Mr. Smith Goes to Washington vs. Matewan: Power and Justice

Introduction: Two Films, One Theme

This essay examines two landmark American films: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, directed by Frank Capra, and Matewan, directed by John Sayles. Specifically, it discusses the motives and causes of characters who are prepared to take on the powerful — how they do it, and whether their actions are justified. Both films show the underdog taking on those with great power. Their causes are just and their motives are pure, but they discover that those with power often overcome even the most morally righteous challenges.

Jefferson Smith and Political Corruption

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is a classic Jimmy Stewart and Frank Capra film that illustrates just how deeply political influence runs in Washington, D.C. In this film, Jefferson Smith (Jimmy Stewart) is appointed as a Senator after the man holding the office dies. He is a naive, trusting, and honest man whom the political leaders of his state believe they can manipulate and use as a puppet in Washington. He has no idea he has been sent there to ensure the state's political bosses profit from a dam the state does not need, built on land the politicians secretly own.

When he discovers the truth, his honor and honesty will not allow him to do anything but fight back — including pushing his own proposal to build a boys' camp on that very same land. He even finds that his own boyhood idol, Senator Paine, is corrupt and manipulated by the political bosses back home. To be rid of him and his honest approach, they attempt to frame him. Instead, he fights back by filibustering on the Senate floor, refusing to yield to their threats to destroy his short Senatorial career. He fights by using the laws of the country against the corrupt politicians — honestly and with an almost naive conviction. He fights for what he believes in and what he knows is right, just as the miners in Matewan do. He is also fighting for American justice and democracy, and so, unless the system fails entirely, he must win, or there will be no hope for any American. Smith does win in the end, and that is the major difference between justice and power in these two films.

Joe Kenehan and the Miners of Matewan

Matewan offers another perspective on corruption and power — specifically, the power of business owners over the workers they exploit. In the film, the coal miners of Matewan, West Virginia are poor, and the rich, powerful owners are determined to keep them that way, making them permanently dependent on the company. The film vividly portrays how difficult and dangerous mine work was in the 1920s, and how hard these people had to fight for even the most basic rights.

Joe Kenehan is an admirable character who articulates the values that truly matter, but in the end, those values die with him at the Matewan Massacre. He not only speaks about what he believes in — he encourages the miners to organize, to fight for their rights, and to stand up to the brutal mine owners. The young narrator, who has so much potential, ends up working in the mines and appears to spend his entire life in Matewan, because there is simply no way out for these people. The mine owners hold them in a tight grip and will not let go. The mine owners act out of profit and personal gain, while the coal miners — who work until they die — want only a measure of respect and fair treatment. Their fight is fully justified, and they pursue legal means to achieve their goals, while the brutal owners resort to violence and ultimately murder to suppress the protest.

Conclusion: History's Recurring Lesson

In conclusion, it seems that some things never change in the relationship between the powerful and the weak. Today, unions still exist to protect workers from exploitation and degradation, yet companies continue to send more and more jobs overseas, where unions cannot reach them. There is not a great deal of difference between the heartless mine owners and politicians depicted in these films and the corporate executives at Enron, who sold their stocks and misled both the public and their own employees. Those executives sold before the collapse, and ordinary employees were left without retirement savings and without jobs. Some patterns in history never seem to change. That is why unions were formed in the first place, and that is one reason they still exist. Not all powerful people are villains, but many are, and these two films illustrate how greed and selfishness can lead to despair and even death.