In 'Pride', unlikely alliance of miners and gays

Not a good place and time to be gay, or a miner: the United Kingdom, 1984. Even in cosmopolitan London, homophobia is rampant. And in the misty Dulais Valley of South Wales, where coal miners are fighting for their lives against Margaret Thatcher - the Iron Lady bent on closing the pits - gays and lesbians are not exactly welcomed with open arms.

Not that anyone is giving them much thought. Not until the Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners campaign rolls into town.

In Pride, a Full Monty-esque rabble-rouser that begins with Pete Seeger singing "Solidarity Forever" over footage of police battling striking workers, an unlikely, and at times uncomfortable, alliance is formed. Oppressed homosexuals. Oppressed labor. Bring on the disco music!

Directed by Matthew Warchus, nimbly balancing pointed political and social commentary with colorful characters (gay and straight, city folk and country squares) and a coming-of-age/coming-out central story, Pride takes a footnote in the history of Britain's crippling yearlong industrial action and gives it a human face.

Or faces. There is Mark Ashton (Ben Schnetzer), a gay activist with a rock-star glow who decides the miners need moral support, and money. There is Joe (George MacKay), a 20-year-old college student who still lives with Mum and Dad and sneaks out at night for meetings at the gay and lesbian center. There is Dai Donovan (Paddy Considine), the union leader up in Wales, grateful for the newfound support but wary of how his members will respond.

Dominic West, wearing an earring, a tan, and an assortment of flouncy blouses, is Jonathan, an actor and the lover of an LGSM leader. West's dance number - to Shirley & Company's hit "Shame, Shame, Shame" - wins the admiration of many of the women in the Welsh village, and it may be one of the bravest things West has ever done on camera. Fred Astaire he is not.

British screen stalwarts Bill Nighy and Imelda Staunton appear as locals - he twitchy and reticent, she chatty and full of cheer, both with their hearts in the right place.

There are tensions - generational, cultural, familial, geographical - to be sure. But in Pride, the hard-pressed townspeople and the feisty gays and lesbians from the big city set aside their differences long enough to join in a rousing union hall chorus of "Bread and Roses," marching, marching, and standing proud and tall.

Directed by Matthew Warchus. With George MacKay, Ben Schnetzer, Paddy Considine, Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Dominic West. Distributed by CBS Films.

Running time: 2 hours.

Parent's guide: R (profanity, adult themes).

Playing at: Ritz Five and Carmike at the Ritz Center/NJ.EndText

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