The Pennsylvania Miners' Story

Typical made for TV movie. Over-dramatic at times, but got the job done. The actor who played the character who kept the families of the victims updated, did an excellent job with his pittsburgh accent. Although it was a small part, the man who played Gov. Schweiker portrayed him perfectly.

Very touching story. Better than average TV movie, especially since these events just took place a few months ago.

At the Quecreek Mine, nine miners were doing their jobs when their ordinary lives were suddenly changed and their race for survival was as dramatic as the emotions that were being portrayed at the fire hall.

By now, we have heard about the famous miracle that happened in Somerset, PA, and in this made-for-TV movie, the story was told with great care, with such authenticity that it felt like you were with the families and the miners. The movie was filmed at the actual mine, the fire hall, and at one of the miner's homes, and contains real footage from Pittsburgh's Channel 4 News. Because it was too dangerous to film in the real mine, a set was built in Los Angeles, and the special effects were so realistic that it was more like a motion picture than a made-for-TV movie. The actors were also very good in their roles and the miners themselves added emotion to the story.

OK TV Movie, actually refreshing to have a positive story and family oriented characters as opposed to the trash that's usually thrown at the public in the form of a TV movie.

It did give the viewer a look at what it must've been like for those 9 workers. I wish they would've added, or informed the viewers of the actual dates. If this movie is viewed several years from now, it would be nice to inform new viewers when it took place. It does have that "Get the TV movie out there right away..." feel to it as you watch but it isn't bad at all.

Could've been a lot better and the abrupt ending was a disappointment.

It is clear this movie was motivated by the desire to profit from this almost tragedy. How else could one explain the speed with which this movie was made! Like many others I followed this story with interest when it happened last summer. I was very happy to see this rescue effort succeed. I would have preferred to see this movie produced for a movie theater or at least a movie station (HBO or Showtime)! I have met a miner or two in my day and I'm certain the language was not as mild as the dialog in this production! I rated this movie a 6 because of the obvious censorship displayed in the dialog. I hope the brave men who lived through this ordeal received a LARGE sum of money from ABC or whatever production company created this movie.

This story is something like what actually happened, I live in somerset pa. The mine in which the coal miners were trapped in is exactly 2 miles from my house. I personally know the guys who were trapped in the mine. As compared to a lot of other "based on a true story" movies this one is actually pretty close to the actual happenings. The mine is still running and still has all the publicity signs up. This whole catastrophe could have been prevented if the maps would've been updated before they began digging. On a personal note, the 9 men trapped in the mine hesitated and didn't want a movie to be made of this. They claim "I was just doing my job" which I respect greatly because they represent a life long traditional job that has been a "way of life" for many generations.