Rating: 
Summary: What an Amazing Woman
Review: Wow! This is not another Pretty Woman by any means. Julia's character is a struggling mother who has no question in her mind as to the right and wrong of a whole town's situation, and she isn't afraid to hunt down the evidence and the answers she needs. Erin Brockovich is based on the true story of a woman at the end of her means who is scratching and clawing to keep from drowning while supporting her children, and saving a town. Roberts does an exceptional job portraying Brockovich.Kudos to both Julia for a job well done, and Erin for making her life what she wanted it to be, while helping those who couldn't have done it on their own.
Rating: 
Summary: Hey, I reviewed a Julia Roberts film!
Review: "True story" or not, if I never see another movie demonizing big business it will be too soon. Please, for the love of God, can I have ONE film where the businessman is not the devil? Please? Anyway, on to "Erin Brockovich". This is without question the best performance I've ever seen from Julia Roberts, but I'm grading on the curve. Her portrayal of Erin Brockovich includes constant potty mouth and an overload of sassy attitude, combined with an extensive wardrobe of slutty attire. Unfortunately, the movie allows for this character to triumph even though she insists on behaving like an uncouth, hypocritical, self-absorbed bigmouth who can't finish a sentence without cursing. The basic story involves a small rural town in California in which a large number of citizens have contracted life-threatening illnesses from contaminated water, and the class action suit they file against the evil Pacific Gas and Electric. Erin comes across questionable documents in a file she is processing for a law firm (she is not a lawyer, just an office worker), and decides to get to the bottom of it. The story snowballs from there, however the more interesting relationships between Erin and her family, employer, and her boyfriend Harley (oops, I mean George) make up the more watchable parts of the movie. There was another reviewer here who mentioned that this story has more in common with you average "movie of the week" than anything else, and I agree. Many times the plot is telegraphed to the viewer in that formulaic Hollywood way, in fact I never doubted for a second how this story would turn out. Albert Finney's character was well done, and to be honest Julia Robert's character was believable as well; I simply did not LIKE Erin BUT I had no problem with her believability as a character. The biker boyfriend... the less said the better. I didn't find him convincing. The relationship between Erin and George WAS believable, however I have a feeling that the "recap" scenes (where the two of them visit one of the plaintiffs following the lawsuit) featuring Erin and George were tacked on in the pursuit of the "feel good" ending. Hey, Marg Helgenberger makes an appearance as one of the townsfolk, and her character is VERY different from the one she plays in CSI. She does a great job; check it out. The story unravels in a typical manner, and of course every single person involved with PG&E is depicted as arrogant, uncaring, and just plain bad. Big Business = BAD = standard Hollywood scriptwriting. True, a business (or an individual) who contributes to contaminated groundwater is to be held responsible for their actions, and I can make no excuses for the company as they are portrayed here. I always find it difficult to believe that every businessman / corporation in the movies is Evil Incarnate. What the film glosses over is the fact that while PG&E was cited by the California Water Board multiple times to clean up their facilities, it was the GOVERNMENT who did not enforce existing laws properly, allowing PG&E to continue their hazardous practices. The real problem lies in the fact that most utility companies are government-sponsored monopolies, and are essentially exempt from free market factors which would drive your average irresponsible company out of business anyway. I didn't find this movie very funny as some reviewers have, mostly because the humor was based upon the "shock" value of having Erin rip someone's head off with creative profanity. I'd recommend the first hour of "Full Metal Jacket" for those who think Erin's outbursts are high comedy. "Erin Brockovich" is watchable, but certainly not award winning material. Julia Roberts makes a fine attempt at a serious dramatic role, yet I suspect that the powers-that-be had more than a hand in weakening a film that had a lot of potential. Julia is made to look just as pretty as she ever does, which detracts from the idea that she wanted to step outside her more typecast roles; "dolling her up" was not a good idea for those wishing to sell Roberts in a serious role.
Rating:
Summary: Erin BRA-kovich is more like it!
