This is the kind of stuff that makes your blood boil, doesn't it? Whenever I become aware of instances where products produced by large corporations are deemed dangerous or hazardous to one's health, I always wonder whether the executives of those companies have any trouble sleeping at night. In the case of Teflon or it's component PFOA, the summary of the story concludes that it can now be found in ninety nine percent of everything living on the planet. Seeing as how this includes those same executives themselves and their families, you have to wonder why they would willingly keep on poisoning themselves. It took real courage and a whole lot of persistence for the real live Rob Bilott, here portrayed by Mark Ruffalo, to take on the huge Dupont Chemical Company back in the late Nineties when he first learned how one of their dump sites was poisoning the ground water and streams in his former home town of Parkersburg, West Virginia. It didn't take long for Bilott and his law firm to realize the system was rigged to cover up wrong doing and avoid accountability for their poor corporate behavior. The film I'm sure can't possibly convey the frustration and anger experienced by his law firm and it's clients over the decade plus long battle to set things right, just as I'm sure no amount of damages can soothe the families who lost loved ones to the hazards posed by a poisonous product. It might sound like a lot to hear that Dupont eventually settled for a six hundred seventy million dollar fine over it's use of Teflon, but if you break it down, it's just under a hundred ninety thousand dollars per case. Seems to me like the company got away cheap.
521 Reviews
Wow, who knew? This biopic story NEEDED to be told.
Top_Dawg_Critic21 January 2020
Dupont's stock dropped when this film was released. I never knew about this deception until I saw this biopic. Casting was excellent with stellar and convincing performances. Directing was good but the editing was terrible in some parts. I also felt the 126 min runtime was too long, and felt even longer with the slow pacing and some dragged out/unnecessary scenes. Had the pacing been faster and 20-25 mins shaved off the runtime, I would've rated this gem higher. Still, a great biopic about a story that needed to be told, and a well deserved 8/10 from me. Now off to go throw away my teflon non-stick pans...
Scary as hell when I learned what the movie was about
Vic_max1 December 2019
This is one scary movie because it's something that stretched into recent times ... and really happened. It's about self-regulation, big-business, medical disasters and cover-ups on a scale that just doesn't seem possible in today's world.
I had no idea this movie was about one of the most well-known brands in the world (that DuPont owns) ... and the terrible secret behind it. Since the name is not advertised in the previews, I won't spoil it here ... but everyone has heard of it and ... ugh ... been somewhat contaminated by it.
This is not really an "action" movie ... it's a bit of a slow-burn as developments take place over stretches of time. Mark Ruffalo's performance is fine ... though it's fair to say there are other actors who could have put in more compelling and watchable performances.
I'd have to admit that if the movie wasn't about real events, it would be so-so. However, because it is based on actual events ... you can't help but want to know how the movie unfolds.
While there are some unexplained issues relating to the main character's law firm and boss (who inexplicably seem to side with an underdog case) ... it's not enough to derail the story ... because the main plot really did transpire.
It's a good movie to remind us that we're not as protected by our systems, institutions and government as we'd like to think.
I had no idea this movie was about one of the most well-known brands in the world (that DuPont owns) ... and the terrible secret behind it. Since the name is not advertised in the previews, I won't spoil it here ... but everyone has heard of it and ... ugh ... been somewhat contaminated by it.
This is not really an "action" movie ... it's a bit of a slow-burn as developments take place over stretches of time. Mark Ruffalo's performance is fine ... though it's fair to say there are other actors who could have put in more compelling and watchable performances.
I'd have to admit that if the movie wasn't about real events, it would be so-so. However, because it is based on actual events ... you can't help but want to know how the movie unfolds.
While there are some unexplained issues relating to the main character's law firm and boss (who inexplicably seem to side with an underdog case) ... it's not enough to derail the story ... because the main plot really did transpire.
It's a good movie to remind us that we're not as protected by our systems, institutions and government as we'd like to think.
The Corporation Does Not Factor Humanity
statuskuo7 December 2019
There's nothing here that you have not seen. Go ahead and call it "Aaron Brockovich." But director Todd Haynes still makes it entirely engaging and painfully true that death is a number compared to liability and that is how you can sustain cold hearted industry. Made more gut wrenching is how they believed the ends justified the means.
