Review of A Civil Action (1998) by John R — 24 Mar 2004

[size=3][i]A Civil Action [/i]is a courtroom drama with very few courtroom scenes in it. It is not so much about the outcome of a class action suit, but rather about the ways in which the effort to take on a large corporation turns out to be a draining experience for a group of well-meaning lawyers. Those looking for the type of "legal drama" that John Grisham churns out regularly will be sorely disappointed by this film. There is very little suspense and hardly any major twists...only the monotonous procession of legal investigations, and the difficulties that lawyers can face when compiling a case against a major corporation. John Travolta plays Jan Schlichtmann, a cynical, ambulance-chasing lawyer who tries to dismiss what he perceives to be a worthless case until he discovers that it involves a major environmental disaster. After conducting several interviews, Schlichtmann realizes that several working-class families have been victimized by leukemia that has been caused by a leather production company dumping toxic waste in the town. Travolta and his associates organize a class-action suit against the big corporation, but they find that their efforts are far more difficult and strenuous than they could imagine. [i]A Civil Action [/i]holds our interest because we are fascinated by the specific personalities of the various attorneys. In addition to Travolta's solid performance as Jan, there are also fine supporting turns from William H. Macy and Tony Shalhoub as Jan's associates. And the gem in the picture is unquestionably Robert Duvall, who plays the high-priced lawyer who represents a billion-dollar corporation. After just a few minutes of screen time, we understand that Duvall may be courteous, but he is also a ruthless attorney who will do anything to win. Despite the memorable characters, [i]A Civil Action [/i]is not as dramatically interesting as it could have been, perhaps because we long for more information regarding the specifics of the case. The ending is curiously unsatisfying, despite the fact that it is probably a realistic outcome. Steven Zaillian, who wrote and directed the film, has shown in his previous works (such as [i]Searching for Bobby Fischer [/i]and the screenplay for [i]Schindler's List[/i]) that he is quite interested in using low-key realism as a source of drama. This philosophy serves him well in [i]A Civil Action[/i], but only up to a point. Even though the film is significantly more interesting than similar fare like [i]Erin Brockovich, [/i]it might have been truly compelling had Zaillian been able to find the right balance between acute realism and powerful drama.[/size].

[size=3](BASIC)[/size].