Salt of the Earth

Not only have I seen Salt of the Earth, but I grew up where it was filmed. The story behind the story is almost more fascinating to me than the movie itself. I am related (albeit distantly) to at least one of the "actors" in the film, my step-father ran the projector for the dailies, and no one, and I mean NO ONE that I grew up with would ever talk about it. It wasn't just because of the black-listed actors. They were the excuse. This film portrays a part of mining history in southern New Mexico that to this day is still a sore spot. The film was made not long after the actual event (the strike of the hispanic miners), and was not at all flattering to the local police/sherriff's departments. It truely was, in my opinion white vs hispanic, and the whites didn't come out smelling like a rose. To have something they'd rather forget about not only filmed, but become so infamous and well-known did not (and does not) sit well with most in this town. For me, the movie is more a curiosity. I didn't think it was all that good, most of the acting was really terrible (including that of the Hollywood "stars") and the technicality of the film was even worse. To me, it's more interesting because of the outside "stuff" that surrounded it.