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Big company (in this case, Hormel) is making lots of money. And yet it demands a pay cut of its factory workers. Major clash ensues and a strike is threatened. The camera captures both sides, but boy, do the factory workers look like the good guys.
Barbara Kopple's American Dream is somewhat unique in that it photographs the massive infighting among the union (including a huge fight between the locals and the international union) and it avoids a lot of editorializing from the filmmaker. (Let's face it: Michael Moore's chuckle-worthy documentaries are really documentaries about Michael Moore.) Unfortunately, much of this doc is repetitive and punctuated by incomprehensible screaming between and among the parties. Hey, I can see that right here at home.
However, the ending is considerably unexpected, and this is history, remember. Curious, and definitely worth watching.