Review: ERIN BROCKOVICH is a superbly acted film, but as a screenplay it works too much more like a combination of SILKWOOD, A CIVIL ACTION, and Julia Roberts in a plunging neckline. Director Steven Soderbergh must have actually met with the real Erin Brockovich as she is casted in the film briefly in the dining cafe. She is a surprisingly attractive lady, and has a very pleasant demeanor. As Erin, Julia Roberts makes her more an antagonizing, rebellious vamp. I wonder if Soderbergh even bothered to investigate her real life. We have seen her on Oprah, for crying out loud! She's a single mother, three kids, flat broke, and has an unexpected shocker when Doctor in a Jaguar whiplashes her. Enter Albert Finney as Detective Ed Masry, a sensational actor who I thought looked as uncomfortable in the business suit as he did playing Oliver Warbucks in ANNIE. At least we don't have to see him singing and dancing this time around. The big day in court goes amiss, and Erin later finds herself under Masry's employment for a prospective law firm where she gets little or no help from co-workers. In an amusing way Erin gives them little comfort by wearing a very revealing skirt on her first day, where Masry remarks "You may want to consider changing your work outfit!", and she subtly responds "I look very well in this, thank you, and so long as I have one [behind] and not two, I will wear whatever I like!" Fine, considering she already lost her personal injury suit by flashing cleavage and mouthing four-letter words on the witness stand. This all made me wonder if the real Erin was ever mistreated or even worse patronized for somebody mistaking her for a hooker. To quickly summon up the rest, she's soon fired, re-hired, and finds a good companion with the next door neighbor George (Aaron Eckhart), and what's her first pick-up line? Delivering a myriad of numbers, one of which is her phone number, which she bets he will never bother to call. Tracey Walter sure was a pleasant surprise to see as a slimy character Erin encounters in a tavern, revealing a long awaited secret. What becomes even more tiresome than an overlong story that never really entails an accurate depiction of the events is the piano music score echoing through the film whenever Erin is on the move. What am I doing? I keep saying Erin - Julia I mean. Given her sassy wardrobes it also comes as a surprise none of the coworkers even try to hit on her or ask her out. The least she could do is mouth them off as she does so elegantly to everybody else in the office. Aside from that the dialogue between the stars is great. Thus enabling Julia fans to come up with great pickup lines when harassed on the normal day to day mishaps. You apply for jobs, and never get responses - you come in person. A District Attorney tries to discredit you - you say "And your point is....?". Finally my personal favorite, your boss assumes you were off having fun, you say "And I assume you've never been laid!" With the downsize of the economy now, it goes to show you how far you can go when being quick with the quips, and dressing in style. We'll be in for a real treat if Julia wears one of her skirts at the Award Ceremonies. Julia's performance and kinky wardrobes, and Sheryl Crow's "Everyday is a Winding Road" makes it all memorable, but overlength and character indifference hurts it right from the fade in.
Rating: 
Summary: Ugh
Review: These reviews are obviously purely subjective, and I wouldn't expect people to have the same tastes as me. It's nice to see that so many people enjoyed this film. I like to see people happy. That being said, I enjoyed NOT enjoying this film. Awful, awful, awful. Typical formulaic tripe, and unpleasant, grating tripe at that. "Thelma and Louise" were far more sympathetic characters. Oh, and the story is wildly inaccurate, too. []
Rating:
Summary: The best of Julia, Steve & Finney...
Review: Despite the merit of those films that won all the 2000 Oscars, this film deserved more. Soderbergh's film was my favorite that year. It was totally entertaining, gripping, and handled the serious subject with humor and a straight-forward drive. There is never a dull moment. (I don't understand why "Traffic" won the Oscar for its choppy, coarse editing, while this wasn't even nominated). I've also never understood the standards involved in the Best Sound category, but every subtle whisper & utterance of Susannah Grant's brilliant screenplay was clear, crisp and understood; also not nominated for Best Sound. What the Oscars got totally right was Julia's performance. This was an example of total control and commitment. I haven't been so impressed in many years. I was also very impressed with the kid performances of Scotty Leavenworth & Gemmenne de la Pena as Erin's kids. They were real and natural. I can't tolerate bad kid actors. I was impressed with the performances of Marg Helgenberger and Cherry Jones, and Jamie Harrold (as Scott) was perfectly dorky, a real treat. Then there was the great Albert Finney who seemed to be the centering force in the whole spiel. He was customarily excellent. This is, quite simply, an excellent film, and deserved a lot more credit than Julia's flawless performance. I find, lately, that this is the film I play when looking for a real "feel good" movie.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent biography
Review: This movie isn't just well-acted, it's truly inspiring. For disgruntled lawyers, this one allows you to go back and remember that you really can help real people. Ms. Brockovich, irrespective of her brash nature and unique wardrobe, used her tenacity to accomplish something truly remarkable. It's important not just that the story be brought to light because of the fraud perpetuated on these poor residents of the California desert, but also to remind us that in fact, one person can make a difference. Julia Roberts really turned into this character, and did a great job of portraying a woman who so desperately wants to do the best she can for both her family and her clients. Her Oscar was truly deserved!
