Blue Collar (1978)
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100% of critics liked it
(7 reviews) -
80% of users liked it
(2,991 ratings)
Paul Schrader's directorial debut examines the trials of Detroit autoworkers living at the mercy of a heartless corporation and a corrupt union. Surviving from paycheck to paycheck, Checker Cab assembly linemen Zeke (Richard Pryor), Jerry (Harvey Keitel), and Smokey (Yaphet Kotto) scrape by and… More Paul Schrader's directorial debut examines the trials of Detroit autoworkers living at the mercy of a heartless corporation and a corrupt union. Surviving from paycheck to paycheck, Checker Cab assembly linemen Zeke (Richard Pryor), Jerry (Harvey Keitel), and Smokey (Yaphet Kotto) scrape by and take pleasure in a few rounds of beer or bowling (and occasional illicit amusements). But when their money troubles pile up, Jerry and Smokey join Zeke in a desperate plan to steal cash from their local union office. Along with a piddling $600, they unexpectedly swipe evidence of union corruption. Deciding to use it for blackmail, the men discover instead how powerfully malevolent the union can be in a system that counts on petty divisiveness to keep the larger power structure intact. Inspired by stories of real-life disillusionment, Schrader and his brother/co-writer Leonard Schrader took on politically difficult issues of race and corporate labor, infusing the indictment of unions with a suggestion of post-Watergate paranoia about forces beyond the union that keep workers in their place. From the opening sequence of the assembly line to the final evocative freeze-frame, Schrader maintains an atmosphere of gritty realism, with the lead trio lending low-key dramatic force to a situation beyond their control. Too downbeat for a late '70s audience increasingly drawn to happier fare, Blue Collar flopped, yet it did earn Schrader critical accolades. Although he has reportedly since disowned the film, Blue Collar remains one of Schrader's best works, with Zeke and Jerry powered by the same sense of simmering frustration that would explode so effectively in Affliction two decades later. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi
- Directed By
- Paul Schrader
- Written By
- Sydney A. Glass, Leonard Schrader, Paul Schrader
- Genres
- Drama
- In Theaters
- Feb 10, 1978 Wide
- Studio
- Universal Pictures
Critic Reviews
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Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
It's intense, well-acted, gives one a good idea about everyday factory life and offers a clear-sighted muckraking take on blue collar types ...
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Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
Although the film does not tell us how to break out of the plantations we know too well, it does give us a vivid sense of the problems and the pitfalls of those who try.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Richard Pryor
as Zeke Brown
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Harvey Keitel
as Jerry Bartkowski
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Yaphet Kotto
as Smokey
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Ed Begley Jr
as Bobby Joe
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Harry Bellaver
as Eddie Johnson
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George Memmoli
as Jenkins
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Lucy Saroyan
as Arlene Bartowski
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Lane Smith
as Clarence Hill
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Cliff De Young
as John Burrows
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Borah Silver
as Miller
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Chip Fields
as Caroline Brown
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Harry Northrup
as Hank
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Leonard Gaines
as Internal Revenue Man
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Milton Selzer
as Sumabitch
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Sammy Warren
as Barney
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Jimmy Martinez
as Charlie T. Martinez
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Jerry Dahlmann
as Superintendent
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Denny Arnold
as Unshaven Thug
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Rock Riddle
as Blonde Thug
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Stacey Baldwin
as Debby Bartowski
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Steve Butts
as Bob Bartowski
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Stephen P. Dunn
as Flannigan
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Speedy Brown
as Slim
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Davone Florence
as Frazier Brown
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Eddie Singleton
as Ali Brown
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Rya Singleton
as Aretha Brown
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Vermetta Royster
as Neighbor
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Jaime Carreire
as Little Joe
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"Spanky" McFarland
as Doris
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Tracey Walter
as Union Member