In Dubious Battle

Here we have a story that was told well - directing and writing was good, cinematography, editing and sound was great, but the pace was very slow and missing substance. It felt like someone monotonic was telling a story, but with no punch-line, or closing plot message. It wasn't a bad film, and the cast were all on point, but is was just missing that wow factor for me. It's a 6/10 from me.

This film tells the story of a group of workers in an Apple farm in the early 1900's in the United States of America, who demand improved pay and working conditions. As they rise up against exploitation by the farm owner, they pay begin to pay a price they cannot imagine.

I had low expectations when I began watching it, as I have not enjoyed many films directed by James Franco. However, the story of "In Dubious Battle" is unexpectedly engaging, proving my preconceptions wrong. Neither side will budge from their positions, leading to an escalation of clash, ultimately leading to violence and death. It indeed is a dubious battle for both sides, as morality is eroded by desperation, greed and many other factors. It is also captivating to see how the roles of Vincent D'Onofrio and Nat Wolff change throughout the film. I find this film captivating, engaging and thought provoking.

"In Dubious Battle" is a very good film about unionizing during the rough and violent 1930s. Because there was the Depression, employers were paying even lower wages than usual because they knew the workers needed the jobs and would work at slave wages. In the example you see in the film, the workers are promised a paltry $3 a day...only to show up and learn that they would only be paid $1!

In the midst of this injustice, organizers from the IWW (The Industrial Workers of the World, or 'The Wobblies' as they were popularly called) arrive to organize the apple pickers and demand a reasonable salary. But the man in charge (Robert Duvall) is a real devil...and he's not above killing some of the workers to force the rest of them in line.

This film is an excellent example of labor exploitation and is pretty realistic. However, as a US History teacher, I also felt the film wasn't exactly balanced (though it was very well made). This is because the very radical platform of the Wobblies is never mentioned and they seem much like any other union of the day in the film. However, the I. W. W. Didn't just call for better wages and conditions (something all workers deserve) but the abolishment of property rights and communism--something you could understand since the economy was in crisis. But despite this BIG omission, the workers did need organizing and were being exploited...and the film got that part of the story dead right. Why they never mentioned the Wobblies' platform, I have no idea...perhaps it was ignorance, naivete or perhaps it was to make the story more 'black & white', so to speak. Either way, most of the unions of the day (such as the AFofL) were not in support of the I. W. W. And its radical plaform.

Because the acting was very good and the film was so well made, I can't give this a low score. I just wish the film had presented a more realistic image of the struggle...not to demonize the workers (heck, they had every right to be angry) but to tell a complete picture of the struggle. In fact, seeing a film about the I. W. W. Would be very interesting and worth seeing.

The movie starts off nicely and the story develops around the main characters and adds characters as it goes. However the excellent cast within this movie cannot remove the fact that this movie stars around the 30-minute mark and never really regains momentum. You're waiting for something extraordinary to happen but it never does. Robert Duvall is only in the movie maybe four times of a total of 20 minutes perhaps, he however plays the villain masterfully. In fact all of the cast are excellent, the script on the other hand is a different story. Five stars from me.

Liked this movie? read the book. didn't like this movie? read the book. the book is soooo good, and no matter how good (or bad) the adaption, the movie just can't capture it's essence.

read 'In Dubious Battle' by John Steinbeck.