Rating: 
Summary: Only Julia could make this character remotely likeable
Review: Having heard all the hoopla surrounding this film, I was fairly eager to see it, so when my father-in-law gave it to me for Christmas, I didn't waste much time.
I was pretty disappointed, though. The title character, who I guess we are all supposed to see as a sharp, tough woman, seemed to me little more than someone with such a chip on her shoulder she was bowing under the weight. Her law partner (who was excellently played by Albert Finney) was nothing but kind to her, and she was constantly accusing him of trying to cheat her or of going behind her back. He gave her a car, for Heaven's sake, and she was still treating him like the enemy. Her refusal to dress professionally wasn't funny, either..it was an indication to me that she was a person who was determined to be rude to others.
Since seeing the film, I have read more about Ms. Brockovitch and discovered that the story in the film is only half of the truth anyway. Many people in the town she "saved" found that their settlements were much smaller than the settlements of people who were particular "buddies" of Erin's..not to mention the fact that the chemical everyone in the film was so upset about is certainly present in Erin's cigarettes in far greater concentration than it was in the water, and that that particular chemical has STILL never been proven to do damage to people.
An interesting film, I guess, but certainly not one I have a desire to see again.
Rating:
Summary: Great Performances, Questionable Character
Review: Despite its terrific performances and excellent pacing, "Erin Brockovich" proves most of all that no matter how trashy, foul-mouthed or self-absorbed a good-looking white woman is, she will always come out on top, especially if she puts her best boobs forward. Roberts is perfectly cast as the titular (no pun intended) character, a 30-something ex-beauty queen with the mouth of a truck driver and the body of a Barbie doll, as well as its sense of responsibility. Down on her luck after two failed marriages (surprise), three kids (surprise) and no money in the bank (surprise), Brockovich hooks up with a broken down ambulance chaser (played marvelously by the always affable Albert Finney) following a car accident that may have been her fault. After practically extorting a job from Finney, she latches onto the plight of a California town, whose bumpkinish residents have been slow-poisoned by the local power utility. The movie wants to tell a David-and-Goliath story about a "common" woman taking on the big, bad corporation, but too often the motives of Brocovich get clouded by her self-indulgent behavior. For instance, she routinely dumps her kids on whoever will watch them, including a scary-looking but kind-hearted biker who just wants a girlfriend that's actually around. Though she claims her crusade is for the residents--she even seems to sacrifice her health for the case--ego seems to be more the impetus, as she basks in the adulation of the townspeople and takes generous swipes at anyone with a formal education, all while routinely running as far away from her own family as possible. And she expects a big check in the end. I just don't buy into the cockeyed moral center of the movie, no matter how much gritty charm Roberts brings to the lead role. Ultimately, of course, Brockovich triumphs, but the movie makes it clear that its her looks and aggression that open doors for her. True to life? Probably. But so is cancer. Doesn't mean I want it or need to see it.
Rating:
Summary: Lovely and Amazing
Review: Erin Brockovich (R)- You can ask anyone around me and they will tell you that I am not a Julia Roberts fan. I don't vehemently hate her but she has to work hard for me to enjoy her. Well in this movie she works hard and pulls out the best performance of her career. This film is a milestone for many reasons. Hiring Indy favourite Stephen Soderburgh to film what easily could have been a Lifetime (television for woman) weepie gave this script the spark it needed to make a huge and likable hit. The look is independent, the script is Hollywood and the result is a feminist fairy tale that flies high enough to lift the spirits and low enough for guys to laugh too. Hiring the perennially British Albert Finney as a down home American Lawyer seemed like disaster but ended up as perfection. When people say they don't make movies like they used to, they probably haven't seen this one.
Rating:
Summary: Top Notch Performances
Review: This movie chronicles the real life story of ERIN BROCKOVICH who defied the odds and brought about change in a small town, where its people were becoming increasingly sick from contaminated water. She fought for their rights, and defied the odds in bringing justice to the community. We meet Erin, played by Julia Roberts wonderfully, who is involved in a car accident and suffers from a fractured neck. Erin is a single mother of three, who manages to get a job with her lawyer by manuevering herself into his office and demanding a job. Erin doesn't take any b.s. and speaks her mind. She gets into everyone's face. Eventually she falls in love with the man living next to her and its a rollercoaster relationship as he tries to deal with her becoming increasingly more busy as time progresses. The movie was well paced and very well acted. I reccomend it if you enjoy inspiring movies, that are well acted. Julia Roberts outshone them all in this film.
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