Mark Ruffalo tackles the lawyer with the conscience wonderfully. Suffering under the weight of what he must do and what then envelops his small world. It's heroic in how much he does sacrifice and let's face it, these stories don't end well. What director Haynes does is put a face to the not-on-the-books crime. And though, it only is a civil case somehow you sense the frustration of the town. Not played as rubes but believing that a massive corporation who funded and gave perks to sustain the village wouldn't willingly destroy it. As we know now versus 1998, they knew...if not for simple morbid curiosity. Then sat on the information as it fed the machine decades later, we are now more informed and much more paranoid. Everything we eat or touch or...breathe we are closer to death.
I was in that area in 1998...and the news then spent less time on it then I recall. As a college bound student, I heard murmurs of DuPont and jokes were made of this. Now...it seems bitterly grim. How many lives were destroyed because of shady dealings. When you peel the onion, you do weep.
I love this flick. The flavor of that era is pitch perfect. The backroads of an industrial town, built under poor chemistry just sweats disease. And you walk out angered by it. The fight continues to this day.
Must See
drjgardner10 December 2019
Great acting and a great story - what more can you want. Perhaps a happy story because this story is over whelming. A large company knowingly uses war technology to destroy the lives of animals, people, and communities in the name of the mighty buck. We can take solace in the fight to expose them, but the facts of this case are so distressing.
Mark Ruffalo, Tim Robbins, an d Victor Garber are exceptional, but the star of the film is Bill Camp in the performance of a lifetime.
Mark Ruffalo, Tim Robbins, an d Victor Garber are exceptional, but the star of the film is Bill Camp in the performance of a lifetime.
Very fine
Leofwine_draca5 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
DARK WATERS is another very fine true story of environmental pollution in America, and another feather in the cap for Mark Ruffalo, who with the likes of FOXCATCHER and SPOTLIGHT has made some of the best factual films to come out of Hollywood in the last decade. This one's quite similar to the John Travolta flick A CIVIL ACTION or even ERIN BROKOVICH, but even better, following a lengthy and complex case through to its conclusion. It's a dark and sombre production with a depressing subject matter, yet it's also very well acted and quietly gripping from beginning to end.
A great fight
valadas23 January 2020
The powerful company DuPont that runs consuming water business with a plant in Cincinatti, Ohio, has been polluting water for many years with a chemical called PFOA that proves to be greatly dangerous to human health and has inclusively caused some deaths. The defense attorney Robert Bilott starts a fight against that company which includes judicial proceedings, The movie shows it with every detail in an excellent realistic way with all characters performed by excellent actors which galvanizes us as viewers till its end. One of the best 2019 movies.
Informative
ilovefoodcoma28 November 2019
It is great to hear the details of this case from the victims' side other than from the media. Very informative and good flow of the script. Even though it is over 2 hours movie but didn't feel any scene unnecessary. Definitely great directing.
Thank you for the fight
Gordon-111 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I still remember watching TV ads about teflon when I was a child. I only find out today that it is severely harmful to health! The story is engaging and absolutely gripping. Thank you for the prolonged fight against corporate deception and irresponsibility. Thank you for telling this story that otherwise many people would not have known.
brave new world?
A_Different_Drummer17 January 2020
Very Human Film
Hitchcoc23 February 2022
I recall following this case in the papers several years ago. Of course, the whistle blower is out one the edge, butting heads with the Czars who control the world. So a few people die. Or a lot. Think of all the cool stuff we have as a result to scientific advancements. But here we are not talking about medical breakthroughs and lab animals. We are talking about cookware. This is such a long and intense film that leaves one exhausted at the end and the truth is, it keeps on going. I am not on board with the idea that because a company is big it is evil. This is about one that has been. Throw enough lawyers at anything and the amount of time it takes to litigate is enough to watch more and more victims pass away. I thought that this film's strength is its lack of bombast. It drags us through the layers that one must engage in order to protect us.
