Film Review: Erin Brockovich
- Jan 16
- 3 min read
Biographical comedy-drama reminds us that everyone can make a difference
By Alberto Sclaverano
The 2000 movie Erin Brockovich is based on a true story that happened in the early 1990s in California. An unemployed single mother with three children and a lot of money problems to care about, discovered one of greatest fraud against consumer’s rights and people’ health in recent US history.
Brockovich brought to light what the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) did to the residents of the town of Hinkley. The company poisoned the wastewater around the city by dumping chromium-contaminated water, which caused an extreme increase in tumors among the residents, and has now turned Hinkley into a sort of “ghost town”, impossible to live in.
After having obtained documents that proved what happened, Brockovich started a personal fight to disclose the truth to the public opinion and help Hinkley’s ill people to sue (PG&E) and obtain compensation for the damage caused to their health.
Her mission, which continues today, is a powerful, inspiring message, and watching the film is useful not only to discover a tragic yet inspiring story, but it can also motivate today’s environmental activists and people who try to bring climate and social justice in the legal system. The message is clear: never give up! After the event chronicled in the film, Brockovich became a social activist and spent her whole life giving legal help to people affected by similar situations to the one she denounced in 1993.
The film gleefully combines elements of comedy, biographical drama, and legal thriller, telling a (slightly) more cinematic version of the real-life events that led Brockovich (played by Julia Roberts) to hire almost casually Californian lawyer Edward L. Masry (1932-2005, played in the film by Albert Finney), who at first skeptical of her crusade, soon joins and helps her and the inhabitants of Hinkley.
When Erin Brockovich was released, it was a global box office success, grossing around 256 million dollars against a 52 million budget. It received critical acclaim and obtained five nominations for the Academy Award (Best Picture, Director, Actress, Supporting Actor for Finney, and original Screenplay for Grant). Julia Roberts won the Oscar for Best Actress, alongside the Golden Globe, the British Academy Film Awards, and several other prominent prizes around the world.
The script was written by Susannah Grant and the movie was directed by Steven Soderbergh, known for his ability to switch between independent films, such as Traffic, which won him the Academy Award for best director, and blockbusters such as Ocean’s Eleven and the remake of Solaris.
Roberts’ portrayal of Erin Brockovich is considered one of the most important representations of a social and environmental activist in Hollywood history, and the best performance of her career. In fact, the core of the movie is the celebration of the possibility of making a difference, even if all the odds are against. The parable of Erin (the real Brockovich served as a consultant for the movie, and also appears in it in a small role as a waitress) is a modern version of the story of David against Goliath.
It proves that no one, however powerful, should be above the law and that we, as humans, have the right to live in a non-polluted, non-dangerous to our health environment. After a long legal dispute, Brockovich and lawyer Masry won, and PG&E was forced to pay an enormous compensation to Hinkley town residents. This fact could never, of course, compensate for entire families who have several relatives who have died of cancer, but at least demonstrates that large companies do not have the right to pollute and ignore environmental and health protection directives.
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