Silkwood

source: Silkwood

Apparently based on "real-life" events that took place back in 1974 - I'd say that Silkwood's joyless, little story about these disastrous events could've easily been told in about 90 minutes, instead of being totally dragged out for 130 minutes. This potentially promising tale about a nuclear whistle-blower got itself so bogged down with frivolous soap opera that, before long, the intended dead-seriousness of Karen Silkwood's escalating dilemma became annoyingly trivialized to the max. I mean - In no time flat - Karen's dire predicament was given such a back-seat to all of her chronic chain-smoking and petty personal dramas that I got to the point where I lost complete interest in this film's story and I ceased to care, one way or the other, about what inevitably happened to this woman. Anyway - With that all said - I can't believe that both Streep and, especially Cher (as Dolly the lesbian loafer) were actually nominated for Oscars for their lack-lustre performances here in Silkwood.

SPOILERS THROUGHOUT True story of Karen Silkwood (Meryl Streep) who was (allegedly) killed while trying to expose unsafe working conditions at a plutonium processing plant. The owners of the company went so far as to plant plutonium in her house to slowly kill her and prevent her from telling anyone. Boyfriend Drew Stephens (Kurt Russell) and best friend Dolly Pelliker (Cher) try to help her. In some ways this is a typical Hollywood movie of one person fighting an evil corporation. However this one is true and does not have a happy ending (Silkwood was killed). It's an important story that needs to be told...but this doesn't totally work. It seems too muted when it should be louder--the whole film is so quiet and laid-back it gets annoying...and boring. Also this is WAY too slow. This movie drags on for over two hours and really tests the viewer's patience. Virtually everybody who sees this movie knows how it ends so the slow pace is even more frustrating. The acting by Streep, Russell and Cher is just phenomenal but it doesn't make the movie any easier to watch. A quicker pace could have only helped this. Worth watching for the acting alone...but only if you're patient.

Silkwood is a true story that takes place in Oklahoma at the Kerr-McGee nuclear plant. The nuclear plant uses plutonium to make fuel rods in nuclear reactors. The employees of this plant are everyday blue collar workers that go to work to make a living for their families to survive. This movie is about how far a company might go to try to cover up discrepancies in their product in order to meet contract deadline at the cost of their employee's safety. Although the movie is very slow in action and suspense it does get the job done in telling the true story. It also makes you think about how many companies really do take advantage of their employees at all cost? The main character is an employee of Kerr-McGee, Karen Silkwood, played by Meryl Streep, which is a metallurgy worker. Karen slowly starts to become interested in the mishaps and strange things that occur in the plant due to leaks of plutonium. The company then blames the incidents on the employees not following proper handling procedures which leads to a painful decontamination process and then a follow-up with the company doctor and urine analysis to determine if the contamination is internal and external. All the results are always the same that the employees are under the limits for concern. Karen suspensions are confirmed when she is transferred to a new department and she witnesses Winston, played by Craig T. Nelson, altering negatives that confirms the company is covering up quality issues. This is when Karen decides to become an activist for the employees with the union hoping to change the way the company conducts business. Unfortunately, Karen does not realize that the union representatives are only interested in the publicity and not the welfare of the workers. The union representatives ask for proof that these practices are actually happening and Karen gets the information and is on her way to deliver the evidence when she mysteriously has a one care accident and is killed. This movie set the precedence for other movies like Erin Brokovich that tells a story of business wrong doing at the cost of other people's lives. What is ironic about this film is that Karen Silkwood is such an advocate about the company being responsible for the safe handling of the plutonium that causes cancer but most of the characters in the film spoke cigarettes especially Karen Silkwood. I don't remember a single scene that Karen is not smoking.

the story behind silkwood is possibly an interesting one, which i will investigate further after writing the review. for now i would say the script seems even more interesting than the story behind it, but regardless of the star cavalcade they somehow managed to ruin it. meryl streep does her 'bad girl' thing here, the character you can also spot from 'marvin's daughters' and shows once again that her character definitions are well crafted and practiced but unimaginative. kurt russell has been given a character that's too interesting to be played by kurt russell, and who knows what cher is doing in this movie. the factory doesn't really seem evil, infact the whole setting of the movie appears almost as if you were watching a dramatized documentary about the subject. seems and feels like a tv-movie dispite the stars in the main roles. i'm not even going start with the overblown ending scenes...give me a break. the ole' bucket became useful again. in conclusion it all could've been made so much better, an interesting subject with interesting characters but a mediocre movie. but then, it all fits if you watch mike nichols' career going \ from virginia woolf to primary colors you can find silkwood exactly in the middle. still worth a watch if it happens to be on tv. 4/10

This movie was only a glimpse into the future. We all, should be very thankful that Hollywood had the guts to produce a story like this. Meryl Streep did a wonderful job of portraying Karen Silkwood. This movie was only a glimpse into the future. I think this movie was a real eye opener at the time. Unfortunately, now there are enough true stories out there like this, it would keep Hollywood busy full time, if they produced them all. Meryl Streep you are my star for ever, but please mentor someone else with your talent. Our country needs it. With CSI on TV today it would be nice to have a spin off with details of Karen's head x-rays and auto damage in order to get closer to the truth. A modern day story called 'Wounded Bear' depicts a very similar story. This story has CT's and would bring you to the truth of both stories. I have Silkwood on tape because I feel it is an important part of history.

