Silkwood
Encyclopedia
Silkwood is a 1983 American drama film
directed by Mike Nichols
. The screenplay by Nora Ephron
and Alice Arlen was inspired by the true-life story of Karen Silkwood
, who died in a suspicious car accident while investigating alleged wrongdoing at the Kerr-McGee
plutonium
plant where she worked.
), a worker at the Kerr-McGee
Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site
(near Crescent, Oklahoma
), shares a ramshackle house with two co-workers, her boyfriend Drew Stephens (Kurt Russell
) and her lesbian friend Dolly Pelliker (Cher
). In addition to working tedious hours making plutonium fuel rods for nuclear reactors and dealing with the constant threat of exposure to radiation, her time is consumed by an ongoing battle waged against her former common law husband in an effort to have more time with their three children.
Because the plant has fallen behind on a major contract, employees are required to work long hours of overtime and managers are falsifying safety reports and cutting corners wherever possible, risking the welfare of the personnel. Karen approaches the union with her concerns and becomes active in lobbying
for safeguards. She travels to Washington, D.C.
where she interacts with union officials who appear to be more interested in the publicity she is generating than her welfare and that of her co-workers.
When Karen and other workers become contaminated by radiation, plant officials try to blame her for the incident. When she discovers that negatives of photographs of faulty fuel rods have been retouched and records of inadequate safety measures have been altered, Karen decides to conduct an investigation of her own. Complications arise in her personal life when funeral parlor beautician Angela joins the household as Dolly's lover and Drew, unable to deal with her obsession with gathering evidence, moves out.
Once she feels she has gathered all the proof of wrongdoing she needs, Karen contacts a reporter from the New York Times and arranges a meeting. In the film's final moments, the scene fades out as Karen sees headlights in her rear-view mirror, then fades in on the aftermath of her fatal one-car crash, and the viewer is left to decide whether the crash was truly an accident or deliberately caused.
in New Mexico
and Dallas, Howe
, Texas City
, and Tom Bean
in Texas
.
of the New York Times called the film "a precisely visualized, highly emotional melodrama
that's going to raise a lot of hackles" and "a very moving work." He added, "There are, however, problems, not unlike those faced by Costa-Gavras
in his State of Siege
and Missing
, and they are major. Mr. Nichols and his writers ... have attempted to impose a shape on a real-life story that, even as they present it, has no easily verifiable shape. We are drawn into the story of Karen Silkwood by the absolute accuracy and unexpected sweetness of its Middle American details and then, near the end, abandoned by a film whose images say one thing and whose final credit card another. The muddle of fact, fiction and speculation almost, though not quite, denies the artistry of all that's gone before." He concluded, "I realize that films shouldn't be judged in bits and pieces, but it's difficult not to see Silkwood in that way. For most of its running time it is so convincing - and so sure of itself - that it seems a particular waste when it goes dangerously wrong. It's like watching a skydiver execute all sorts of graceful, breathtaking turns, as he appears to ignore gravity and fly on his own, only to have him smash to earth when the chute doesn't open."
Roger Ebert
of the Chicago Sun-Times
rated the film four stars and commented, "It's a little amazing that established movie stars like Streep, Russell and Cher could disappear so completely into the everyday lives of these characters."
David Sterritt of the Christian Science Monitor called the film "a fine example of Hollywood's love-hate attitude toward timely and controversial subject matter." He continued, "The movie sides with Silkwood as a character, playing up her spunk and courage while casting wry, sidelong glances at her failings. When it comes to the issues connected with her, though, the filmmakers slip and slide around, providing an escape hatch ... for every position and opinion they offer. This makes the movie less polemical than it might have been, and a lot more wishy-washy . . . This is too bad, because on other levels Silkwood is a strong and imaginative film. Meryl Streep gives the year's most astounding performance by an actress, adding vigor and complexity to almost every scene with her endlessly inventive portrayal of the eccentric heroine. The supporting players skillfully follow her lead."
or fullscreen
formats.
A Region 2 DVD was released by PT Video on April 8, 2002.
A second Region 1 DVD was released by MGM Home Entertainment
on October 7, 2003. It is in anamorphic widescreen format with subtitles in English, Spanish, and French.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols is a German-born American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate...
