Dominic West as Jonathan in ‘Pride.’ (Photo by Nicola Dave; courtesy CBS Films)

“Pride” is a thoroughly engaging movie that manages to be political without being preachy and deeply moving without being overly sentimental.

Briskly directed by Mathew Warchus from a script by Stephen Beresford, the movie features fine performances, sharp dialogue and a lively pace. It opens today at several theaters in the D.C. region.

Based on historical events, the movie opens during the London Pride March in 1984. As a trick leaves his apartment, young gay rights activist Mark Ashton (Ben Schnetzer) catches television coverage of the strike by the National Union of Mineworkers. He quickly senses that there is common cause between the gay rights movement and the miners. Both are demonized by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and conservative politicians, hated by the tabloid press and beaten by police.

Mark quickly rallies his friends into raising money for the miners. They call themselves LGSM: “Lesbians and Gay Men Support the Miners.” They are surprisingly effective fundraisers, but run into a problem. None of the striking unions want to take their money. The resourceful Mark decides to take the money directly to a struggling mining community. Disco, comedy and calamity ensue.

Warchus and Beresford tell this inspirational story with remarkable efficiency and effectiveness, which is both a strength and a weakness. An acclaimed stage director, Warchus handles the large ensemble cast with remarkable grace. The performances are uniformly strong, but while the characters may be based on real people, the script often draws on generic story lines instead of specific details, especially for the minor characters. For example, there’s the spiky lesbian Steph (a vibrant Faye Marsay), the newbie Joe whose parents discover his cache of photos (the effervescent George MacKay) and the elderly Gwen (a charming Menna Trussler) who wonders if all lesbians are vegetarians and keeps shouting “Where are my lesbians?”

Schnetzer and Paddy Considine as Dai turn in interesting performances as two very different organizers. The younger gay rights organizer masks his inner demons with bravado where the older labor leader radiates a quiet confidence. Imelda Staunton (best known as Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter movies) leaps zestfully into the role of Hefina, the leader of the strike committee; she cuts a rug and cuts down narrow-minded villagers with the same fiery passion. Bill Nighy gives a powerfully understated performance as Cliff, the tongue-tied local historian who waxes poetic when he talks about local history or national politics.

With unwavering support from composer Christoper Nightingale and cinematographer Tat Radcliffe, Warchus also creates a beautiful movie. The boisterous urban scenery of gay London and the bleak streets of Onllwyn are captured with the same delicacy and eye for detail as the rolling landscapes of Wales. The rich score draws on a variety of pop and folk sources, most notably Pete Seger’s “Solidarity Forever” and the labor anthem “Bread and Roses,” beautifully sung by Bronwen Lewis (a finalist on “The Voice”).

“Pride” is a well-told tale about a historic alliance between LGBT activists and labor leaders that also serves as a striking parable for our times.