We Work Again

Starring: Eric Burroughs, Jack Carter, Lawrence Chenault, Alma Dickson
Directed by: N/A
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Short, Documentary
Length: 15 minutes
1937

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The Works Progress Administration (WPA) puts African-Americans to work during the Great Depression.

Review:

Tim: We Work Again is an interesting little documentary about the Works Progress Administration and their attempt to find jobs for African-Americans during one of the most trying economic times in our nation's history. The film plays like a piece of propaganda, talking about all the great things the WPA did to find people jobs. I'm sure it's true, but it's hard to get excited about it when you consider how many others struggled with work (not to mention the still rampant racism in the U.S.). Still, this is a short documentary about a good program that helped a lot of people. This film contains the last five minutes of one of the WPA's projects, "Voodoo Macbeth", which was directed by Orson Welles. I'm not sure how I feel about this. This documentary progresses like a typical government-funded film until it reaches this point. Then, in the midst of a very short 15 minute film, almost a third of the film is just the ending of this play. Besides the fact that "Voodoo Macbeth" probably couldn't get made today for obvious reasons, the inclusion of this long scene completely disrupts the flow of the film. I forgot what I was watching as the minutes ticked away and the play continued to take up screen time. It felt like a strange way to conclude the film, as it blunts any message that the film might have had.

To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of We Work Again. It's an interesting look, but poorly constructed as a film.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: N/A