David Ansen

“Sally Field is an energetic and attractive performer; Martin Ritt … is a nobly intentioned director; Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. are old-pro screenwriters with a healthy dose of social commitment, and all their hearts are clearly in the right place. Why, then, is Norma Rae such a drag?

“Field is Norma Rae, a lovable, loose-living ball of fire….

“Field comes off best under the circumstances--she has real spirit--but Leibman, too eager to be liked, hits all the stereotypes on the head… What "Norma Rae" really tells us is that Hollywood is still capable of making condescending paeans to the "little people" with all the phoniness of yesteryear.

David Ansen
Newsweek, but when?