Erin Brockovich **** (2000, Julia Roberts, Albert Finney, David Brisbin) – Classic Movie Review 304

In 1999 Julia Roberts grabs hold of her best role in ages – and a chance to show her acting skills as well as her legs and cleavage – as the sassy real-life heroine of the title who triumphs over apparently insurmountable odds. This top legal thriller earned five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.

In the end, it took only one. Roberts triumphed on Academy Award night, winning the best actress Oscar as Erin Brockovich, a divorced, broke, unemployed single mom with three kids, who talks her attorney Ed Masry (Albert Finney) into hiring her for his law firm as a legal assistant. Soon Roberts finds medical files that lead her to investigate a cover-up and she pursues a case against a big California power company dumping toxic waste and contaminating a city’s water supply, causing devastating illness.

This spirited real-life thriller is fast moving, gripping, intelligent, humorous and very well handled all round. It produces an often very funny movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat as Erin powers her way through the opposition to go for the largest direct-action lawsuit in US legal history – $333million!

Roberts gives her best, most appealing performance so far as the eager-beaver girl scout, miles away from her usual romantic-comedy turn. And Oscar-nominated Finney reminds us what a great actor he is.

Roberts, Finney, director Steven Soderbergh, writer Susannah Grant and of course the lawyers all hit the jackpot here.

© Derek Winnert 304 Classic Movie Review 2136

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