An analysis of Blue Collar
In the 1978 film by Paul Schrader, "Blue Collar," the relationship between the blue-collar worker and his union is explored. The film takes the side of the working man and exposes the union for what it is really doing. It is keeping the working class down by keeping it divided. There are many signifiers in the film that explain what the characters, the union, and what the blue-collar life is really like. The first, and one of the most important signifiers in the film, is the blues music at the very beginning. It is a real working man's blues, and it is very repetitive. It has a real slow grinding feel to it like it is an exact portrayal of the workers lives and jobs. During the opening sequence of the film, while this blues tune is played, the camera shows the men working inside the car plant making taxis. The factory is dark and hot, and the men are covered in grease and sweat. Their work is very monotonous, as is the music. Once the workday is over, all of the workers head straight to the bar. The bar is also a main signifier in the movie. It is just a dive bar right next to the plant, but it is like a second home to all of the workers. It is a place that the workers can relax and es
The most important scene in the movie comes at the very end. Jerry is going back to the shop with some FBI agents to pick up his stuff that was left behind. Zeke has become just like any other union man. He is the foreman, and all of the other workers dislike him. The most important signifier in the movie is the fight that happens between Jerry and Zeke in the last shot of the movie. It reiterates the whole point of the movie and the philosophy of the union portrayed in the movie. The union is trying to keep the working class down by keeping it divided. The union pits blacks against whites and workers against workers just so that the working class cannot build up the strength to move forward. The men are slaves to the union and have no power to change it. cape for awhile between their jobs, and their family lives. However, it is not really a place they go for fun. It is a necessary break from all of the work in their lives. At the bar, the main characters are introduced. Zeke, Jerry, and Smokey are all having a drink together when a man claiming to be a college professor approaches them. The man insults the worker's union and Jerry almost gets into a fistfight to defend it. The film shows that the workers defend their union to someone outside of it, but when they go to the union meeting itself, it is a different story. The houses of the three main characters have some of the films more important signifiers. Zeke's house is probably the worst of the three. He has three kids and no extra money to use on his home. The furniture is covered with plastic to make it last longer, and nothing in the house seems to work right. There is also a point were Zeke says he is going to watch the TV no matter what is on it because it is the most expensive thing in the house and he wants to make sure he gets his moneys
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1237
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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