list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around American Dream on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/American_Dream/1143/default.aspx Title: American Dream
Year: 1990
Director: Barbara Kopple
Plot: Depicting the effects of a mid-1980s strike by the employees of a Hormel meat-packing plant in Austin, Minnesota, Barbara Kopple's Academy Award-winning documentary American Dream observes both the daily struggles of the striking workers and the behind-the-scenes conflicts amongst the union leaders. Upset at a proposed pay cut, the local union chapter begins the strike against the advice of their parent organization, hiring an outside consultant who encourages the workers. This consultant's aggressive, no-compromise approach turns the conflict into national news but also alienates management. Soon, despite the efforts of a seasoned negotiator sent by the parent union, the company has locked out the workers and hired scabs, leading to a series of violent conflicts amongst members of the community. The workers' resolve progressively fades as the battle extends into months and years, and the financial hardships they and their families suffer leads some to doubt the value of their efforts. Kopple, who had previously covered an extended miner's strike in the acclaimed 1977 documentary Harlan County, USA, focuses on the personalities and emotions behind the strike, creating a highly charged portrait of labor that is sympathetic to the workers' distress without ignoring the strike's greater ambiguities. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
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]]>Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:01:02 GMTAmerican Dream1990Barbara KoppleDepicting the effects of a mid-1980s strike by the employees of a Hormel meat-packing plant in Austin, Minnesota, <a href="/players/P____97885/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Barbara Kopple</a>'s Academy Award-winning documentary American Dream observes both the daily struggles of the striking workers and the behind-the-scenes conflicts amongst the union leaders. Upset at a proposed pay cut, the local union chapter begins the strike against the advice of their parent organization, hiring an outside consultant who encourages the workers. This consultant's aggressive, no-compromise approach turns the conflict into national news but also alienates management. Soon, despite the efforts of a seasoned negotiator sent by the parent union, the company has locked out the workers and hired scabs, leading to a series of violent conflicts amongst members of the community. The workers' resolve progressively fades as the battle extends into months and years, and the financial hardships they and their families suffer leads some to doubt the value of their efforts. Kopple, who had previously covered an extended miner's strike in the acclaimed 1977 documentary Harlan County, USA, focuses on the personalities and emotions behind the strike, creating a highly charged portrait of labor that is sympathetic to the workers' distress without ignoring the strike's greater ambiguities. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide122http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/v32917rktvu.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/American_Dream/1143/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2009/1/12/39421.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 1/12/2009 4:01:02 PM
Body: Each day this week, Christopher Campbell will take a look back at a “classic” film that played the Sundance Film Festival. Today’s installment: Richard Linklater’s Slacker (1991). Richard Linklater’s breakthrough film, Slacker, almost never played Sundance. According to John Pierson’s book Spike, Mike, Slackers & Dykes, Competition Director Alberto Garcia “did not particularly like the film.” In fact, Linklater was initially rejected when he submitted Slacker for the 1990 festival, at the time still called the US Film Festival. So, that summer, he self-released the film in his hometown of Austin, Texas, with much success. But the biggest success was yet to come. That same year the film was selected for at least one other film fest, Seattle, and after being reviewed there by Film Comment’s Robert Horton, Slacker acquired the interests of both Orion Classics and Pierson, who had already earned his reputation for being an indie film guru. However, even with a distributor and a high profile rep behind the film, Garcia was still hesitant. Something finally convinced him, and Slacker was reluctantly invited to the 1991 fest, now officially renamed Sundance, alongside such important films as Hal Hartley’s Trust, Barbara Kopple’s American Dream and Todd Haynes’ Poison. Yet even then it was slow in garnering fans. Pierson writes that the film’s 10PM Saturday night screening at the Egyptian consisted of the following reception: “one-third loved it, one-third walked out, and one-third fell asleep.” By the end of the next week, Slacker had fared better in subsequent screenings, but it lost the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize to Poison. At least it showed at Sundance, though, and Linklater was able to become one of the festival’s most prestigious alumni (ten years later he would even premiere two new films, Waking Life and Tape, at the 2001 fest). Nowadays, Sundance might not accept a film it had already rejected, particularly if that film screened at other festivals before playing Park City, since the big fests now prefer to feature exclusive premieres. Slacker is available for free in its entirety on Hulu and on YouTube. The latter version is embedded below without commercial interruption: Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:01:02 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com1/12/2009 4:01:02 PMEach day this week, Christopher Campbell will take a look back at a “classic” film that played the