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Workingman's Death

Workingman's Death

Director: Michael Glawogger

The film: Steaming-hot Indonesian sulfur mines, pitch-black Ukrainian coal pits, bloody Nigerian open-air slaughterhouses, poisonous Pakistani ship-breaking sites, burning Chinese steel factories - Michael Glawogger's documentary lives up to the promise of its name, taking viewers to some of the most dangerous workplaces on Earth.

Workingman's Death is certainly not without its precedents - many a documentary-maker has tackled the subject in recent years. Glawogger's piece, however, takes a different path from the more conventional, realist approach of Fernando Solanas and Wang Bing, the emphasis being on striking cinematography rather than dialogue and polemic. The film is a descendant of Godfrey Reggio's Qatsi trilogy, complete with slow-motion photography and close-ups of arduous labour.

The in-your-face title announces the film's political leanings, and Glawogger is clearly sympathetic towards the labourers' determination to make a living. But disillusionment also looms large, as he laments the diminishing recognition of the working class as people with jobs to do and rails against the way they are increasingly caricatured in mainstream media as mere cultural exotica - such as the Indonesian sulfur carriers, who have become photo-fodder for tourists.

Parts of the film are difficult viewing; the Nigerian section, which shows the killing and dismembering of livestock will shock many viewers. But Workingman's Death is both visually captivating and thought provoking, a combination that many modern documentary-makers struggle to pull off.

The extras: An audio commentary from Glawogger, plus a short interview, allows the Austrian filmmaker to dissect his modus operandi and the challenges he faced making Workingman's Death work. Deleted scenes come with a making-of the Nigerian part - which provides a technical perspective on a section reeking of blood and death. This disc - the first DVD release of the film in English-speaking countries - also features a booklet of short interviews with the workers featured and additional photographs from their workplaces.

The verdict: A highly imaginative and challenging documentary that exposes some of the world's most unsavoury sights to public view.

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