Who's In It?
John Travolta plays Jan Schlichtmann, Robert Duvall as Jerome Facher, Tony Shalhoub as Kevin Conway, William H. Macy as James Gordon, John Lithgow as Judge Skinner, and Kathleen Quinlan as Anne Anderson.
Who Made It?
Steven Zaillian
What's It About?
Jan Schlichtmann is an admitted ambulance chaser. He is one of the more despised lawyers in society, simply because he preys off the misfortunes of others to drive his Porsche and become an eligible bachelor in Boston's upper crust. His staff is there with him all the way, trying to get rich off of other families misfortunes. Along comes the Woburn case that Kevin Conway can't get rid of. No lawyer wants the case because of the lack of money that it will provide. Jan takes it upon himself to go to Woburn and "blow off" the prospective client. Every excuse will in the book will be used, the bottom line however, is money. Will Jan have a "change of heart"? And even if he does take the case, what chance is there for them to win? Big business versus the little guy, or Money grubbers versus money grubbers?
Common Guy's Thoughts
John Travolta has regained his status as one of the Hollywood's elite. His films keep showing a true variety of what his acting talent holds. He takes on the role of Jan Schlichtmann with relative ease. Maybe his talent is a bit influenced by his role in Face Off, seeing as he goes from one character to a totally different one.
Though Travolta is the lead in this film, I thought the show was stolen by Robert Duvall and William H. Macy in lesser roles within A Civil Action. Duvall plays the Beatrice Foods lawyer, Jerome Facher, that is going up against Travolta in the Woburn case. Duvall is a master at showing the complexity of his character throughout the case. While Macy plays the financial "genius" behind Travolta's attempt to try the Woburn case. The utter frustration as he works to keep the firm afloat is just mind-blowing. Duvall and Macy are just two of the standout characters of an awesome supporting cast including Tony Shalhoub, John Lithgow, and Kathleen Quinlan. Though Travolta holds down the star role in this film, it seems that the supporting cast steals the show.
Director Steve Zaillian gives us an interesting look inside the conversion of men in this film. The same identical facts will affect us in different ways. Pride will sometimes get in the way of the better judgment for everyone. Sometimes, even though you feel you are right, it is time to step back and look at the big picture. Reality is not always the ideal situation. We are constantly given close ups on glasses of water, do you see them as half full or half empty? That is a question that every last one of us should evaluate.
Overall this is a good movie, though not great like some of the other courtroom dramas of recent years. This falls into the category of not being appealing to everyone as it may get overly preachy from time to time. But it is a decent film if you like the whole courtroom drama genre of films. It's worth a look to most people.
Grade
B-
Parents Guide
A Civil Action is rated PG-13 and really is not meant to be geared towards kids in any way shape and form. In fact most kids would probably not have their interest held throughout the film. Now when it comes to objectionable material the language meter can go a little wild from time to time with some heated discussions that take place. The conduct of Macy's character can get a little over the edge and may give kids the wrong idea about where to get money from when you are in dire straits. The rest of the film is fairly tame, however. It's worth a viewing before letting young kids see the film, but overall I've seen much worse.
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