Sundance Film Festival. Today’s installment: Richard Linklater’s Slacker (1991). Richard Linklater’s breakthrough film, Slacker, almost never played Sundance. According to John Pierson’s book Spike, Mike, Slackers & Dykes, Competition Director Alberto Garcia “did not particularly like the film.” In fact, Linklater was initially rejected when he submitted Slacker for the 1990 festival, at the time still called the US Film Festival. So, that summer, he self-released the film in his hometown of Austin, Texas, with much success. But the biggest success was yet to come. That same year the film was selected for at least one other film fest, Seattle, and after being reviewed there by Film Comment’s Robert Horton, Slacker acquired the interests of both Orion Classics and Pierson, who had already earned his reputation for being an indie film guru. However, even with a distributor and a high profile rep behind the film, Garcia was still hesitant. Something finally convinced him, and Slacker was reluctantly invited to the 1991 fest, now officially renamed Sundance, alongside such important films as Hal Hartley’s Trust, Barbara Kopple’s American Dream and Todd Haynes’ Poison. Yet even then it was slow in garnering fans. Pierson writes that the film’s 10PM Saturday night screening at the Egyptian consisted of the following reception: “one-third loved it, one-third walked out, and one-third fell asleep.” By the end of the next week, Slacker had fared better in subsequent screenings, but it lost the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize to Poison. At least it showed at Sundance, though, and Linklater was able to become one of the festival’s most prestigious alumni (ten years later he would even premiere two new films, Waking Life and Tape, at the 2001 fest). Nowadays, Sundance might not accept a film it had already rejected, particularly if that film screened at other festivals before playing Park City, since the big fests now prefer to feature exclusive premieres. Slacker is available for free in its entirety on Hulu and on YouTube. The latter version is embedded below without commercial interruption: Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/3/19/26397.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 3/19/2008 2:00:37 PM
Body: Don’t be fooled, now. This film may look like a beautiful, epic piece of cinema, but that’s likely only because it was shot by Xiaoding Zhao, whose relatively short cinematography resume includes Zhang Yimou’s House of Flying Daggers (for which Xiaoding received an Oscar nomination), Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles and Curse of the Golden Flower (he was also a cameraman for Yimou’s Hero). So yeah, The Children of Huang Shi will certainly be a good looking film, but notice who the director is. That’s right, Roger Spottiswoode, a guy whose worst film is difficult to decide upon. I’d say it’s a toss up between The 6th Day and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. I’ve never seen Terror Train, though. That one sounds like a contender. Another thing this film does have going for it is the Oscar-winning producing skills of now-81-year-old Arthur Cohn. He’s had a pretty great career, having partnered with De Sica on his later films, including the The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, and having had the honor of seeing that film and Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Black and White in Color and Richard Dembo’s Dangerous Moves all win the Academy Award for best foreign-language film (other of his productions that were nominated in the category include Walter Salles’ Central Station and Christophe Barratier’s The Chorus). As for his own, recognized and credited Oscar glory, he’s won three out of his four nominations in the documentary category (for Pierre-Dominique Gaisseau’s Le Ciel et la Boue, Barbara Kopple’s American Dream and Kevin McDonald’s One Day in September; he lost with Dieter Hildebrandt’s The Yellow Star). (more…) Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:00:37 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com3/19/2008 2:00:37 PM Don’t be fooled, now. This film may look like a beautiful, epic piece of cinema, but that’s likely only because it was shot by Xiaoding Zhao, whose relatively short cinematography resume includes Zhang Yimou’s House of Flying Daggers (for which Xiaoding received an Oscar nomination), Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles and Curse of the Golden Flower (he was also a cameraman for Yimou’s Hero). So yeah, The Children of Huang Shi will certainly be a good looking film, but notice who the director is. That’s right, Roger Spottiswoode, a guy whose worst film is difficult to decide upon. I’d say it’s a toss up between The 6th Day and Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. I’ve never seen Terror Train, though. That one sounds like a contender. Another thing this film does have going for it is the Oscar-winning producing skills of now-81-year-old Arthur Cohn. He’s had a pretty great career, having partnered with De Sica on his later films, including the The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, and having had the honor of seeing that film and Jean-Jacques Annaud’s Black and White in Color and Richard Dembo’s Dangerous Moves all win the Academy Award for best foreign-language film (other of his productions that were nominated in the category include Walter Salles’ Central Station and Christophe Barratier’s The Chorus). As for his own, recognized and credited Oscar glory, he’s won three out of his four nominations in the documentary category (for Pierre-Dominique Gaisseau’s Le Ciel et la Boue, Barbara Kopple’s American Dream and Kevin McDonald’s One Day in September; he lost with Dieter Hildebrandt’s The Yellow Star). (more…) Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/conflict/MemberTagFilms.aspxconflict
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