. The screenplay by Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron
Nora Ephron is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, novelist, playwright, journalist, author, and blogger.She is best known for her romantic comedies and is a triple nominee for the Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay; for Silkwood, When Harry Met Sally... and Sleepless in...
and Alice Arlen was inspired by the true-life story of Karen Silkwood
Karen Silkwood
Karen Gay Silkwood was an American labor union activist and chemical technician at the Kerr-McGee plant near Crescent, Oklahoma, United States. Silkwood's job was making plutonium pellets for nuclear reactor fuel rods...
, who died in a suspicious car accident while investigating alleged wrongdoing at the Kerr-McGee
Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...
plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...
plant where she worked.
Plot
Karen Silkwood (Meryl StreepMeryl Streep
Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
), a worker at the Kerr-McGee
Kerr-McGee
The Kerr-McGee Corporation, founded in 1929, was an energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and gas. On June 23, 2006, Houston-based Anadarko Petroleum Corporation agreed to acquire Kerr-McGee in an all-cash transaction totaling $16.5 billion plus the assumption of $2.6...
Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site
Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site
The Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site was a nuclear fuel production facility located by the Cimarron River near Crescent, Oklahoma. It was operated by Kerr-McGee Corporation from 1965-1975.- History :...
(near Crescent, Oklahoma
Crescent, Oklahoma
Crescent is a city in Logan County, Oklahoma, United States. The population inside the city limits was 1,281 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area...
), shares a ramshackle house with two co-workers, her boyfriend Drew Stephens (Kurt Russell
Kurt Russell
Kurt Vogel Russell is an American television and film actor. His first acting roles were as a child in television series, including a lead role in the Western series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters...
) and her lesbian friend Dolly Pelliker (Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
). In addition to working tedious hours making plutonium fuel rods for nuclear reactors and dealing with the constant threat of exposure to radiation, her time is consumed by an ongoing battle waged against her former common law husband in an effort to have more time with their three children.
Because the plant has fallen behind on a major contract, employees are required to work long hours of overtime and managers are falsifying safety reports and cutting corners wherever possible, risking the welfare of the personnel. Karen approaches the union with her concerns and becomes active in lobbying
Lobbying
Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
for safeguards. She travels to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
where she interacts with union officials who appear to be more interested in the publicity she is generating than her welfare and that of her co-workers.
When Karen and other workers become contaminated by radiation, plant officials try to blame her for the incident. When she discovers that negatives of photographs of faulty fuel rods have been retouched and records of inadequate safety measures have been altered, Karen decides to conduct an investigation of her own. Complications arise in her personal life when funeral parlor beautician Angela joins the household as Dolly's lover and Drew, unable to deal with her obsession with gathering evidence, moves out.
Once she feels she has gathered all the proof of wrongdoing she needs, Karen contacts a reporter from the New York Times and arranges a meeting. In the film's final moments, the scene fades out as Karen sees headlights in her rear-view mirror, then fades in on the aftermath of her fatal one-car crash, and the viewer is left to decide whether the crash was truly an accident or deliberately caused.
Production
The film was shot on location in Albuquerque and Los AlamosLos Alamos, New Mexico
Los Alamos is a townsite and census-designated place in Los Alamos County, New Mexico, United States, built upon four mesas of the Pajarito Plateau and the adjoining White Rock Canyon. The population of the CDP was 12,019 at the 2010 Census. The townsite or "the hill" is one part of town while...
in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
and Dallas, Howe
Howe, Texas
Howe is a town in Grayson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,478 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Sherman–Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area-Geography:Howe is located at ....
, Texas City
Texas City, Texas
Texas City is a city in Chambers and Galveston counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 41,521 at the 2000 census. It is a part of the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown, Texas Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, and Tom Bean
Tom Bean, Texas
Tom Bean is a city in Grayson County, Texas, United States. The population was 941 at the 2000 census.Tom Bean is part of the Sherman–Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Tom Bean is located at ....
in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
Cast
- Meryl StreepMeryl StreepMary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film.Streep made her professional stage debut in 1971's The Playboy of Seville, before her screen debut in the television movie The Deadliest Season in 1977. In that same year, she made her film debut with...
