Steven Zaillian (based on the novel by Jonathan Harr)
Original Score :
Danny Elfman
Cast :
Jan Schlichtmann: John Travolta
Jerome Facher: Robert Duvall
Pinder: Stephen Fry
Al Love: James Gandolfini
John Riley: Dan Hedaya
Bill Crowley: Zeljko Ivanek
Judge Walter J. Skinner: John Lithgow
James Gordon: William H. Macy
Anne Anderson: Kathleen Quinlan
Kevin Conway: Tony Shalhoub
Al Eustis: Sydney Pollack
Bankruptcy Judge: Kathy Bates
A Civil Action is a compelling courtroom drama
based on a true story starring John Travolta as lawyer Jan Schlichtmann,
one of three members of a small Boston practice who work on a no-win no-fee
basis where every penny counts. Self-made businesses haven't got time for the
"little guy" so it comes as no surprise when Jan is surprised by a phone call
from Anne Anderson (Kathleen Quinlan) during a radio phone-in, referring
to a case which passed through their hands but was turned down because the money
it would generate will not pay the rent, not that they made their intentions so
explicit at the time.
Eight children died from leukemia, one of them belonging to Anne Anderson,
when, it is alleged, the water supply was polluted by two industrial companies
working on a section of land nearby whose waste products were pumped out
directly into the lake. She doesn't want their money, just an apology from the
person or persons responsible, but since it cannot be proved from the offset
that either Grace or Beatrice Foods are liable, the case would be lengthy,
expensive and certainly not the case for a small-time firm such as Jan's; and
he explains this in its clearest terms when he gives in to pressure and agrees
to meet the parents of the deceased children.
Things take a turn when, on the way back from their meeting, he gets chance to
look at what the industrial companies are up to, chats to Pinder (Stephen
Fry), the leader of a environmental organisation who look into pollution
incidents such as these and, in time, sets the wheels in motion to take on the
case with the drive and determination to win. However, as time presses on and
finances are tight, his colleagues begin to despise the position he's put them
in as he goes over their heads on occasion with important decisions and the
risks increase. If they can hold on long enough, Jan is confident of a sure-fire
victory in the form of an apology from those responsible and adequate
compensation for the families who have suffered a tragic loss.
John Travolta has easily proved himself the 'comeback kid' of the decade
since his return to form in Pulp Fiction following the career that was
almost dead with the Look Who's Talking trilogy. The words "cool, calm
and confident" are the best descriptions of the performances he has given since
his return to the big screen in 1994 in films such as Broken Arrow, Face/Off,
Get Shorty, Phenomenon and Primary Colors.
In my opinion, he turns in an Oscar-worthy performance of a man so set against
taking on a case that could turn his practice upside-down, only to change in
an instant to a man who gives his all to it with equal gusto, to the point
where he convinces his business partners to do the same - not an easy task
when he's already persuaded them to take one course of action.
Seasoned actor Robert Duvall does an equally impressive turn as rival
lawyer Jerome Facher while making the acting process seem effortless. Facher
has been in the business for a long time and is the perfect example of a man
who is always ahead of the game and knows how to play it. At times his character
is as serious as a heart attack, while at others he can be as fallable as the
rest of us, but as he explains in a clever scene which mixes real life with
his part-time college lecturing position, the trick is not to let anyone know
when you're not on the ball.
One surprise in store for me was the welcome presence of comedian/author
Stephen Fry as Pinder, the foreman of the team brought in to study the
environmental effects of the pollution. He's certainly not the sort of person
you expect to find in a big-budget Hollywood drama, but his part works very
well and you wish he had more scenes.
Of Jan's colleagues, the best performance comes from William H. Macy as
his account James Gordon. Always at his best when given the correct part,
Macy's character starts off as cock-sure as Travolta's, but as the money runs
out, desperation sets in as the bank refuse to lend any more money and his hopes
lie in schemes as elaborate as... lottery tickets and selling off the deeds to
their houses. Needless to say, Gordon is on the verge of a nervous breakdown
and this is brilliantly portrayed by Macy.
The rest of the cast is a cornucopia of talent. James Gandolfini is one
of many industrial workers interviewed by Schlichtmann and co. but will he
spill the beans where others have declined? He certainly has good reason to;
Dan Hedaya is the enemy of the peace as the foreman responsible for the
problem; John Lithgow plays the no-nonsense Judge Walter J. Skinner;
the aforementioned Kathleen Quinlan, plus brief cameos from director
Sydney Pollack as the head of Grace who has a frank discussion with Jan;
and an uncredited appearance from Travolta's Primary Colors
co-star Kathy Bates who won an Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her part
in that film.
For the picture, there's a constant level of grain which is mostly noticeable
in the dark scenes, but not so bad during the bright ones. The film is
presented in the original 1.85:1 widescreen ratio and is anamorphic, unlike
the Region 1 DVD. The average bitrate is a very good 6.81Mb/s, often
peaking over 9Mb/s.
It's not an action blockbuster, so there's not a massive use of loud SFX,
but dialogue is clear, there's some nice use of surround sound in places
and the end result is pleasing. It doesn't push the boat out because it
doesn't need to, although there was a LOUD bolt of lightning 85 minutes in
which gave me a shock when I wasn't expecting it.
Extras :
We're in scant territory here with just a two-and-a-half-minute
Theatrical Trailer and a four-minute Featurette, the latter
containing brief soundbites from some cast and crew members and both of
which you'll watch once and forget about.
The chaptering is good though with 25 spread throughout the film.
English and German dialogue are in Dolby Digital 5.1, with the other languages
getting surround only. Subtitles are available in English (and hard of hearing),
Arabic, Bulgarian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, German, Norwegian, Polish,
Swedish and Turkish.
The menus are all silent and static.
Overall, it'll be hard to find another recent drama which mixes an engaging
plot with excellent characterisation and the amount of talent that's on display
here. That said, it loses a point for having the occasional slow moment, but
makes up for this with an ending that is not afraid to go against the typical
way that is Hollywood. I'm not saying that things go completely awry for
Schlichtmann and associates - that you will have to find out for yourself -
but the path getting there is well worth travelling. It's not all as harsh as
it sounds, given the subject matter, as there are plenty of subtle comic touches
spread throughout the film, mostly delivered by Messrs. Travolta and Duvall.
When it comes to this DVD presentation though, the extras are severely lacking
and once you know the outcome of the case, will you ever watch it again?
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
