I have no idea what this day is supposed to celebrate but I hope everyone has a good one.

There doesn’t seem to be any agreed upon way to celebrate Labor Day.  A few people have the day off and they’re the reason why I decided to hold off on going up to Lake Texoma until this upcoming, holiday-free weekend.  Personally, I think the best way to celebrate any holiday is with a film festival so here are my suggestions for your Labor Day viewing:

1. Red Menace (1949) — In this wonderfully atmospheric film noir, a former GI named Bill Jones (Robert Rockwell) finds himself seduced by the Communist Party.  After he witnesses the head of the party murder a man who questions the wisdom of Marx, Jones and his lover go on the run.
2. Big Jim McClain (1951) — John Wayne takes on the commies!  And you better believe that no one is more determined to keep America and its workers safe from communist influence than the Duke!  This film features some lovely Hawaiian scenery and enough over-the-top propaganda to make any American proud.
3. I Was A Communist For The FBI (1951) — Based (I imagine very loosely) on a true story, I Was A Communist For The FBI is about an agent who spent nine years undercover as a communist.  As a result, he lost his friends and almost his family but he also serves his country.  Featuring a scene where a strike turns violent, there’s nothing subtle about this film but, as with Big Jim McClain, that’s a large part of what makes the movie so watchable.
4. On The Waterfront (1954) — Marlon Brando won his first Oscar for this film about union corruption.
5. Dr. No (1962) — In his very first film outing, James Bond shows what a good job a true professional can do.
6. The Godfather (1972) — “It’s strictly business.”
7. Blue Collar (1978) — In this gritty film from Paul Schrader, three auto-workers (played by Yaphet Kotto, Harvey Keitel, and Richard Pryor) discover that their union is even more corrupt than management.  Consider this film to be an antidote to Norma Rae.
8. F.I.S.T. (1978) — After the success of Rocky, Sylvester Stallone played a thinly-disguised version of Jimmy Hoffa in this epic historical film.  The film is poorly paced and doesn’t quite work but it’s interesting to see Stallone, post-Rocky, playing a character who isn’t necessarily all-that heroic.
9. Convoy (1979) — The film celebrate the independent trucker, the hard-working driver who doesn’t want to be tied down by either the unions or the law.  Convoy is infamous for being an out-of-control production and yes, it is a bit self-indulgent.  But who cares?  When that convoy forms, you have to heartless not to cheer a little.
10. Alien (1979) — One of the best films about how much it sucks to have to work for a living, Alien follows a group of blue-collar workers whose lives are deliberately put in danger by a big, faceless corporation.
11. Last Exit to Brooklyn (1989) — A labor strike leaves a Brooklyn neighborhood reeling.  This film is not for the faint-hearted.
12. Hoffa (1991) — Jack Nicholson stars as Jimmy Hoffa in this uneven but watchable film.  This movie is unabashedly pro-Hoffa and therefore, it provides an interesting contrast to films like F.I.S.T. and Blue Collar.
13. Office Space (1999) — And don’t forget to sing along to the copier scene!
14. The Irishman (2019) — Despite all the criticism that it received when it was first released, The Irishman is one of Martin Scorsese’s finest films.  It takes a while to get used to the de-aging but Al Pacino’s performance as Jimmy Hoffa was brilliant.  This film is one of the best looks at how the American labor movement lost its way.