RamonTrump Idiot Sally Field looks OK, not enough to get more than a 1 rating. These JEW Commies, they went down south to "save" "The People". They went down to bring the idiots under ONE UMBRELLA, ONE VOICE, gee I wonder who controlled that voice.I wonder what happened to the factories after they workers were "helped" by the JEW Commie Rabble Rousers.

Emerson De Klotz Contemporary historians consider the 1970's a "pivot of change" in world history due to an engaging wave of social progressivism within the Western World. Amidst economic and societal reforms, tides to unionize factory workers had washed over from shores of the 1880's Knights of Labor, only to crash onto rocky beaches of the 1970's unfair labor conditions. "Norma Rae" is based on the story of Crystal Lee Sutton's life as a textile laborer, working beneath employers in a poor environment, that stands up to obtuse societal normalities. The film does a surprising job at portraying the struggles faced when unionizing is attempted. Unbeknownst to most, a dream to unionize often separates a reformer, as well as creates opposite factions within a community. These two factions, those who want change compared to those who are content with the status quo, are depicted very well in the film via Reuben Warshowsky, a labor activist who supports progression, and the textile factory owners, who promote disdain and contempt towards reform. The film instills a sense of pro-unionism within a viewer, which isn't bad-actually, quite the contrary-it's good! "Norma Rae" does a fantastic job at revealing injustices, and promoting a positive cause. To the films disadvantage, it fails to address other problems facing labor unions outside of the factory. Rather ironic, given the movie focuses on unionization, yet fails to unite other platforms for labor progression. This inability does NOT downplay the great screen writing or acting produced, but it fails to communicate different forms of injustice surrounding labor. While focusing on changes in the factory, the film fails to represent problems facing migrant workers in the west along with mining industry in the northeast. The most powerful scene from the film is the dramatization of Crystal Lee Sutton's actual protest, in the mill, where she creates a sign reading "UNION" and stands on her worktable until all machines slow to a silence. Alongside other meaningful scenes, including confrontations with her family, protagonist Norma Rae (a representation of Crystal Lee Sutton) literally taking a stand against injustice in the workplace in both historically significant as well as emotionally. In total, "Norma Rae" works on all levels with the means to tell an amazing story, along with the ability to support a just cause.

fred-houpt Oh gosh, some films do start to look a bit tired. I'm reviewing this after seeing it for the first time in 2012. To say that the film is a tad bit slow is being generous. The script is quite all right; it's just that Ritt seems to linger too long on each scene whereas he could have made the points in a tighter and more urgent manner. Think of what Clint Eastwood would have done with this material. The end credits to the film claim that this is a fiction and rightly it might be so. However, the not so subtle subtext is the labour situation in the deep south, which continues on to this day.I live in Ontario and I have seen recessions come and go and years back one of them saw a lot of furniture manufacturers close up shop and move to brand new facilities in the south. In states that had practically no union presence. The impression we had then was that expensive Canadian labour went south to much cheaper non-union labour in the south. There are still many factories in the United States that are under represented by unions. I am not advocating unions and the issue is broader than I need to refer to in a movie review.The poor and largely uneducated working folks of this southern town have no where else to go, no other local jobs open, certainly not for their skill sets. So, they feel obliged to take any work and the factory owners take full advantage of that fact. Comes a Jewish labour leader from New York, who just as slowly as the film plods on, finds it tough going to get any of the workers to come on board. Norma Rae actually is not the tipping point for his labour organizing. Not at first. A spontaneous stand taken by Norma, done with great contrast to her surrounding, in silence, by holding up a made up "union" sign, tips the balance. This type of battle took place all across the United States for as long as it ramped up its industrial foundations. There have always been too many unsafe work places where labourers are paid third world wages. There are many movies dedicated to just such a story. This is a good one but it suffers from dragging its feet in the soup.The actors are all good and the chemistry in particular between Sally Field and Ron Liebman quite fun to watch. Were this film not so long on the sweating and plot development I would have given it higher marks. Not great, but worth a viewing. Then: think again about the recent headlines of the terrible working conditions of workers producing Apple computer parts in China. So little changes.

