Blue Collar (1978)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Blue Collar (1978) – P. Schrader

Paul Schrader’s debut film as a director (after writing Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and De Palma’s Obsession) is a heist film, of a sort, but really more a look at three autoworkers and their attempts not to get screwed by both management and their union. Richard Pryor, Yaphet Kotto, and Harvey Keitel are barely making ends meet – Keitel works two jobs, Pryor cheats on his taxes, and Kotto has a side hustle or two going on.  They blow off steam when they can but the failure of the union rep to support them leads to a half-cooked plan to rob the safe at headquarters.  Of course, things don’t go to plan – but the aftermath is what really makes the film interesting.  Pryor, Keitel, and Kotto all have different depressing trajectories.  Schrader keeps things gritty and the actors strut their stuff.  The result is partly a sociological treatise about the plight of the working man (1970s edition) with some particular truths about working while black (courtesy of Pryor) and partly an engaging drama about three friends who fall out.  Recommended.