Erin Brockovich

Theatrical Release Date: 2000 03 17 (USA)

UPC: 5050629059816

Studio: As Is

MPAA Rating: R   Contains:[Adult Situations, Adult Humor, Profanity]

Summary: Julia Roberts stars in this legal drama based on the true story of a woman who helped win the largest settlement ever paid in a direct-action lawsuit. Erin Brockovich (Roberts) is a single mother of three who, after losing a personal injury lawsuit, asks her lawyer, Ed Masry (Albert Finney), if he can help her find a job. Ed gives her work as a file clerk in his office, and she runs across some information on a little-known case filed against Pacific Gas and Electric. Erin begins digging into the particulars of the case, convinced that the facts simply don't add up, and persuades Ed to allow her to do further research; in time, she discovers a systematic cover-up of the industrial poisoning of a city's water supply, which threatens the health of the entire community. Erin Brockovich was directed by Steven Soderbergh; Julia Roberts earned a $20 million payday for her work on the film, the highest salary paid to a female film star up to that time. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Category: Comedy Drama

Awards: Best Picture - Drama – null Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama – null Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – null Best Director – null AFI's Top 10 Films of the Year – American Film Institute Best Director – National Society of Film Critics Best Actress – Screen Actors Guild Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – Screen Actors Guild Best Director – Directors Guild of America Best Picture – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Director – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Original Screenplay – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Actress – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Editing – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Original Screenplay – Writers Guild of America Best Actress – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Best Director – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Best Actress – Broadcast Film Critics Association Best Director – Broadcast Film Critics Association Best Actress – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Director – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Original Screenplay – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Actress – National Board of Review Best Director – National Board of Review Best Director – New York Film Critics Circle Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Supporting Actor – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Supporting Actor – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Supporting Actor – Screen Actors Guild Best Director – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Erin Brockovich

Format: Blu-ray

Release Date: 05/12/2009

Runtime: 132 Minutes

Michael Hastings

A crowd-pleasing, "based on true events" drama that sidesteps the usual treacly sentiment, Erin Brockovich finally gave Julia Roberts a role that capitalized on her strengths as it expanded her range, and in the process catapulted Steven Soderbergh into the highest echelon of Hollywood directors. Working from Susannah Grant's zinger-packed script, Soderbergh and Roberts portray Brockovich's crusade not as a leaden, courtroom-bound affair, but as a bustling, unpredictable journey: her everyday struggles with unreliable babysitters, reckless drivers, and unsympathetic employers are just as important as her effort to topple a corporate cover-up, and just as entertaining. Brockovich is brassy, foul-mouthed, and at times pig-headed, and there's no attempt to soften the character or bend her will to fit the saintly transformations of traditional melodrama. Instead of attempting a Meryl Streep-style disappearing act, Roberts accentuates the qualities that made her a star -- humor, empathy, confidence -- while inviting the audience to wonder if her character isn't occasionally too reactionary or short-fused. The wonderfully understated Albert Finney further emphasizes the give and take: "I really hate you sometimes," he barks, his character's respect and sympathy comically evident. Even as the film nears its preordained happy ending, Soderbergh maintains an air of unpredictability, thanks in large part to the democratic cuts of legendary editor Anne V. Coates and the unobtrusive, hazily beautiful camerawork of Ed Lachman. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Danny DeVito  Producer 
John Hardy  Executive Producer 
Thomas Newman  Composer (Music Score) 
Michael Shamberg  Producer 
Stacey Sher  Producer 
Steven Soderbergh  Director 
Susannah Grant  Screenwriter 
Carla Santos Shamberg  Executive Producer 
Julia Roberts  Actor 
Albert Finney  Actor 
Aaron Eckhart  Actor 
Marg Helgenberger  Actor 
Cherry Jones  Actor 
Veanne Cox  Actor 
Conchata Ferrell  Actor 
Tracey Walter  Actor 
Peter Coyote  Actor 
Scotty Leavenworth  Actor 
Gemmenne De la Pena  Actor 
Jamie Harrold  Actor 

Country: USA