information. He provides five names, and is killed by Griggs anyway. Lively mentions that the men he has named died in the mines years ago, 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 mayor tries to negotiate as Kenehan comes running to try to stop the fight. The sudden movement sets off a climactic gunfight between the exposed mercenaries and the armed townspeople firing from barricades and rooftops. Hatfield shoots two men and survives the battle, but Kenehan is killed and the mayor is shot in the stomach. Griggs is brought down, while Hickey escapes to Elma Radnor's boarding house, where he is shot and killed by Elma Radnor. Seven Baldwin–Felts men and two townspeople are ultimately killed. In the epilogue, the narrator (revealed to be an elderly Danny recalling those days in "Bloody Mingo") recounts that Mayor Testerman succumbed to his wounds and the mayor's wife married Chief Sid Hatfield. But Hatfield was later gunned down in broad daylight on the steps of the McDowell County Courthouse in Welch, with Lively stepping up to deliver the coup de grâce. He recalls the event as the start of the Great Coalfield War. Cast Chris Cooper as Joe Kenehan James Earl Jones as "Few Clothes" Johnson Mary McDonnell as Elma Radnor Will Oldham as Danny Radnor David Strathairn as Police Chief Sid Hatfield Ken Jenkins as Sephus Purcell Gordon Clapp as Griggs Kevin Tighe as Hickey John Sayles as Hardshell Preacher Bob Gunton as C.E. Lively Josh Mostel as Mayor Cabell Testerman Nancy Mette as Bridey Mae Tolliver Jace Alexander as Hillard Elkins Joe Grifasi as Fausto Maggie Renzi as Rosaria Jo Henderson as Mrs. Elkins Gary McCleery as Ludi Reception Critical responseVariety 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