Mark Ruffalo shines in David v. Goliath legal battle
paul-allaer7 December 2019
"Dark Waters" (2019 release; 126 min.) brings the story of Cincinnati lawyer Rob Bilott's long legal battle against DuPont. As the movie opens, it is "1975 Parkersburg, West Virginia" as we see several teenagers (one of them a young Bilott) go swimming in a lake that we later see being sprayed with chemicals. We then go to "1998 Cincinnati, Ohio", and Rob has just made partner at Taft, one of the large law firms in Cincinnati. Then a stranger shows up who is from Parkersburg and knows Rob's grandmother. The stranger, Wilbur Tennant, claims that chemicals have ruined his farm, he has the VHS tapes to prove it, and can Rob please represent him.... At this point we're 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all turns out.
Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from Todd Haynes, whose prior movie, the excellent "Carol" was coincidentally also filmed here in Cincinnati (where I live). But that is where the comparisons stop. Here, Haynes brings to the big screen the long legal battle that Bilott fought against chemical giant DuPont. The film starts a bit tentative in my opinion, but after the first half hour, the tension doesn't let up as DuPont is fighting with all of its might against Bilott. This movie is a labor of love for Mark Ruffalo, who stars and also co-produces. I've seen a lot of the films that Ruffalo has made in his career, and I don't know that he's ever been better, playing the almost mousy yet determined lawyer. Anne Hathaway seems underused as the supportive spouse but as the movie goes deeper, her role expands. The movie was filmed in early 2019 in and around Cincinnati, and the downtown area is featured extensively, including Fountain Square, the Queen City Club, the Hall of Mirrors at the Netherland Plaza, etc.
The movie had a red carpet premiere here in Cincinnati in mid-November, a week before it got a limited theater release. This weekend it got a wide release, and the Friday early evening screening where I saw it at my art-house theater here in Cincinnati was attended okay (about 20 people). This movie will surely create strong word of mouth, and if it manages to pick up some award nominations (as it is expected), this could have a decent run in the theaters. If you are interested in a tense legal drama where Mark Ruffalo shines, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.
Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from Todd Haynes, whose prior movie, the excellent "Carol" was coincidentally also filmed here in Cincinnati (where I live). But that is where the comparisons stop. Here, Haynes brings to the big screen the long legal battle that Bilott fought against chemical giant DuPont. The film starts a bit tentative in my opinion, but after the first half hour, the tension doesn't let up as DuPont is fighting with all of its might against Bilott. This movie is a labor of love for Mark Ruffalo, who stars and also co-produces. I've seen a lot of the films that Ruffalo has made in his career, and I don't know that he's ever been better, playing the almost mousy yet determined lawyer. Anne Hathaway seems underused as the supportive spouse but as the movie goes deeper, her role expands. The movie was filmed in early 2019 in and around Cincinnati, and the downtown area is featured extensively, including Fountain Square, the Queen City Club, the Hall of Mirrors at the Netherland Plaza, etc.
The movie had a red carpet premiere here in Cincinnati in mid-November, a week before it got a limited theater release. This weekend it got a wide release, and the Friday early evening screening where I saw it at my art-house theater here in Cincinnati was attended okay (about 20 people). This movie will surely create strong word of mouth, and if it manages to pick up some award nominations (as it is expected), this could have a decent run in the theaters. If you are interested in a tense legal drama where Mark Ruffalo shines, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray.
Frightfully disturbing.....
byron-11619 January 2020
Muddled but clear
kosmasp5 April 2021
You know when you hear about a horrible story that happened to someone? The normal human reaction is to feel sympathy for the party that has taken damage. Most of the time that is an underdog, someone is being overlooked by the goverment most likely. It may not be the best time to have a movie about conspiracies being so accurate, but it is what it is.
And it also is something that is not just relevant to someone else, but to all of us. When the enviroment gets polluted we can't just stand on the side and say "well this does not happen where I live". While some may still believe the planet is flat, the most of us know that anything happening at one end of the world is very likely to affect the other parts of the world too.
