Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

It's 1968. Ford of Britain has one of the biggest car plant in Dagenham exporting to the rest of Europe. It employs 55k, 187 of them women. The women are seamstresses sewing car seat covers. The working conditions are bad and then the company wants to downgrade their work as unskilled. Union rep Albert Passingham (Bob Hoskins) advises them an one-day stoppage. Rita O'Grady (Sally Hawkins) becomes the leader of the group. It escalates to a full strike demanding equal pay for equal work. Everybody condescends to the ladies except for Passingham who was raised by a single mom. The union negotiator wants to collaborate with Ford. The plant shuts down and the men are unhappy. The Labour government is facing rampant strikes and declining production. They call in fixer Robert Tooley (Richard Schiff) to put pressure on the girls. Secretary of State for Employment Barbara Castle (Miranda Richardson) sees both the injustice and the dangers of losing jobs. Meanwhile, Rita finds an allie in fellow parent Lisa Hopkins (Rosamund Pike) when their kids face an abusive teacher.This is Norma Rae on steroids. It's a rousing fight for equality. Sally Hawkins is simply amazing. She is one of the best out there. Her humanity is absolutely non-negotiable. There are several unforgettable scenes and characters. Her relationship with Lisa Hopkins is truly touching and one scene between them is heart-breaking. Rita and her husband have another incredible scene. The amiable and well-meaning husband is nicely played by Daniel Mays. Their big confrontation has a powerful conclusion. Overall, this is a rousing union movie with an amazing lead performance.

Sally Hawkins is becoming an increasingly consistent actress, one who can largely be depended on to carry a film or flow smoothly as a supporting character. She has a certain acting style, or rick, one that comes across as an anxiously awaiting tick. It usually always works though, as it does here. She's pretty great, and for a more than great year for lead actresses, she'd make my Top 10 for the category. The supporting cast is also well-rounded (is that miranda Richardson?). I sought this out because of Rosamund Pike, and she's certainly very good, but so are other actresses and it's still nice to see Pike work nicely as a supporting fit as well. I don't think the film is amazing, and I can see why it got so lost in the shuffle, but it's still well worth seeing.

Movies about equal rights for women aren't exactly abundant, which made this movie a very pleasant surprise. It's well made, representing the 60s on screen in a realistic manner, and well acted, featuring performances by some very good actors we sadly see to little of in the bigger productions, like Bob Hoskins. And its story is both true and important, and a true testament that history can be made anywhere, as long as those fighting for it stay true to their purpose and see it through. UK cinema has so much more than James Bond to offer, and there are many gems out there deserving to be discovered by a larger audience. This is one of them. Highly recommended!

An excellent film focused on women at a Ford manufacturing plant outside London in the late '60's and their quest for first fair, then equal pay.The story is very well told and all the factory women do wonderful jobs portraying the travails of their situation. Sally Hawkins portrays wonderfully the woman who, somewhat reluctantly became the leader of the women and Bob Hoskins is perfect as the mid level union functionary subtly driving the process.Richard Schiff is wonderful as the evil face of Ford sent to London to quell the strike and Rosamund Pike does a brilliant turn as the long suffering wife of the plant manager who supports and nudges the process along in the union direction.Miranda Richardson, normally a star in films like this, has a terrible script to work with; as do her two bumbling staff members. The semi-comical performances of these three are at odds with the rest of the film. This unfortunate scripting keeps the film from a four star rating.Still, a film well worth seeing; especially later in the film as personal relationships, and changes to them as a result of the strike, are delved into.