Harlan County USA: No Neutrals There
By May 22, 2006
The current popularity and cultural importance of documentaries would have been inconceivable in 1976, when Harlan County USA briefly ignited commercial movie Read more »
- United States
- 1976
- 103 minutes
- Color
- 1.78:1
- English
SYNOPSIS: Barbara Kopple’s Academy Award–winning Harlan County USA unflinchingly documents a grueling coal miners’ strike in a small Kentucky town. With unprecedented access, Kopple and her crew captured the miners’ sometimes violent struggles with strikebreakers, local police, and company thugs. Featuring a haunting soundtrack—with legendary country and bluegrass artists Hazel Dickens, Merle Travis, Sarah Gunning, and Florence Reece—the film is a heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.
Cast & CreditsOpen
Cast
Credits
| Director | Barbara Kopple |
| Producer | Barbara Kopple |
| Editing | Nancy Baker |
| Associate director | Anne Lewis |
| Principal cinematographer | Hart Perry |
| Cinematography | Kevin Keating |
| Sound | Barbara Kopple |
Disc Features
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director-producer Barbara Kopple
- Audio commentary by Kopple and editor Nancy Baker
- The Making of “Harlan County, USA,” a new documentary featuring interviews with Kopple, crew members and strike participants featured in the film
- New video interview with legendary bluegrass singer-songwriter Hazel Dickens
- Never-before-seen outtakes from the film
- New video interview with director John Sayles
- A panel discussion from the 2005 Sundance Film Festival featuring Kopple and Roger Ebert
- Original theatrical trailer
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired
- New essays by film scholar Paul Arthur and music journalist Jon Weisberger
