Made in Dagenham

When you’re crafting a “based on a true story” film entirely around hoary clichés and stock characters, it’s never a good idea to spike the closing credits with real footage of the people whose stories we’ve just seen bastardized. It only hammers home how much better our time would have been spent watching a documentary about the exact same subject. Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky) stars as Rita, a practically-perfect-in-every-way working mother who helps lead the cause of equal pay for her fellow female Ford workers. Rita is initially tabbed to ride along and allow the chauvinistic male union reps to sweep her grievances under the rug, but darn it … she’s got spunk! And quirky friends! And a resentful husband! And a cheeky ’60s pop soundtrack! If you can’t write the rest of the film in your head, you might be due for a CAT scan.