town, and even today fights are commonplace in this little one street town. It's pretty desolate, with no real business, no industry, and the coal mines are almost mined out. The nearest decent place is Williamson (WV) or Pikeville, Kentucky, a small college town. I miss home sometimes, but at least I can watch the movie and be reminded of home. One thing about it... it's an entertaining movie. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did, but then again, I'm biased.