Director: Martin Ritt
Year Released: 1970
Rating: 2.0
Pseudo-Marxist film about 19th century revolt in coal-mining Pennsylvania wherein a group of miners, tired of being taken advantage of by the rich, decide to start blowing up train tracks and mines. History is once again skewed for Hollywood's purposes, and facts were tweaked - it's also highly unlikely that someone as suspicious as Richard Harris would be let into such an secret organization as the Molly Maguires. Ritt's statement - that Harris the detective and Sean Connery the malcontent, despite being from different levels on the social ladder and at opposite ends of the law, both share discontent for the slave labor situation and the exploitation therein - is only really shown at the very end; the potential love-connection between Harris and Samantha Eggar is given too much attention for it to ultimately lead nowhere. Oh, and it also bears noting that for once, the Irish are not at all shown as constantly brawling, heavy drinking, soccer hooligan terrorists. Er ... wait a minute....
