MIKE NICHOLS

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BBB. 

USA, 1983.   ABC Motion Pictures.   Screenplay by Nora Ephron, Alice Arlen.   Cinematography by Miroslav Ondricek.   Produced by Michael Hausman, Mike Nichols.   Music by Georges Delerue.   Production Design by Patrizia von Brandenstein.   Costume Design by Ann Roth.   Film Editing by Sam O’Steen.   Academy Awards 1983.   Golden Globe Awards 1983.   New York Film Critics Awards 1983.  

Meryl Streep proved that elegant period pieces weren’t the only thing she could shine in when she appeared in this devastating, fact-based drama. She plays real-life Karen Silkwood, an employee at a plutonium processing plant who decides to go public about the harmful effects of the material she is working with and the lax methods that her company is using to protect its employees from danger. Sadly, the night she is supposed to meet with a reporter from the New York Times to tell her story, she dies in a very suspicious automobile accident. Delving into her personal life with her boyfriend (Kurt Russell) and roommate and best friend (Cher, whose work here is marvelous), this fascinating film is a powerful look at the evils of corporate America and the sacrifices that are made in the name of greed. Directed with precision and uninterrupted force by Mike Nichols, it is thought-provoking and educational and never loses your attention for a moment. Streep, as usual, astounds.