Zeit der Gerechtigkeit

This is a powerful movie with superbly crafted characters. It's beautifully shot and captures the gritty realism of Appalachia, its hardships, its humanity, its humour. Holly Hunter has created an endearing character. But so are all the other principles. No stereotypes here but honest portraits of real working class people. This is one of the best labour movies I've ever seen.

Big management grinds poor workers with boot heel followed by rebellion and unionization. There's nothing new in Showtime's telling of this old story about hollow dwelling coal miners in Harlan County, KY. Nonetheless, Hunter bails out this well made but potentially monotonous film with her powerful performance as a spunky and dauntless coal miner's wife. A must see for Hunter fans.

Pretty ironic that a supposedly pro-union Kentucky story was filmed in Canada, isn't it? Meanwhile LA filming crews go jobless.

The original documentary is a better, more compelling film - because it's "real" and you're in the trenches with the camera, however I still found Holly Hunter's performance to be remarkable. This suffers from the usual TV drama problems; from the very first scene they're begging for the viewer's pity, and we learn that Hunter's character is a strong woman, but we never learn how the fight is really won. The power struggles with her husband are hinted at, but never fleshed out and developed or resolved. If you're a fan of Hunter's you might enjoy her performance, but otherwise skip it. Put the effort into finding the original documentary, "Harlan County, USA." Or else watch the news.

I take issue with those who have said this is not an accurate depiction of Appalachian coal country, though I will admit it's probably more representative of parts of West Virginia than Kentucky. I spent 14 years in WV, my wife is from WV and her father grew up in a coal camp.

My wife's grandmother didn't have running water or indoor plumbing until the '70's (heck members of *my* family didn't have indoor plumbing until the late '60's and I grew up in PA!).

I have known many people in WV who sound very much like Holly Hunter in this film, and even dated a woman from the coalfields of southern WV with a similar accent.

The geography also reminds me of WV (though admittedly it wasn't filmed there).

All-in-all an excellent film, and it's hard to believe it represents events as recent as the '70's! We've (until recently) come a long way and we need films like this to remind us how bad things recently were and could soon be again (or worse re: last year's Utah mine disaster).

In the tradition of "Norma Rae," this honest and commendable account of the on-going "class warfare" in Bloody Harlan County between the coal mine workers and the mine owners provides a gritty history lesson, especially for young viewers unfamiliar with this vital chapter in our labor struggles. Holly Hunter is nothing less than magnificent, as is the entire cast superbly directed by Tony Bill. The authetic music of Appallachia aids considerably to this must-see film.