Educational Media Reviews Online

Razing Appalachia is a serious, balanced documentary about an urgent issue affecting parts of Appalachia, mountaintop removal. In 1998, Arch Coal, the second largest coal company in the United States, announced that it wished to expand its Dal-Tex mine to include the remaining homes in Blair, West Virginia. The Environmental Protection Agency was requested to rule on Arch Coal's request for a permit. The remaining homeowners were pitted against the mine owners and union miners, whose jobs are on the line.

Multiple viewpoints, including miners, mine owners, environmentalists and residents, are objectively presented in this documentary. In addition, historical background on West Virginia coal mining and the 1921 Blair Mountain/Logan County coal mine war is presented. President Harding sent Federal troops to suppress this rebellion (over the right to organize) by six thousand coal miners. Government airplanes dropped bombs on American citizens for the only time in United States history.

Overall, the film is of high professional quality. Color and sound are good and the editing is well paced. Bullfrog is a quality distributor, and their films almost always maintain a high level of technical excellence.

At first, the structure of Razing Appalachia is somewhat diffuse. Interviews with the various constituents follow in rapid succession, and can sometimes be difficult to follow. Local accents can also be difficult to understand. However, as the film progresses, the well integrated, structured framework emerges. The film ends as it begins with children searching for "crawdads" (crayfish) in a clear mountain creek near Pigeonroost Hollow.

A sense of excitement grows toward the finish. What will the outcome be? Will the Dal-Tex mine get the permit, or will the homeowners stop the mine expansion? From the heart of Appalachia, I highly recommend this interesting, timely and important film.