If one were to calculate success in dollars and cents I am a complete failure
How far could you go for justice when you just start caring? How much would you put on stake for something you believed? A Civil Action is a movie based on a true story about a lawyer who just made it his personal challenge to bring justice to families affected by harmful chemicals in drinking water, which found its way causing cancer and fatal death because a tannery was dumping the wastes in the river upstream.
Till such time, Jan Schlichtmann (John Travolta) was a Personal injuries lawyer, who capitalizes on injured victims against their offenders. Jan Schlichtmann, being on the top most eligible bachelors list, he and his firm partners have amassed quiet a fortune and the future was looking good. Things turn around when He was asked to visit the families of the victims of the alleged toxic dump to tell them that the firm wouldn’t take up for their cause. On the way back, He realizes that the case was worth the risk for the fame and fortune. What was to be a simple ’’open, shut and pay the plaintiff’’ case, met with a strong opposition from the defendants legal representative in the form of Robert Duval. The charges for the case were taken up by Jan’s firm and in due course of time the furniture in his office was being sold to meet the expenses. Broke and insolvent, the firm disowned Jan for the fact that his theories didn’t work out to their expectations. Hope comes in when Jan sees another chance at the case which is again a half no win situation. Will he be able to pull through it?
The best feature of this movie was that it is based on real story. This may have given John Grisham a real run for his money or a writer block. Instead of putting the audience through melodramatic courtroom scenes, one has a walk through the real proceedings in a ’’claims’’ case in the American Judicial system. The voice over narration from John Travolta himself was a real treat, as he explains his legal adventure before, during and after the case.
There were ’’one minute flashbacks’’ that went into explaining the little subplots that has given a slight comic touch. The movie was a tad too slow unless you follow the legal proceeding and the behind the courtroom work that goes into the case. This flick has my entire favorite cast, John Lithgow, William H. Macy, Kathleen Quinlan, Robert Duvall, and of course how can one miss John Travolta. James Gandolfini (Tony Soprano of the Soprano’s) has a painfully small part. The performances of the cast were just real and natural. I would love to see John Travolta and Robert Duval together in a movie, apart from the Phenomenon.
Davieboy’s Best scenes
The water, whether it was a concept or for real, was the best part running through the movie. A glass of water spilling here and there, some of the cast members filling water either in a jug or glass. The whole backbone of the plot was the chemically contaminated drinking water. Jan, at one time, looks closely at the water being spilled, for inspiration.
The courtroom Scenes where the Robert Duval wants the objection to be raised. They even snap out of sleep to say ’’objection’’
Quotes
#1
The truth? I thought we were talking about a court of law. Come on, you’ve been around long enough to know that a courtroom isn’t a place to look for the truth.
#2
We’re three lawyers they’re three hundred.
And for Desserts...
Jan Schlichtmann considered a vulture for his reputation of representing plaintiff’s, having a bad reputation with the Judges, transforms into a man falling prey for his own convictions to bring justice to the families at Woburn, MA. As the movie goes on, we are shown the softer side of Jan, as he keeps playing his stakes and eventually losing out on the case, his friends and his funds. This is the best movie in the courtroom drama scene I can vouch for. Hope to read your reviews when you have seen this.
Comments most welcome
Davieboy.