A Civil Action

A lawyer who makes his money on personal injury takes on a case about water contamination that killed children in a town, because he judges it profitable. Two large corporations are on the other side. The film deliberately breaks the shape of the courtroom drama: there is no winning, the case bankrupts his firm, and the apology the families want never comes. The narrative presents the legal standard of proof as the real obstacle. Steven Zaillian wrote and directed. John Travolta and Robert Duvall lead, with Duvall nominated for an Academy Award. It follows the real Woburn case. Who it's for: those who like realistic legal drama. Who it's not for: viewers wanting a satisfying close on justice; the film withholds it because reality did.