John T. Ryan WHAT an unusual film! NORMA RAE (20th Century-Fox, 1979) is a totally studio created and produced movie! Even then, in 1979, this production is an anachronism in Tinsel Town where more, and more, the big studios became partners to independent producers and landlords to those same small production companies; who become willing tenants for the large studio sound stages, sets and back lots.IT has been said that we have 3 social classes in the United States of America; being The Upper Middle Class, the Middle Class and The Lower Middle Class. These terms are, of course euphemisms or rather Code Words; for after all, no American wants to admit that he is a member of any old "Working Class"!! I mean, that's just so 'Proletariat'APPARRENTLY 20th Century-Fox wasn't fearful of doing an American Working Class film; for they did so; not just once, but in two movies released very close to each other and later booked as a double bill. The other title is BREAKING AWAY (20th Century-Fox, 1979); which of course was about the four young friends, a year after high school, meandering through life aimlessly, doing nothing. (Yeah, Schultz, it's the movie with the bicycle race!) ORGANIZED Labor and the attempt to bring union representation to a textile company in the Southern U.S. is the story here. It brings us into contact with the lovely Miss Sally Field, portraying the heroine/protagonist, Norma Rae (Herself). Through several on the job incidents, such as the heart attack and death of her Father, Vernon (Pat Hingle); who is refused permission to leave the line when he experiences stroke/heart seizure type symptoms.WELL call me a softy, but that sure seems like a good reason to take up arms on behalf of having a union in a company.REPRESENTING the international union is organizer (often called 'agitator'), Reuben (Ron Leibman); who, being an outsider, has trouble getting locals to support or even consider the notion of having a representation election in the plant. When Norma starts her protest, he at last has an ally.THE story also deals with the attitudes of the local townspeople toward Miss Norma as the company's union busting campaign machinery gets rolling. Whereas Norma has a couple of kids, previous to her marriage to the loyal and most patient, ,Sonny (Jeff Bridges), she also has one who is illegitimate. Norma forewarns her children and tells them to be prepared to hear more lies. There was even, in the story, mention made of a rumor that Norma had made a Stag Movie with a Cop! (This we found to be most amusing and the biggest laugh in the roughly 2 hours on screen.) OTHER than the personal story of a young woman (Based on a real person involved in the long lasting J.P. Stevens Company's struggle to keep unions out of its domain. Unbelievable as it may sound, at one point J.P. Stevens Company was paying $1,000,000.00 per DAY in fines rather than even begin to allow a representation election.IN a general sense, NORMA RAE is all about the working class people in the U.S.A. and how they (us?) are viewed by the Liberal Press and by the Motion Picture Industry and the related Entertainment Industry. This brings us to what is most important to me in writing about the picture.NORMA is a member of that very Working Class and is not a very refined Lady. She has been around the block several times with regard to her relationship with men. (She was a woman who didn't have an enemy in the world; or as we used to say, "She's just like a door knob. Everyone gets a turn! ALL of that considered people in the Working or Blue Collar stratum in our country and world deserve decent treatment and should not be referred to as "Trailer Trash" and the like. It is indeed a study in hypocrisy that those same elitists would not dare call any Blacks of the same socio-economic rung of the ladder by any derogatory terms, yet express such contempt of people who are classified as being "White".NOTE: * Speaking of Awards, we wonder why no recording of the Oscar winning original song "It Goes Like It Goes" was ever released. For that matter, there was no NORMA RAE original soundtrack album, either. (And the score also claimed an Oscar for David Shire and Norma Gimbel. Hey 20th Century-Fox boss, Rupert Murdoch, it's not too late! POODLE SCHNITZ!! . '