Not part of a collection.
With These Hands
Produced by the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, the film used actors to recreate the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and compare working conditions of the early 20th century to that of the 1950s.
- Original title
- With These Hands
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- —
- Revenue
- —
CinemaSerf
Jul 24, 2026 · via TMDB
"Alexander Brody" (Sam Levene) is about to sign on for his union-backed pension when his mind wanders back to a New York in 1910 when unions were few and far between - especially in the rag trade where he worked. Indeed, it might more accurately have been described as a slave trade as those working fourteen hour shifts, six days a week, had no rights, no holidays, no healthcare and worked entirely at the beck and call of bosses who could hire and fire at will. He's had enough and rebels when one of his colleagues is fined half a day's pay for breaking two needles on his sewing machine. They walk out and despite the concerns of his long-suffering wife "Jen" (Arlene Francis) they go on strike. Not just them, but tens of thousands of people walk out demanding better terms and conditions. After almost two months of deprivation - and with them even having their dining table repossessed, they win out and that is just the start of this potted history of a trade union movement in the city that showcases some quite literally hellish and downright dangerous working environments and the lengths that employers would go to stop their staff engaging with shop stewards. The theme is very much pro-union movement and though it does decry the communist attempts to steamroller them into causing the 1926 general strike, this is still as close to a piece of socialist cinema that I've certainly seen from 1950s America. It doesn't so much attack the corporate structure of the USA but illustrates more the benefits of collective bargaining and compulsory arbitration in settling disputes - all against a slightly rose-tinted background of benign activities like summer holiday "unity" camps; free healthcare that assists the likes of his friend "Deleo" (Joseph Wiseman) and, of course, his own entitlement to a pension that will ensure he and "Jen" keep their supplies of chicken soup going strong. It is terribly simplistic, but it's message is hard to ignore and I found it to be quite an enjoyable little chronology that clearly sets it stall out for all to appreciate.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Sam Levene
Alexander Brody
Arlene Francis
Jenny Brody
Joseph Wiseman
Mike Deleo
Louis Sorin
Men's Workshop Boss (uncredited)
Jack Arnold
Communist Agitator (uncredited)
Gerald Hirschfeld
Director of Photography
Jack Arnold
Director
Jack Arnold
Producer
The Aviatrix
Zensur: Die organisierte Manipulation der Wikipedia und anderer Medien
Nomad Solitude
Jews
The Hobbit Enigma
Conscience and the Constitution
Wings of Desire
The Grab
The Man from Earth
Mafia Is Not What It Used to Be
The French Revolution
Handbook of Movie Theaters' History
Planet Food: Spice Trails
Fascism in Colour
The Mystery of the Trojan Horse
Napoleon: Destiny and Death
Red Cliff
Little Palestine: Diary of a Siege
Salt of the Earth
Agora
Two Lines in Small Font
Asaltar los cielos
Solidarność: How Solidarity Changed Europe
Silkwood
The Dam Busters
Against the Law
Pseudo Secular
State Funeral
David
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
The March on Rome
The Worst Journey in the World
Concert for the Battle of El Tala
Once More Unto the Breach
Short Working Day
The Flickering Flame
Operation Stonehenge: What Lies Beneath
Time in the Sun
Albert Fish: In Sin He Found Salvation
The Viking Sagas
Yeti Massacre
The King Maker
Eve of the Irises
Gino: A Child of War
When We Fight
All Lines
Španělská chřipka
The Polio Crusade
Ms Rhymney Valley
Jekyll
Peter Eisenman: Building Germany's Holocaust Memorial
To You, Wherever You Are
The MovieLand Movie
Crashland
Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition
Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me
For Sama
Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour | The Final Show
Adele One Night Only
The Godfather Family: A Look Inside
As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty
The Up in Smoke Tour
Our Planet: Behind the Scenes
42 Up
The True Cost
Love, Antosha
McQueen
The Walking Dead: The Return
Van Gogh: Painted with Words
In the Realms of the Unreal
Maternal Instinct
Katy Perry: Part of Me
Audrey
The Class of ‘92
Game of Thrones: The Last Watch
Public Speaking
Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet
We Live in Public
Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return
The Venerable W.
The Cheshire Murders
Girl Model
Fuck
Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show
Louis Theroux: Twilight of the Porn Stars
Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story
Seduced and Abandoned
Jun 15, 1950
