The_Film_That_Changed_My_Life

Harlan County U.S.A.
115
James: Right. What Barbara did is a very distinctly original film to look at
even today. I can’t think of another film that weaves history, including even
archival material from history, in with this very direct verité approach of
being inside a situation like she is, and then scoring the film with music—
the music of protest. It ends up being a very eclectic mix of things that you
don’t typically find in a film that, at its heart, is a verité film. Most verité
filmmakers tend to eschew music unless it’s happening in the scene. If they
score, it’s minimal, sparse and understated. It doesn’t provide the kind of
commentary that the songs do throughout this film. They are pushed front
and center. The songs become very much a part of the storytelling. These are
all qualities that make the film distinct and keep it fresh.
Kopple has said that she originally set out to cover an election.
James: That makes sense because you see a lot of that material.
She originally set out to do this story about an election of officials and a
longtime labor leader, but the film became something completely else.
How many times in your experience as a filmmaker does that happen?
James: I think it happens a lot, and usually that’s a good thing. Usually, you
start out with an idea that’s very solid and may even be terrific. It’s the act of
going out and making the film that allows the film to take you where it wants
to go. I used to read novelists saying they had no idea what their character was
going to do because their character decided for themselves. I used to think,
“Oh, that’s a lot of bullshit, basically. You create the characters. You decide
these things.” On some level that’s true, but I understand now more what they
meant by that. In fiction or in documentary, if you try to be true to what it is
you’re trying to capture, then you have to give up some control in a way.
She’s trying to cover an election, and you see strong remnants of that
because it is important to the story. That election’s aftermath is important,
how this particular union reacts to the union head who is now having to
navigate this contract. Their own beginning of fissures between membership
in the union and the new leadership. All those things are part of the
film and important parts, so it’s good that she had that. It helps to broaden
the story and make it a bigger story. But on the other hand, the heart of the
film is not there. The heart of the film is what she discovered when she got