One of the finest documentaries ever made, barbara kopples harlan county u. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out, and its clear in every frame of the film that her sympathies lie with. It contains a famous scene where guns are fired at the strikers in the darkness before dawn, and kopple and her cameraman are knocked down and beaten. Composed of songs featured in barbara kopples academy awardrwinning film harlan county usa harlan county usa. Featuring a haunting soundtrackwith legendary country and bluegrass artists hazel dickens, merle. Barbara kopples oscarwinning documentary classic is an electrifying look at a tense, yearlong standoff between striking kentucky coal miners and the. Coal mining was the chief source of income and created strife and turmoil in this remote part of the state. Analysis of hearts and minds and harlan county, usa. Barbara kopples academy awardwinning harlan county usa unflinchingly documents a grueling coal miners strike in a small kentucky town. It seems that koppel counts herself among the miners, she pickets with them and in asking a question says us when speaking about them.
Harlan was created in 1819 from a portion of knox county, kentucky. Harlan county, usa by barbara kopple a movie to download, on vod and legal streaming lacinetek. With unprecedented access, kopple and her crew captured the miners sometimes violent struggles with strikebreakers, local police, and company thugs. May 05, 2012 john sayles on harlan county the most striking thing about the case of harlan county is how similar the films structure is to that of the various other filmsnarratives about unionizing efforts in other coal mining areas that date back to the late 19th century. Its county seat is harlan with regard to the sale of alcohol, harlan county became a wet town in the fall of 2019. This page contains all mineral locality references listed on. Harlan county high school is located between the historical mountain chains of pine mountain and black mountain. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. It won the oscar for best documentary at the 49th academy awards. With harlan county, usa, barbara kopple is able to distill many details of those earlier conflicts.
The cop keeps mentioning low salaries and the coal miner keeps shaking his head and laughing, saying he wished he could make that much. Songs of the coal miners struggle is a chilling musical reflection of the coal mining experience. Come see rare photos and hear stories from those who lived and lives. Harlan county usa is definitely biased towards the coal miners. Sign up to our newsletters to hear about upcoming events. Looking at appalachia robert gumpert walk your camera. Kopple and her crew spent a year and half in harlan county, often under volatile conditionsshe would later learn that there had been a price on her head. Barbara kopple cabin creek films harlan county usa. Harlan county, usa 1976 posted on may 5, 2012 by mike c. Harlan county usa was restored and preserved by the womens preservation fund and the academy film archive, and was featured as part of the sundance collection at the sundance film festival in 2005. Barbara kopples oscarwinning documentary classic is an electrifying look at a tense, yearlong standoff between striking kentucky coal miners and the unionbusting corporation determined to squash them. Basil collins miner foreman and leadermanager of the scabs confronts picketers with a.
Although realistic dramas still attracted mass audiencesas evidenced by dog day. Harlan county usa 15 our building is temporarily closed, due to uk government advice on coronaviruscovid19. A lot more than a harrowing account of a bitter miners strike, although it is certainly that. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Hchs is a centrally located, modern facility with 1,300 students in grades 912 unifying the communities along the clover fork, martins fork, and the poor fork rivers. Jul 24, 20 harlan county usa is definitely biased towards the coal miners. Barbara kopple accepts academy award for harlan county usa duration. May 22, 2006 t he current popularity and cultural importance of documentaries would have been inconceivable in 1976, when harlan county usa briefly ignited commercial movie screens. Harlan county is a county located in southeastern kentucky. As of 20102014, the total harlan population is 5,047, which has shrunk 4.
