Cinema: Starstruck

COAL MINER'S DAUGHTER Directed by Michael Apted Screenplay by Tom Rickman

For about half its length, this film biography of Country Singer Loretta Lynn outdoes even The Buddy Holly Story and The Rose in the show-biz-saga sweepstakes. Care and intelligence are everywhere in evidence. British Director Michael Apted (Agatha) captures both the poverty and pride of the young Loretta's Appalachian homestead without resorting to Hollywood sentimentality or glamorization. Tom Rickman's script uses intimate, telling details as it enthusiastically describes the heroine's gradual transformation from 13-year-old hillbilly bride to Nashville superstar. The cast, especially Sissy Spacek as Lynn —the best...

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