Expressing disdain for the noise caused by the gunmen's automobile the night before, their presence and sympathy for the miners compels the Baldwin-Felts men to leave empty-handed.

The slow arrival of the union's thinly stretched strike funds tests the patience of Danny Radnor and other miners who become disillusioned and turn to violence in spite of Kenehan's warnings.

That night, while preaching at the Freewill church, Danny relates a parable about Joseph that convinces the miners they have been deceived by a false story, taking advantage of the now-inebriated detectives.

Lively silently slips out of the back of the church while a miner runs to the camp to stop Few Clothes from killing Kenehan.

Lively reveals that the men he named died in a mine accident years before and muses that the death of a young boy will complicate things.

The situation between the Baldwin-Felts men and Chief Hatfield reaches a boiling point with the arrival of reinforcements with orders to carry out the evictions.

The sudden movement sets off a climactic gunfight between the exposed mercenaries and the armed townspeople firing from barricades and rooftops.

Variety praised the acting in the film, writing, "Matewan is a heartfelt, straight-ahead tale of labor organizing in the coal mines of West Virginia in 1920 that runs its course like a train coming down the track.

Among the memorable characters is Joe Kenehan (Chris Cooper), a young union organizer who comes to Matewan to buck the bosses.

With his strong face and Harrison Ford good-looks, Cooper gives the film its heartbeat...Most notable of the black workers is 'Few Clothes' Johnson (James Earl Jones), a burly good-natured man with a powerful presence and a quick smile.

"[7] Critic Desson Howe liked the look of the film and wrote, "Cinematographer Haskell Wexler etches the characters in dark charcoal against a misty background.

"[8] Jonathan Rosenbaum called Matewan a "simpleminded yet stirring" film which "offers a bracing alternative to complacent right-wing as well as liberal claptrap.

[14] West Virginia bluegrass singer Hazel Dickens sings the film's title track, "Fire in the Hole", and appears in the film as a member of the Freewill Baptist Church whose voice is heard leading the congregation in an a cappella hymn ("What A Friend We Have in Jesus") and also sings over the grave of a fallen union miner, Hillard Elkins, ("Gathering Storm").