Harlan county, usa is reallife drama of the highest order. The most striking thing about the case of harlan county is how similar the films structure is to that of the various other filmsnarratives about unionizing efforts in other coal mining areas that date back to the late 19th century. Harlan county usa trailer 1977 trailer for the documentary harlan county usa. Harlan is one of three kentucky county seats to share its name with its county, the others being greenup and henderson. The film retains all of its power, in the story of a miners strike in kentucky where the company employed armed goons to escort scabs into the mines, and the most effective picketers were the miners wives articulate, indominable, courageous. Barbara kopple and her team provide viewers with an unprecedented look at the labor movement. Nov 02, 2011 harlan county, usa 1976 follows the coal miners strike in 1973 1974 in harlan county, kentucky. Harlan is a home ruleclass city in and the county seat of harlan county, kentucky, united states. Between 2016 and 2017 the population of harlan county, ne grew from 3,465 to 3,469, a 0. The screening will be followed by a musical performance by david morris, who provided some of the music. Usa 15 october 1976 new york film festival canada 18 october 1976 toronto film festival usa 23 january 1977 limited usa 24 march 1977 usa film festival uk 27 august 1977 edinburgh international film festival portugal september 1977 figueira da foz film festival france 28 september 1977. Film event in washington by suns cinema on tuesday, august 29 2017. The miners have decided to join the united miners of america umwa trade union, and then they insisted that the company which. Harlan county, usa is a 1976 oscarwinning documentary film covering the brookside strike,an effort of 180 coal miners and their wives against the duke power companyowned eastover coal companys brookside mine and prep plant in harlan county, southeast kentucky in 1973.
The film is very obviously advocating for the coal miners rights. The population was 1,745 at the 2010 census, down from 2,081 at the 2000 census. Thats one of the harsh realities of harlan county usa. Harlan county, usa is a 1976 documentary film covering the brookside strike, an effort of 180 coal miners and their wives against the duke power companyowned eastover coal companys brookside mine and prep plant in harlan county, southeast kentucky in 1973. According to tom weiner the camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and. The 2000 television movie harlan county war starred holly hunter. In 1972, while hitchhiking across the united states, robert gumpert found himself on the side of the road in cabin creek, west virginia waiting for a ride.
History will repeat itself unless a representation of documented happenings. Director barbara kopples look at a month coal miners strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in harlan county, ky, is one of the great films about labor troubles, though not for a sense of objectivity. The 1976 documentary film harlan county, usa, winner of the 1977 academy award for best documentary feature, focuses on similar labor violence of the 1970s but refers to the 1930s violence as context. Film screening and discussion of harlan county, usa with. Harlan county, usa by barbara kopple on vod lacinetek. A flood in 1977 prompted federal aid that diverted the clover fork into manmade tunnels under ivy.
Other than the commentary there are some other good features, such as a 20 minute long documentary about the documentary, called the making of harlan county, usa. Various harlan county usa songs of the coal miners. Harlan county, usa, an oscarwinning documentary directed and produced by prominent filmmaker barbara kopple in 1976, is an incredibly moving film that tells the story using an intersection of the participatory and observational documentary modes of coal miners in kentucky who, together with their families, endured a long, violent strike in defense of their rights. This locality information is for reference purposes only. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. A man crouches and pokes at what first appears to be a wad of chewedup pink bubble gum on the ground. Finland swedish title gruvarbetarna i harlan county, usa. Old photos, stories and facts about the nations most talked about small town harlan county usa. Youd think things would have been largely improved since then, but thats not really the case. Barbara kopple is a twotime academy award winning filmmaker.
Thats what a scab will do to ya, by god, he says, his voice quavering with emotion. Usa 23 january 1977 limited usa 24 march 1977 usa film festival uk 27 august 1977 edinburgh international film festival portugal september 1977. Numerous books and films have preserved the history of harlan, including the academy award winning documentary, harlan county usa. There is currently one video available for the film, of which one and only one is a trailer, as listed below. Harlan county, usa feminist films in the swarthmorebryn. Harlan county, usa, although a true american story, will remind you that there is poverty in america, not every place is modernized, and that there are some things worth fighting over, especially if involving basic human rights. Few documentaries today have the immediacy, intensity, or militant appeal of this oscarwinning film, an edgeofyourseat tribute to a courageous group of hard hats and their families. Video archive for the film harlan county usa, which has a domestic theatrical release in the year of 1977. Much of the information presented here is recapitulated in the commentary, but it is interesting to see how over three decades of age have affected some of the films participants. During a shift change at the coal mine nearby, seeing a steady stream of miners convinced him that he needed to come back to photograph the area.
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