Contains spoilers Karen Silkwood works at a nuclear processing plant in Oklahoma; the company's business involves manufacturing plutonium fuel-rods for the nuclear power industry. At the beginning of the film Karen seems to be an ordinary worker with no tendencies towards activism or political radicalism. (The fact that she and her boyfriend display a prominent Confederate battle flag in their bedroom would suggest that politically she is on the right). She changes, however, when she realises that the management of the plant have a cavalier attitude towards the health and safety of their employees, particularly the risks of radioactive contamination, and that, worse still, they are doctoring x-ray photographs of the fuel rods in order to cover up potential defects that could prove disastrous. Karen becomes a campaigner for improved safety standards, but is killed in a car crash while driving to meet a journalist to inform him of her suspicions. I would agree with the author of the earlier comment who stated that Hollywood films rarely focus on the lives of modern working-class people, and that 'Silkwood' is one of the rare exceptions. (Films with a labour relations theme, such as 'Matewan' or 'The Molly Maguires', often have a historical setting, as though clashes between workers and employers were something from the Bad Old Days which have largely been overcome in modern society). Nevertheless, 'Silkwood' is not simply a tale of 'workers versus capitalists'. Although Karen's safety campaign has the support of her trade union's national leadership, she antagonises not only the management of the plant but also many of her fellow-workers, who value job security more than personal safety. There are few other employment opportunities in their small town, and they fear that, if forced to implement stricter safety rules, the company will simply close the plant, thus putting them out of work. There is a strong implication that the 'accident' in which Karen dies may have been arranged deliberately, but there is no hint as to who might have been responsible. The more recent Julia Roberts film 'Erin Brockovich' owes a clear debt to 'Silkwood'. Both films are based on true stories, and in both a young single mother takes on a powerful corporation playing fast and loose with public safety. 'Erin Brockovich', with its upbeat ending, is more optimistic; it is also, in my view, the better film as its director Steven Soderbergh is able to hold our interest throughout, whereas 'Silkwood' can drag at times. The first half of the film, which concentrates as much on Karen's tangled personal life as on the main theme of nuclear safety, can seem particularly slow. Nevertheless, the film becomes more gripping in the second half, aided by a superb performance from Meryl Streep in the leading role, one of a series of great parts that made her probably the best film actress of the eighties. I am always surprised that she lost the 'Best Actress' Oscar to Shirley MacLaine's caricature of a performance in 'Terms of Endearment'. There are also excellent contributions from Kurt Russell as Karen's boyfriend Drew and from Cher, cast against type as Dolly, the dowdy lesbian who befriends Karen. 'Silkwood' is not a great film, but it is a brave one, treating a controversial social and political issue with greater freedom than we normally see in Hollywood movies. 7/10

I thought this was a very nice film. It was nice to see three people acting well together (Cher, Meryl Streep and Kurt Russell). This type of story is very intersting to me. We see radiation treated so comically on The Simpsons but it is a very serious thing. Also, I thought it was great to have a film that had such simple locations and sets. No special fx were necessary and the result was a nice film with a good story. I would recommend Silkwood to anyone who likes these actors and anyone who is interested in true stories or films about organized labor.

Apparently, when "Silkwood" came out, Mike Nichols hadn't released a notable movie since "The Fortune" nearly killed his career eight years earlier. If we call this his comeback, then it was sure a good comeback. Donning one of her many accents from over the years - in this case Oklahoman - Meryl Streep plays Karen Silkwood, a plutonium processing plant employee who sought to expose the dangerous conditions in her workplace...and mysteriously died in a car wreck. This is the sort of opportunity to be idiotically preachy, but the movie never degenerates into that. It shows how the plant's owners poisoned her and psychologically berated her. This brings to mind the overall issue of how the nuclear age affected the whole planet. Nuclear tests by both the US and USSR left the whole world irradiated. Nuclear power may be discredited, but apparently NO PERSON ON EARTH has escaped nuclear fallout. So much for progress. All in all, "Silkwood" is a really good movie. It's surprising to see Kurt Russell and Cher (as Karen's roommates Drew Stephens and Dolly Pelliker) in this sort of movie; we associate him with kick-ass roles and her with treacly roles. But they do a very good job. Also starring Craig T. Nelson, Diana Scarwid, Fred Ward, Ron Silver, and Bruce McGill.

Even though you already now how the movie ends just by reading the taglines, there is still a strong element of suspense in this film, about Karen Silkwood who suspects that the lives of hereself and her co-workers are in danger. It is a well written film, and masterfully acted by Streep and her castmates. This one makes Julia Roberts in Erin Brochievich look really bad.