Rating: 
Summary: A good look at Labor and its decline
Review: "American Dream" breaks your heart. No matter what side of the labor movement you are on, if you are for or against it, you see its toll on the people involved, but also the hope it instills in a group. Personally, as a pro-union man who thinks that unions actually have a place in our society and are not something of the past, I felt that the movie also showed the lack of solidarity within the movement. Instead of a concrete effort to defeat Hormel, the union was set against itself somewhat at first, without the backing of the international. That, I believe, speaks to all people in society. You cannot accomplish things if you are not united... a good lesson no matter what walk of life someone is from, and something totally unrelated to unions that this movie tells.
Rating: 
Summary: A very educational film
Review: I am a high school teacher, and I use this film as a part of a unit entitled "The American Dream." Sure, this film is titled appropriately enough, but its significance runs much deeper.Although I was just in grade school while the Hormel strike was raging, I do remember hearing about it on the news. I found this film to be a candid glimpse into the tenacity of the union struggle as well as a highlight of decisions that impacted people's lives forever. Barbara Kopple did a wonderful job of interviewing union members who felt differently about the struggle going on. Each year, while my class views the film, I wonder whatever happened to the two brothers she highlights in the film -- one who was pro-union, no matter what, and one who decided to cross the picket line to support his family. In the film, the pro-union brother disowns his brother for becoming a scab. I found that family squabble to be classic of the kind of destruction this long, drawn out union battle caused. This film represents the American Dream quite nicely. Here you have hundreds and thousands of union members who are fighting for the American Dream, but whose vision becomes a little cloudy during the struggle. I feel that Barbara Kopple did a good job of presenting the material in an unbiased way, for each year my students seem to view the film in their own ways. Not everyone comes to one conclusion as to which side was right or wrong.
Rating:
Summary: A very educational film
Review: I am a high school teacher, and I use this film as a part of a unit entitled "The American Dream." Sure, this film is titled appropriately enough, but its significance runs much deeper. Although I was just in grade school while the Hormel strike was raging, I do remember hearing about it on the news. I found this film to be a candid glimpse into the tenacity of the union struggle as well as a highlight of decisions that impacted people's lives forever. Barbara Kopple did a wonderful job of interviewing union members who felt differently about the struggle going on. Each year, while my class views the film, I wonder whatever happened to the two brothers she highlights in the film -- one who was pro-union, no matter what, and one who decided to cross the picket line to support his family. In the film, the pro-union brother disowns his brother for becoming a scab. I found that family squabble to be classic of the kind of destruction this long, drawn out union battle caused. This film represents the American Dream quite nicely. Here you have hundreds and thousands of union members who are fighting for the American Dream, but whose vision becomes a little cloudy during the struggle. I feel that Barbara Kopple did a good job of presenting the material in an unbiased way, for each year my students seem to view the film in their own ways. Not everyone comes to one conclusion as to which side was right or wrong.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie
Review: I liked this movies alot because of the complex and intricate way it told the story of a union, who time had come and gone. So often, like Harlan County, union stories are merely Us against Them with no middle ground. In this film, it is hard to determine who the heroes are-- those who crossed the picket line to feed their families or those who stood firm on principles and lost their jobs. There is probably only one villian-- Ray Rogers, whose self-promoting tactics cost the hard-working laborers who the film makes you love.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie
Review: I liked this movies alot because of the complex and intricate way it told the story of a union, who time had come and gone. So often, like Harlan County, union stories are merely Us against Them with no middle ground. In this film, it is hard to determine who the heroes are-- those who crossed the picket line to feed their families or those who stood firm on principles and lost their jobs. There is probably only one villian-- Ray Rogers, whose self-promoting tactics cost the hard-working laborers who the film makes you love.
Rating: 
Summary: Watch cautiously...
Review: I was forced to view this video by family members who live in Austin, MN (where the strike took place), and I am glad I did so. I have always thought that unions have "wore out their welcome" in modern day America, and after viewing "American Dream", that thought is now more concrete than ever. Words and slogans like "Brotherhood", and "Solidarity" are obviously not directed for union members anymore... only for officers within unions. Great movie... it will sway or strengthen the way you view unions, one way or the other.
Rating:
Summary: Watch cautiously...
Review: I was forced to view this video by family members who live in Austin, MN (where the strike took place), and I am glad I did so. I have always thought that unions have "wore out their welcome" in modern day America, and after viewing "American Dream", that thought is now more concrete than ever. Words and slogans like "Brotherhood", and "Solidarity" are obviously not directed for union members anymore... only for officers within unions. Great movie... it will sway or strengthen the way you view unions, one way or the other.
Rating:
Summary: No Retreat, No Surrender
Review: In this amazing documentary about the Hormel strike in Austin, MN back in the mid 1980's, you can't help but understand why Unions are losing members every year. Simply, companies have become so powerful that the only way Unions can fight back is with an all-out, risky assault. In the best cases they are able to win some of their demands. All too often though, they get very little back and their personal lives and friendships are damaged. The Hormel strike is a glaring example of the Union having very few options to fight back. Soon, it becomes Union member vs. Union member in an attempt to determine the plan of attack instead of working together to fight Hormel. As a Union member and supporter myself, I came away from the documentary with even more resolve to keep up the fight.
Rating:
Summary: An American Dream? or Nightmare
Review: My husband was part of that American Dream. He was a member of the union and a very active part of the strike. He was spit on by some of the townspeople and harrassed and made to feel like a rebel most of the time because he was fighting for something he believed to be important. The strike was a very hard thing for everyone, company and union members alike. In the end the strike was broken and so were peoples lives and families. But, the unions are still a very important part of the American Dream and unfortunately the companies get away with trying to take that away from the workers. The film was great and if you knew anyone that was invovled with it, it was heartbreaking to relive it. The author, however, should be commended for producing a great film.
Rating:
Summary: Union-busting at its best
Review: The director is plainly sympathetic to the workers, as they struggle to earn more for doing less. That's what makes this film so much fun. If it had been pro-management, it would not have been able to completely portray the effect of management's crushing victory over the workers. Instead, we get to see -- and enjoy -- the union members' degradation and disintegration up close.
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