This documentary about the miners and capitalists of Butte, Montana, is pretty good, considering it's part of someone's dissertation. Comprised mostly of lingering landscapes, stills, and narration, the film details the efforts of IWW activist Frank Little to organize the workers of Butte in 1917. The film also takes some surprising diversions regarding novelist Dashiell Hammett and McCarthyism and ends with a brief update on the dire condition of Butte and its environs in the twenty-first century. Though imperfect--the deadpan narration is a little too self-important, the utilization of Butte mining songs disengaging, and some camera shots tend to linger several seconds too long at times--this is a fascinating document of a little known period of American history. The soundtrack, provided by artists such as Low, Dirty Three, and Will Oldham, is particularly noteworthy.
Review of An Injury to One