This is as someone else wrote quite eye opening. And if you read the text at the end of the movie also very disturbing to say the least. Not a movie to cheer you up then, but that is not its purpose!
And it also is something that is not just relevant to someone else, but to all of us. When the enviroment gets polluted we can't just stand on the side and say "well this does not happen where I live". While some may still believe the planet is flat, the most of us know that anything happening at one end of the world is very likely to affect the other parts of the world too.
This is as someone else wrote quite eye opening. And if you read the text at the end of the movie also very disturbing to say the least. Not a movie to cheer you up then, but that is not its purpose!
More people need to see this
branflakes454721 December 2019
It feels like this movie is being swept under the rug. I won't say by whom, but I will remove my tin foil hat now. Fantastic fantastic film. This movie really rocked my world. It took me a few days to calm down I was so enraged at the subject matter. Unbelievable crimes against humanity. But because Dupont makes 75 billion dollars a year nobody can touch them. Not even the government. Evvryone should see this. Very thrilling and well made. Mark Rufallo can go fly a kite though. He's the same as he always is
A must see.
jayaxelhickey20 January 2020
An Important, Must See Film!
lbenot10 January 2020
A very powerful and well-done account of a devastating and relatively recent example of egregiously long-term corporate arrogance, greed, and social irresponsibility; verses the sustained dedication of one farmer and one attorney.
With such well-documented, internally done, red-flag-raising studies which revealed the substantial long-term health consequences of the manufacture and use of such a widely used product, one has to wonder - where were the company whistle blowers?
Also, in light of all the years of legal maneuvering and stone-walling, one must also wonder what efforts Dupont damage control executives put into keeping this movie from being made, released, and seen by the public.
It's rare for a film to entertain and inform, and where the superheroes are real live people. A superb and important story-telling that everyone should, if not must, see!
With such well-documented, internally done, red-flag-raising studies which revealed the substantial long-term health consequences of the manufacture and use of such a widely used product, one has to wonder - where were the company whistle blowers?
Also, in light of all the years of legal maneuvering and stone-walling, one must also wonder what efforts Dupont damage control executives put into keeping this movie from being made, released, and seen by the public.
It's rare for a film to entertain and inform, and where the superheroes are real live people. A superb and important story-telling that everyone should, if not must, see!
Revealing, and soul searching truth for moral justice against hidden corruption!
blanbrn8 December 2019
"Dark Waters" is without a doubt a touching and truth opening movie that shows a more than three decades legal struggle and fight against corporate greed and water and product pollution. Covering a time period from the late 80's to mid to late 2000's the film is timely and a long journey to show the affects of common people's lives. It involves Robert Bilott(in a fine turn from Mark Ruffalo) a Cincinnati, Ohio corporate defense attorney who after being contacted by a family member of his old hometown of Parkersburg, West Virginia to go check on strange problems that a local farmer is having it's like all of his cows are dying! Upon investigation and viewing of dead cattle parts and looking at the local water it's clear that pollution is the norm.
One by one the locals become affected with various and deadly health problems like cancer and the drama that starts to unfold is tense as Robert chooses morality over loyalty and decides to defend the people in a lawsuit against the giant chemical company named "DuPont" as thru later research and reports and some sharp investigative work it's clear the chemical giant has a big history of pollution. Wow what about a big cover up as these crimes have crippled many ever day people. Most shocking was the discovery of the traces of the toxic chemical Teflon which started in many day to day household products only to now be present in most everyone's body.
Along the way the drama and stress that unfolds takes a toll on Robert only his supporting love and need to live is found in family as his trophy wife Sarah Bilott(the sexy Anne Hathaway) is the strong and leading captain of the family ship. This movie was well done as it showed how dirty and corrupt that society can be as corporate greed and harmful corruption must be discovered and fought. Really "Dark Waters" is a very direct and truthful moral justice seeking film.
One by one the locals become affected with various and deadly health problems like cancer and the drama that starts to unfold is tense as Robert chooses morality over loyalty and decides to defend the people in a lawsuit against the giant chemical company named "DuPont" as thru later research and reports and some sharp investigative work it's clear the chemical giant has a big history of pollution. Wow what about a big cover up as these crimes have crippled many ever day people. Most shocking was the discovery of the traces of the toxic chemical Teflon which started in many day to day household products only to now be present in most everyone's body.
