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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
How much are you worth?, 11 Aug 2004
This is one of those typical movies in which the greedy lawyer grows a conscience and starts out on a quest to defend the less privileged. But, even though the subject is not new, the way in which the story is presented and the performances by John Travolta, and especially Robert Duvall, make this a pretty good production anyhow. Travolta plays Jan Schlichtmann, a successful lawyer that measures everything in terms of money, including the life of others. For example, the perfect victim / client for him is a white male professional in his forties, while the one that has the least worth is no other than a child! Jan is one of Boston's most eligible bachelors and is having a ball; he believes he is above everyone else and does not care about mundane events or tragedies that other people may suffer. One day though, he receives a call from a client while he is on a radio show on air, and has no other option but to follow through on the case; at least so as to look a little better in the public eye. The case involves kids getting sick, and some dying, due to water wells contaminated with ethylene. Jan knows that since the victims are kids there is no real money in the case, so he is reluctant to take it. But when he is leaving town something catches his eye; the small tannery believed to be the culprit is owned by a huge company with various subsidiary companies, including the producer of Tropicana. From then on, we get to watch a typical David versus Goliath fight, which involves the lawyer with his limited team and funds and the huge corporation with unlimited resources and a very clever lawyer heading its case (Duvall). The film does a great job in presenting the feelings and priorities of those injured by the negligence of a corporation. Often people think that money is everything in a civil trial, but this example shows that that is not always the case. Some of the characters evolve greatly during the story, understanding what is really important and what is superficial. For these reasons, the movie deserves an above average rating.
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