former first lady said. ”‘American Factory’ doesn’t
come in with a perspective. It’s not an editorial. I
mean, you truly let people speak for themselves,
and that is a powerful thing that you don’t
always see happen.”
Former President Obama said that they want
people to look outside of their own experiences
to understand the lives of others.
That “is what a good story does,” he said. “It helps
all of us feel some solidarity with each other.”
Reichert said she’s seen some commentary that
the Obamas were interested in the film as a
criticism of Trump, and said that was stupid.
“It has zero to do with Trump or Obama, or the
political scene at all,” she said. “It’s about the lives
of average working people in the heartland.
It’s really a close up and intimate look at what
globalization looks like.”
One of the American workers is shown bonding
with Chinese colleagues, inviting several to a
Thanksgiving dinner and to drive his motorcycle.
Later, the worker is fired because it took him too
long to use a computer.
Reichter said she and Bognar were grateful to
Cao for allowing them access to the factory. The
company chairman mostly comes off as a cold-
blooded capitalist, but one arresting scene toward
the end shows him wrestling with his legacy.
“We hope that people realize that without
empathy for people who are different from you,
you’re not going to solve the political divide,”
Bognar said. “We’re not going to solve gaping
problems in this world. You have to put yourself
in someone else’s shoes to help see and feel
other people’s points of view.”
ann
(Ann)
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