So let's get started counting down movie tributes to the labor movement...
10. Gung Ho! -- Let's start things off with a comedy about a union struggling to deal with their auto plant's takeover by a Japanese company. Always funny, and often unexpectedly sweet or serious, this is one of actor Michael Keaton's best comedic performance.
9. The Take -- The first documentary on the list is a surprising tale about Argentinian workers who take over the closed down factories of their former employers and set to work producing again, in the midst of economic turmoil in their nation. Inspiring while not glossing over the difficulties such organizing requires.
8. 9 to 5 -- The other comedy on the list is a tour de force of righteous comeuppance for a terrible boss at the hands of the female employees he's long exploited. The pitch-perfect cast and a particularly hilarious series of dream sequences make this one a must-see.
7. Roger & Me -- The second documentary on the list will probably be a controversial choice to some, but it's an undeniably powerful and hard look at the realities faced when the GM auto plants shut down in Flint, Michigan, sending 30,000 employees to the unemployment lines and leading to rampant poverty, collapse, and crime in the city.
6. Silkwood -- A powerful and important true story about a union worker in a plutonium pellet plant who discovers unsafe work conditions, becomes contaminated with radiation, and then turns up dead from a car crash the day she's supposed to meet a New York Times reporter to hand over purported documented evidence of her allegations.
5. The Grapes of Wrath -- The classic John Steinbeck novel is done great justice in John Ford's dramatic adaptation of the Great Depression tale of migrant Oklahoma farmers who set out for California in hopes of finding jobs and some kind of future. The bleakness of the farmer's lives and travels, plus the terrible conditions at work camps, are combined with a steadfast determination to survive and fight against injustice. It's one of Steinbeck's best works, and one of Ford's as well.
4. Harlan County, USA -- The final documentary on the list is a stunning examination of a coal miners' strike in 1970's Kentucky. The film exposed the reality of the horrible conditions the miners' endured, the tragic toll of their work on their bodies, the commitment of the workers and their families to fight for better compensation and safer work conditions, and the violence (including shooting deaths) they faced in their struggles. It's one of the most important films about the labor movement ever made.
3. Matewan -- A great film depicting the true story of the 1920 coal miners' strike in West Virginia and the attempts to unionize the workers in the face of brutal violence at the hands of the mining company. Filled with excellent performances, beautiful cinematography, and a gripping story made all the more intense because of its historical background, the film maintains a level of authenticity that few other films about the period or subject ever manage to achieve.
2. Norma Rae -- Another true story entry on the list and our penultimate labor movement film, with a lead performance that earned Sally Field her first Oscar in a role as a tough textile worker who fights to unionize her factory despite intense pressure and harassment from the company. Field is splendid as the title character, and she has one of the most emotionally satisfying moments in any labor film in the famous scene in which she holds up the sign reading "UNION" in the middle of the factory until the other works at last demonstrate their support for her cause. You'll get a lump in your throat, and just might applaud!
1. Germinal -- Not just the top film on this list, but also one of the finest movies I've ever seen on any subject, this adaptation of French author Émile Zola's famed novel depicts the life and struggles of French coal miners during the 1860's, leading to a workers' strike and eventually a violent confrontation between the workers and armed troops. It's a brilliant film, long but absolutely well worth every minute, featuring incredible performances and directing in a story that will draw you into the day to day realities of life for the impoverished worker. It's very hard to find a copy of this movie that will play in North American DVD/Blu-ray players, unfortunately, and it's particularly difficult to find copies that have English subtitles, but it's available on iTunes (click here for a direct link to the get the film), if you are interested in seeing it and need help finding a copy for the weekend.
And there you have my list of the top 10 best movies to watch for Labor Day weekend! I hope you'll at least pick up a few, and I've tried to supply you with options in comedy, drama, foreign language, documentary, and with both male and female protagonists. I'm sure, though, that some of you have your own ideas for films I should've included, so sound off in the comments below!
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