Blue Collar

Blue Collar (1978)

  • 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

R,
Directed By
Written By
Sydney A. Glass, Leonard Schrader, Paul Schrader
Genres
Drama
In Theaters
Feb 10, 1978 Wide
Universal Pictures

Critic Reviews

  • 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 ...

  • 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)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • El Hombre I


    Director Paul Schrader's film explores a little of what was wrong with the working class in the late '70s. Inflation, unemployment, corruption and how floorworkers in the auto-industry were continually fucked over. The film gives platform to a rock solid performance by… More

  • Anthony L


    Richard Pryor in unfamiliar territory in a very serious role but brilliantly executed. Blue Collar is both Gritty and kick ass, a great slice of late 70?s life and an overlooked American classic!

  • Lesley N


    Surprisingly good and gritty 70's drama about three carworkers, Yaphet Kotto, Harvey Keitel, & a straight-playing Richard Prior, trying to stick it to the man/company/union. .

  • Danny R


    A Powerhouse drama, and a especially impressive directorial debut for Paul Schrader that is intelligent and well observed, about three Detroit automobile workers played by Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto, who all give extraordinary dramatic performances, the three… More

  • Stephen E


    "Blue Collar" proves yet again that Paul Schrader is one of the greatest, most underrated film makers out there; a man whose films are so consistently overlooked that it seems almost intentional. "Blue Collar" is the result of Schrader's excellence in writing… More

Read all 9 featured audience ratings

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