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Bisbee '17

Name: Bisbee '17
Director: Robert Greene
Released: 2018
Duration: 124 min

Representation Score

3.2/10

Limited

2018

Director

Robert Greene

Runtime

124 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Bisbee '17 is a nuanced historical revision that uses community reenactments to explore power structures. It shifts from conventional narratives to examine the personal experiences of class conflict and systemic violence. The film's primary strength lies in its layered approach to the Arizona borderlands, highlighting the Mexican-American workforce and challenging sanitized versions of Western industrial history. However, the film's focus on industrial labor limits its representation of LGBTQ+ identities and offers limited opportunities for female characters to take significant roles.

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Category Breakdown

Does Bisbee '17 have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film does not include any explicit LGBTQ+ characters or narratives focused on non-straight relationships. Instead, it focuses on the socioeconomic and ethnic dynamics of the early 20th-century mining industry.

How does Bisbee '17 portray gender?

Limited

The story centers around male-dominated industrial mining and labor organizing. While historically accurate, the film does not give significant roles to female characters in the main labor conflict.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Bisbee '17?

Excellent

The film stands out by emphasizing the Mexican-American workforce and the impact of the Mexican Revolution. This inclusion challenges simplified historical views and highlights the racial aspects of industrial exploitation.

How does Bisbee '17 represent religion and culture?

Excellent

The documentary critically examines capitalism and state authority, focusing on the struggles of the working class rather than traditional institutional myths. It portrays corporations as agents of systemic oppression.

Does Bisbee '17 include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no indication within the film regarding the representation of physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Present on Screen

Deconstructs class and racial hierarchies through historical reenactments.
Highlights the importance of the Mexican-American workforce in the Arizona borderlands.
Critiques traditional institutional myths by prioritizing underrepresented workers' perspectives.

Limited or Absent

Does not include any explicit representation of LGBTQ+ characters or narratives.
Offers limited opportunities for female characters to have significant roles.
Does not address or represent physical or neurodivergent disabilities.

Official Synopsis

It’s 2017 in Bisbee, Arizona, an old copper-mining town just miles from the Mexican border. The town’s close-knit community prepares to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Bisbee’s darkest hour: the infamous Bisbee Deportation of 1917, during which 1,200 striking miners were violently taken from their homes, banished to the middle of the desert, and left to die. Townspeople confront this violent, misunderstood past by staging dramatic recreations of the escalating strike. These dramatized scenes are based on subjective versions of the story and “directed,” in a sense, by residents with conflicting views of the event. Deeply personal segments torn from family history build toward a massive restaging of the deportation itself on the exact day of its 100th anniversary.

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