Blue Collar [Blu-ray]

Overview

The plight of the working stiff provides the basis for this gripping chronicle of the indignities suffered by three auto workers who tire of being exploited by both their employers and their own union and decide to get revenge by robbing the union hall. Unfortunately, the robbery only yields a few files, not the money they desperately need. On closer inspection though, the stolen documents provide damning evidence of union corruption and the trio decide to try their hand at a little extortion without fully realizing the potentially fatal consequences of their actions.

Product Details

Release Date:	12/10/2019
UPC:	0738329239008
Original Release:	1978
Rating:	R
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	1:54:00
Sales rank:	21,980

Special Features

1920x1080p; Audio commentary with co-writer/director Paul Schrader and journalist Maitland McDonagh; Theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Richard Pryor	Zeke Brown
Harvey Keitel	Jerry Bartowski
Yaphet Kotto	Smokey James
Ed Begley Jr.	Bobby Joe
Harry Bellaver	Eddie Johnson
George Memmoli	Jenkins
Lucy Saroyan	Arlene Bartowski
Lane Smith	Clarence Hill
Cliff De Young	John Burrows
Borah Silver	Miller
Chip Fields	Caroline Brown
Harry Northrup	Hank
Leonard Gaines	IRS Man
Milton Selzer	Sumabitch
Sammy Warren	Barney
Jimmy Martinez	Charlie T. Martinez
Jerry Dahlmann	Superintendent
Denny Arnold	Unshaven Thug
Rock Riddle	Blonde Thug
Stacey Baldwin	Debby Bartowski
Steve Butts	Bob Bartowski
Stephen P. Dunn	Flannigan
Speedy Brown	Slim
Davone Florence	Frazier Brown
Eddie Singleton	Ali Brown,Aretha Brown
Vermetta Royster	Neighbor
Jaime Carreire	Little Joe
Victoria McFarland	Doris
"Spanky" McFarland	Doris
Tracey Walter	Union Member
Jack Nitzsche	Composer
Ry Cooder	Composer

Technical Credits

Paul Schrader

Robin French	Executive Producer
Don Guest	Producer
Paul Schrader	Director,Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Vic Ramos	Casting
Willie Burton	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Richard Pryor's best dramatic performance is at the heart of Blue Collar, a rare American film that casts an unflinching look at the high-pressure life of working-class people. Acclaimed screenwriter Paul Schrader (who wrote such films as Taxi Driver and Raging Bull) made his directorial debut with this simmering story about three desperate Detroit autoworkers (played by Pryor, Harvey Keitel, and Yaphet Kotto) who plot to rob their own union. Both the merciless corporation and the corrupt union are their enemies in this bleak, profane, but spirited film. The subject matter of real, unglamorous people is usually off-limits for Hollywood, but Schrader wisely resists the temptation to glamorize his protagonists. Pryor shows tremendous range in a role that uses his expressive humanity for other than comic purposes. His lost, weary, cheated character is at the core of the film's considerable moral weight.