The Battle of Orgreave

The Battle of Orgreave was a very interesting documentary and it really helped that so much historical context was given. I had never heard of this historical event before watching the video, but even then, I could sympathize for those who were involved in the original battle. This documentary shows the extent to which Jeremy Deller prepared for the reenactment and all the research he did to get the story right rather than just trusting what information was in archived newspapers. It was quite amazing how much enthusiasm and work all of the actors put into the reenactment, especially how some commented that they were afraid people would be so emotional the fighting would get out of hand. When the documentary showed clips of the actual reenactment, I could not help but notice how real the fighting looked. It seemed like I was watching scenes from a movie. Additionally, I knew that as a reenactment, the battle was being watched from more than just one selected angle, as it would be when shot for a movie. Therefore, the actors would always have to be in character, which was a feat in itself. This really helped me find appreciation for the artistic value of reenactments, especially this specific one because it was not only reenacting an event, but also trying to get the true story out when the media had so wrongly represented the miners at the time of the original battle. I can’t imagine how much this reenactment must have affected those who had been miners in the real event.