Mike Nichols’s astounding thriller,Silkwood, isbased on the true story and death ofKaren Silkwood,a nuclear whistle-blowerand labor union activist in the 70s.Meryl Streepstarred as Karen Silkwood, while a transformedCherandKurt Russellplayed workers at the plant and Streep’s roommates. The film was a failure at the box office, but won big during the awards season with numerous nominations, including at the Oscars.It’s both exhilarating and terrifying in its exposure of the health risks power plant workers were exposed to in the ’70s.Though it’s some of Streep and Nichols’s best work,Silkwoodhas remained largely unavailable to watch on both digital media and streaming platforms for quite some time. Then, finally, it arrived on Hulu on October 1. This riveting true-crime entry remains vastly underrated, but continues to be one of Nichols’s best.
‘Silkwood’ Is Based Upon an Important True-Crime ’70s Story
Silkwoodis based on the true story of one of the most confounding, inconclusive deaths of the 21st century. A worker at the real-life, Kerr-McGee Platinum Plant, Karen began to discover and investigate wrongdoings at the nuclear plant, and the high rates of radiation she and other workers were exposed to. She thendied suspiciouslyin an inconclusive car accident in 1974, on her way to meet with aNew York Timesreporter with a folder of evidence proving the unsafe conditions. The folder was never found at the site of the crash.The exact cause of death and reason for the crash remains inconclusive to this day, spawning a lawsuit against Kerr-McGee, and many unproved theories of foul play in the crash.
Streep plays Karen, a single mother of three who works at a plant in small-town Oklahoma. She lives with her boyfriend, Drew Stephens (Russell), and her lesbian best friend, Dolly Pelliker (Cher), who both work at the plant. Karen makes fuel rods for nuclear reactors, andworks in a room under constant threat of radiation exposure.After several exposures to radiation begin among her and her co-workers, Karen becomes suspicious that the company is lying to them about the health risks. She then starts to investigate Kerr-McGee, and becomes a union activist in the process, potentially putting her life in danger as the plant becomes aware of her investigation. The film featuresCraig T. Nelson,David Strathairn,andcharacter actor,Fred Ward,as fellow plant workers, alongside a sinisterBruce McGill.
A Ferocious Meryl Streep Plays Real-Life Union Activist, Karen Silkwood
Streep’s gritty, always-moving performance of Karen was the epitome of the modern-day working woman in the 80s, as a single mother of multiple children. Because of how iconic and visceral the role was in its grueling portrayal of the working class,Streep was the inspiration forWinona Ryder’s appearance as Joyce Byer, a single mother struggling to make ends meet inStranger Things.Ryder discussed with Voguehow important Streep’s wardrobe wasin communicating her financial status as a minimum-wage worker in the 80s. The most notable inspiration for Streep’s appearance is Ryder’s now-just as iconic, mullet-styled hair-do from Season 1.
Jane Fondawas originally supposed to play the part of Karen, but seeing Streep on screen sporting that iconic mullet, and swaggering stance in rooms filled with men that she refuses to back out of, makes it clear she was the only one for the part. Streep is ferocious in a vivacious, flirty role that saw a spunk and anger that rejected her American sweetheart persona from previous films likeKramer vs. KramerandThe Deer Hunter. Streep won the Oscar the previous year forSophie’s Choice, andSilkwoodwas a continuation of her transitioninto bolder, darker roles. When Karen is exposed to radiation and is herself hosed down at the plant, Nichols stays close on her face as she silently mouths “ow” over and over, and is silent in her pain. Streep is devastating but fearless in vulnerability.
A Mysterious, True-Crime Travesty, ‘Silkwood’ Is One of Nichols’s Most Poignant Films
Silkwoodis jarring in its depiction of the abuse the workers faced at the plant.It’s as scary as any true crime filmabout a serial killer. Our first introduction to the real conditions is in a heart-pounding, upsetting scene as Karen’s co-worker, the elderly Thelma (Sudie Bond),has been contaminated and is hosed down as no more than an animal, and Nichols cleverly films the scene as such. All these workers are putting their lives on the line, unknowingly, and are like pigs being sent to the slaughter. As Thelma screams about her skin hurting, red and raw, it’s here Karen becomes the hero of the movie, and its soul, and ultimate sacrifice for speaking truth to American corruption and its failure to protect its unions.
Streep received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, but lost toShirley MacLaineinTerms of Endearment. Cher also received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a downtrodden worker void of all the pop star’s flair. Russell received praise as well, as he had mostly avoided dramas up to that point.Silkwoodalso received nominations for Best Original Screenplay, written byNora EphronandAlice Arlen, in addition to Best Director for Nichols, and Best Editing.Silkwoodmay continue to be Nichols’s most haunting and relevant movie, about human rights, and how the American dream failed the working-class American people. For those who lovedChernobyl,Silkwoodportrays radioactive poisoningwith the same frankness and horrific franknessas the HBO series. It’s a brilliant, true-crime thriller that pulses with paranoia and terror.
