Skip to main content

Plot

Norma Rae finds Sally Field cast in the title role, a minimum-wage worker in a cotton mill. The factory has taken too much of a toll on the health of Norma Rae's family for her to ignore her Dickensian working conditions. After hearing a speech by New York union organizer Reuben (Ron Leibman), Norma Rae decides to join the effort to unionize her shop. This causes dissension at home when Norma Rae's husband, Sonny (Beau Bridges), assumes that her activism is a result of a romance between herself and Reuben. Despite the pressure brought to bear by management, Norma Rae successfully orchestrates a shutdown of the mill, resulting in victory for the union and capitulation to its demands. Based on a true story, Norma Rae is the film for which Sally Field won her first Oscar; an additional Oscar went to David Shire and Norman Gimbel for the film's theme song, "It Goes Like It Goes."
MPAA Rating:
PG
Genre(s):
Drama
Run Time:
120min.
Theatrical Release Date:
05/22/2005
DVD Release Date:
04/17/2001
Director(s):
Martin Ritt
Starring:
Sally Field , Beau Bridges , Ron Leibman , Pat Hingle , Barbara Baxley
Themes:
Righting the Wronged,Whistleblowers,Work Ethics,Labor Unions,Fighting the System
Tone:
Humorous,Upbeat,Warm,Matter-of-Fact,Compassionate,Earnest,Rousing
Keywords:
alienation,courage,factory,factory-worker,family,labor [work],labor-relations,one-against-odds,striker,union [labor union],union-dispute
Language:
English