as Karen SilkwoodKaren SilkwoodKaren Gay Silkwood was an American labor union activist and chemical technician at the Kerr-McGee plant near Crescent, Oklahoma, United States. Silkwood's job was making plutonium pellets for nuclear reactor fuel rods... - Kurt RussellKurt RussellKurt Vogel Russell is an American television and film actor. His first acting roles were as a child in television series, including a lead role in the Western series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters...
as Drew Stephens - CherCherCher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
as Dolly Pelliker - Craig T. NelsonCraig T. NelsonCraig Theodore Nelson is an American actor. He is probably best known for his Emmy-winning roles as Hayden Fox on the TV series Coach, and as Steve Freeling in the 1982 film Poltergeist. He also starred in The Incredibles in 2004 as Mr...
as Winston - Fred WardFred WardFreddie Joe "Fred" Ward is an American actor. He began his career in 1979 alongside Clint Eastwood in Escape from Alcatraz. He is best known for his starring roles in the motion pictures Remo Williams, Tremors, Henry & June, Short Cuts, The Right Stuff and Exit Speed...
as Morgan - Diana ScarwidDiana ScarwidDiana Scarwid is an American actress. Scarwid has done work in film, television and theater.-Personal life:Scarwid was born in Savannah, Georgia, and left Georgia at the age of 17, heading to New York to become an actress. She graduated from Pace University and The American Academy of Dramatic...
as Angela - Ron SilverRon SilverRonald Arthur "Ron" Silver was an American actor, director, producer, radio host and political activist.-Early life:...
as Paul Stone - Josef SommerJosef SommerJosef Sommer is an American film actor.He was born Maximilian Josef Sommer in Greifswald, Germany and was raised in North Carolina, the son of Elisabeth and Clemons Sommer, a professor of art history at the University of North Carolina. He studied at the Carnegie Institute of Technology...
as Max Richter - Charles HallahanCharles HallahanCharles John Hallahan was an American film, television and stage actor best known for his performances in Going in Style, The Thing, and Dante's Peak.-Life and career:...
as Earl Lapin - Sudie Bond as Thelma Rice
- Henderson ForsytheHenderson ForsytheHenderson Forsythe was an American actor. Forsythe was known for his role as Dr. David Stewart #2 on the soap opera As the World Turns, a role he played for 32 years, and for his work on the New York stage....
as Quincy Bissell - Bruce McGillBruce McGillBruce Travis McGill is an American actor who has an extensive list of credits in film and television. He is perhaps best known for his role as Jack Dalton on the television series MacGyver and as Daniel Simpson "D-Day" Day in National Lampoon's Animal House.-Early life:McGill was born in San...
as Mace Hurley - David StrathairnDavid StrathairnDavid Russell Strathairn is an American actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for portraying journalist Edward R. Murrow in Good Night, and Good Luck...
as Wesley - M. Emmet WalshM. Emmet WalshMichael Emmet Walsh is an American actor who has appeared in over 100 film and television productions.-Life and career:Walsh was born in Ogdensburg, New York, the son of Agnes Kathrine and Harry Maurice Walsh, Sr., a customs agent...
as Walt Yarborough - Ray BakerRay Baker (actor)Ray Baker is an American theater, television and film actor. He is a long time character actor with over 100 credits on television and film alone. Baker is credited either as Ray or Raymond.-Selected filmography:...
as Pete Dawson
Critical reception
Vincent CanbyVincent Canby
Vincent Canby was an American film critic who became the chief film critic for The New York Times in 1969 and reviewed more than 1000 films during his tenure there.-Life and career:...
of the New York Times called the film "a precisely visualized, highly emotional melodrama
Melodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
that's going to raise a lot of hackles" and "a very moving work." He added, "There are, however, problems, not unlike those faced by Costa-Gavras
Costa-Gavras
Costa-Gavras, is a Greek filmmaker, who lives and works in France, best known for films with overt political themes, most famously the fast-paced thriller, Z...
in his State of Siege
State of Siege
State of Siege is a 1972 French film directed by Costa Gavras starring Yves Montand and Renato Salvatori.-Summary:...
and Missing
Missing (film)
Missing is a 1982 American drama film directed by Costa Gavras, and starring Jack Lemmon, Sissy Spacek, Melanie Mayron, John Shea, Charles Cioffi and Janice Rule...
