Norma Rae (1979). Photofest.
As of Tuesday, September 28, for all programs and screenings in the Dryden Theatre, patrons must show proof of vaccination and wear masks. For more information, please see our Health & Safety page.
(Martin Ritt, US 1979, 114 min., DCP)
Deservedly taking home the Best Actress Oscar, Sally Field shines in a brilliant turn as a complex young woman worker in a southern textile plant. As conditions in the plant force workers to consider unionizing, a Jewish labor organizer (Ron Leibman) from New York City arrives, cultures clash, and tempers rise. From start to finish, Field plays her kaleidoscopic part perfectly. As film critic Vincent Canby noted, “Watching this actress give life to a woman of grit and guts, of humor and compassion, without worrying about the consequences, is the kind of marvelous experience we don’t often see in movies.”