Welcome to Oscar Film Journal entry #138, I think.
Time to take a trip back to the year 2000. Hey remember when we all thought the year 2000 was gonna be this super-futuristic era with flying cars and no racism? Good times.
Anyway we're looking at Best Picture nominee Erin Brockovich, the remarkable true story of an ordinary single mom of three who used her natural savvy, tenacity and charisma to become a high-powered paralegal and activist. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the film stars Julia Roberts as the title character, in an Oscar-winning tour-de-force. I was skeptical going into this about whether Roberts' performance would be anywhere near the level of say, Ellen Burstyn's harrowing turn that year in Requiem for a Dream, and while I still think Burstyn's was the superior performance, Roberts' work here is definitely Oscar-worthy. In fact she's so captivating she more than makes up for the film's script shortcomings. The structure is pretty standard "scrappy unlikely hero makes good" fare, the dialogue is sometimes hamfisted, and certain relationships are underwritten, but Roberts is so much fun to watch and so squarely the focus of the story that the films works quite well overall.
When we first meet Erin, she is unemployed with no real job prospects. She gets into a car accident when a respected doctor carelessly plows into her, and hires local attorney Ed Masry (Albert Finney) to sue for punitive damages. But she loses the case when the defense attorney is able to bait her into a profanity-laced outburst on the stand. After weeks of being unable to reach Ed over the phone, she simply shows up at his office and starts working, ultimately steamrolling her way into a paid position there (Ed gets a nice arc as the movie wears on, going from an ineffectual pushover to a commanding, respected attorney). Erin stumbles onto one of the firm's new cases, involving a proposed real estate deal between a chemical company called Pacific Gas & Electric and some local residents near their plant. After digging into the case she discovers that numerous community members have developed serious health issues, almost certainly stemming from their exposure to contaminated ground water the plant may have knowingly covered up. Erin forges a strong bond with all the townspeople and convinces her boss to take the case, building a massive lawsuit against PG&E and their corporate office.
In a domestic subplot, Erin becomes romantically involved with new next-door neighbor George (Aaron Eckhart), a biker/contractor who is currently between construction jobs and offers to help with the kids while she's at work. But as her involvement in the case deepens, George begins to feel like an unappreciated housekeeper and asks her to walk away from her job. This portion of the movie is the one I found very underwritten, but I also get why the filmmakers wanted to focus on Erin's casework and doggedness. It's an unfortunately pretty thankless role for Eckhart, who does the best he can with what little he's given. Their chemistry together is solid at least.
The film is "probably 98% accurate" according to the real Brockovich, who consulted on the picture and has a cameo as a waitress, and it depicts one of those rare occasions when the good guys actually won. Every once in a while the system punishes corporate greed and disregard for humanity instead of rewarding it, and it's good to know people like Erin Brockovich actually exist in the world. The film may have a Hollywood ending, but it's an earned one, based closely on a real-world lawsuit that actually went the right way.
I give Erin Brockovich ***1/2 out of ****.
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