, and they are major. Mr. Nichols and his writers ... have attempted to impose a shape on a real-life story that, even as they present it, has no easily verifiable shape. We are drawn into the story of Karen Silkwood by the absolute accuracy and unexpected sweetness of its Middle American details and then, near the end, abandoned by a film whose images say one thing and whose final credit card another. The muddle of fact, fiction and speculation almost, though not quite, denies the artistry of all that's gone before." He concluded, "I realize that films shouldn't be judged in bits and pieces, but it's difficult not to see Silkwood in that way. For most of its running time it is so convincing - and so sure of itself - that it seems a particular waste when it goes dangerously wrong. It's like watching a skydiver execute all sorts of graceful, breathtaking turns, as he appears to ignore gravity and fly on his own, only to have him smash to earth when the chute doesn't open."
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
rated the film four stars and commented, "It's a little amazing that established movie stars like Streep, Russell and Cher could disappear so completely into the everyday lives of these characters."
David Sterritt of the Christian Science Monitor called the film "a fine example of Hollywood's love-hate attitude toward timely and controversial subject matter." He continued, "The movie sides with Silkwood as a character, playing up her spunk and courage while casting wry, sidelong glances at her failings. When it comes to the issues connected with her, though, the filmmakers slip and slide around, providing an escape hatch ... for every position and opinion they offer. This makes the movie less polemical than it might have been, and a lot more wishy-washy . . . This is too bad, because on other levels Silkwood is a strong and imaginative film. Meryl Streep gives the year's most astounding performance by an actress, adding vigor and complexity to almost every scene with her endlessly inventive portrayal of the eccentric heroine. The supporting players skillfully follow her lead."
Box office
The film opened in 257 theaters in the United States on December 14, 1983 and grossed $1,218,322 on its opening weekend, ranking #12 at the box office. By its seventh week of release it had expanded to 816 screens and reached #1. It eventually earned $35,615,609 in the US.Awards and nominations
- Academy Award for Best ActressAcademy Award for Best ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
(Meryl Streep, nominee) - Academy Award for Best Supporting ActressAcademy Award for Best Supporting ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
(Cher, nominee) - Academy Award for Best Director (Mike Nichols, nominee)
- Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay (Nora Ephron and Alice Arlen, nominees)
- Academy Award for Best Film Editing (Sam O'Steen, nominee)
- BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading RoleBest Actress in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognise an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.- Winners and nominees :...
(Meryl Streep, nominee) - BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting RoleBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting RoleBest Actress in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film...
(Cher, nominee) - Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture (Cher, winner)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama (nominee)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama (Meryl Streep, nominee)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture (Kurt Russell, nominee)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Director (Mike Nichols, nominee)
- Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressKansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best ActressThe Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress is an award given by the Kansas City Film Critics Circle to honor the best achievements in acting.-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:*...
(Meryl Streep, winner) - Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original ScreenplayWriters Guild of America Award for Best Original ScreenplayThe Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay is one of the three film writing awards given by the Writers Guild of America Award....
(Nora Ephron and Alice Arlen, nominees)
Home media
Anchor Bay Entertainment released the film on DVD in Region 1 on June 15, 1999. Viewers had the option of anamorphic widescreenAnamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen, when applied to DVD manufacture, is a video process that horizontally squeezes a widescreen image so that it can be stored in a standard 4:3 aspect ratio DVD image frame. Compatible playback equipment can then re-expand the horizontal dimension to show the original widescreen...
or fullscreen
Pan and scan
Pan and scan is a method of adjusting widescreen film images so that they can be shown within the proportions of a standard definition 4:3 aspect ratio television screen, often cropping off the sides of the original widescreen image to focus on the composition's most important aspects...
formats.
A Region 2 DVD was released by PT Video on April 8, 2002.
A second Region 1 DVD was released by MGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment is the home video and DVD arm of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-History:The home video division of MGM started in 1979 as MGM Home Video, releasing all the movies and TV shows by MGM. In 1980, MGM joined forces with CBS Video Enterprises, the home video division of the CBS television...
on October 7, 2003. It is in anamorphic widescreen format with subtitles in English, Spanish, and French.