Working Man

This is a gentle movie, about people, work and our minds. Nice for a rainy evening.

I tuned in for Peter Gerety, an extraordinarily gifted actor, and was pleased to find that Billy Brown absolutely held his own, and then some, as his co-star. The movie also has its heart in the right place-- with the working class-- and it has a fairly fresh idea, with an unpredictable plot, and characters who are not one-dimensional, including not just laborers at the plastics plant (stay tuned for more on plastic), but management and corporate, too.

My frustrations may seem minor, but I think the movie was undermined by two bad decisions.

First, the imbalance of dialog between Brown as Walter Brewer and Gerety as Allery Parkes. Brewer is charismatic and talkative which is a stark difference from Parkes, who is given less than the bare minimum of lines to make him seem real. Gerety's character shut down after his son's suicide, but to a degree that doesn't help the film: it's unnecessarily severe. When a character is that withdrawn, I always wonder why anybody bothers to stick around-- including me.

Second, and this may seem petty, but I'm serious: Talia Shire had no business playing Mrs. Parkes. I'm not talking about her acting ability. I'm talking about her plastic face: the amount of cosmetic surgery she has obviously had undermines every scene she's in, especially when she's counting coupons at the grocery store. Once a performer gets that much work done, they forfeit the right to play a working stiff, or his wife.

An intriguing portrayal of a simple, mid-western, working class man as he grapples with loss and changes in his life that force him to go on an inner journey of re-discovery. Peter Gerety's performance is captivating, and Billy Brown has a commanding and inspiring screen presence. Definitely a must see!

This is a beautifully made film. The whole package is very well put together. Although its quite a simple tale of a factory closing and the impact on its workforce , particularly the main characters , it doesn't lead you to the rosy promised land and instead focuses on the characters personalities and life problems. Its main strength lies in its casting , with Peter Gerety putting in a superb performance , ably backed up by Talia Shire and Billy Browm. If you like human interest films it's well worth watching.

Robert Jury's mesmerizing film, WORKING MAN, is a gut-wrenching and timely portrait of a factory worker, Allery Parkes, movingly and masterfully portrayed by Peter Gerety. The plastics factory where Allery works has shut down and his life is left without a sense of purpose. As his days pass slowly, Allery begins trudging back to the closed and empty plant trying to fill his void. His journey each day takes him toward what he has always sought - a sense of purpose and worth that comes from knowing that what you do matters in this world. During this pandemic which has left multiple unsettlingly voids in all our lives, Allery's odyssey intimately becomes our own journey to unearth what matters most and what truly gives purpose. WORKING MAN is a quietly unforgettable and searing personal experience.