The Circuit

The WGA is putting on a film festival for members, and its lineup is obviously a sign of the times.  The fest will run this Sunday at the Billy Wilder Theater at the Hammer Museum. 

WGA members get a free seat, but not a free parking space.

11 AM:  NEWSIES - A family film written by Bob Tzudiker and Noni White.

When Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise the distribution price by 1/10th of a cent per newspaper, the impoverished newsboys are outraged.  Inspired by the trolley workers' strike, Jack "Cowboy" Kelly (Christian Bale) organizes the young newsies who find the strength to take on the powerful.

1:15 PM:  NETWORK - Paddy Chayefsky's scathing satire.

Media madness reigns supreme when a TV network cynically exploits a deranged ex-TV anchor's ravings and revelations about the media for their own profit.

3:30:  HARLAN COUNTY USA - Barbara Kopple's  documentary.

This film documents the coal miners' strike against the Brookside Mine of the Eastover Mining Company in Harlan County, KY in June 1973.  Eastover's refusal to sign a contract (sound familiar?) led to violent battles against gun-toting company thugs.

5:15:  NORMA RAE - Harriet Frank Jr. and Irving Ravitch's classic screenplay about union organizing.

A young woman with courage risks everything for what she believes is right.  A young single mother takes on organizing her fellow textile workers, despite life-threatening dangers and the toll on her personal life.


"I don't have to tell you things are bad.  Everybody knows things are bad..."