Along the way the drama and stress that unfolds takes a toll on Robert only his supporting love and need to live is found in family as his trophy wife Sarah Bilott(the sexy Anne Hathaway) is the strong and leading captain of the family ship. This movie was well done as it showed how dirty and corrupt that society can be as corporate greed and harmful corruption must be discovered and fought. Really "Dark Waters" is a very direct and truthful moral justice seeking film.
What to do when a Corporation is a 'Person', and that Person is the villain
Quinoa198419 December 2019
I know this is basically A Civil Action 2.0, but it's a story told with conviction and pathos and a whole lot of anger at that most black-void-hole-evil a "Person" known as the Mega-Corporation. It does at times jump a little much ahead into the future hitting bullet points of history. At the same time, I'm not sure how else to economically tell this story in a little over two hours. The centerpiece of this, where Ruffalo's Robert tells one person (his wife) and then another (his law boss Robbins), the man who didn't believe him at the corporation, and then the ornery farmer who we saw earlier shoot a cow in the head in self defense(!), is a masters class in how to handle exposition and to do cross-cutting to create a sequence.
And Todd Haynes, who hasn't helmed a film like this before (and normally I wouldn't think he'd go for it, and kudos to him for collaborating with Ruffalo), ultimately he does manage to smuggle in this greater idea that goes for these bottom-less-pocket-book-deep wells of money like Dupont, but it's also about power itself. The people in West Virginia poisoned and made to die can be a metaphor for any kind of institution (i.e. political) that hides and cajoles and yet those being hurt will support them... until it may be too late. If it has anything over Civil Action, it's the authenticity that comes with filming in the place (with several of the people from the case), and Haynes's unique eye (look at how he stages that medical scene late in the film).
And Todd Haynes, who hasn't helmed a film like this before (and normally I wouldn't think he'd go for it, and kudos to him for collaborating with Ruffalo), ultimately he does manage to smuggle in this greater idea that goes for these bottom-less-pocket-book-deep wells of money like Dupont, but it's also about power itself. The people in West Virginia poisoned and made to die can be a metaphor for any kind of institution (i.e. political) that hides and cajoles and yet those being hurt will support them... until it may be too late. If it has anything over Civil Action, it's the authenticity that comes with filming in the place (with several of the people from the case), and Haynes's unique eye (look at how he stages that medical scene late in the film).
solid enviro drama
SnoopyStyle1 March 2020
In 1998, Cincinnati lawyer Robert Bilott (Mark Ruffalo) is a new partner in Taft which specializes in defending chemical companies. He's reluctant to show his West Virginia roots. Angry farmer Wilbur Tennant shows up demanding his services after getting referral from Bilott's grandmother. The Tennant farm is next to a DuPont garbage dump and his cattle are dying. Bilott decides to take the case despite being usually on the other side of the court. He discovers corporate corruption, dangerous Teflon, and a system rigged against the little guys.
It's compelling. It's the little guy fighting Goliath. It's sincere. It's informative. It's engrossing. It doesn't stray from the formula and that's probably its main deficiency. It's safe. It's doesn't need the underground parking car bomb scene. That is following the formula too closely. It does have great actors which elevate the material.
It's compelling. It's the little guy fighting Goliath. It's sincere. It's informative. It's engrossing. It doesn't stray from the formula and that's probably its main deficiency. It's safe. It's doesn't need the underground parking car bomb scene. That is following the formula too closely. It does have great actors which elevate the material.
Corporate Malfeasance That Borders On Corporate Homicide
virek2131 January 2020
In recent decades, particularly since the horror that erupted on 9/11, more than a few dramatic movies have dealt with real-life events and/or social issues in ways that are often so engaging that they supersede most Hollywood blockbusters. Some of the very best deal with the kind of rampant corporate malfeasance that goes on when there are few or no regulations in place to protect the people that these corporations have a tendency to harm with all-too-painful regularity. DARK WATERS is one of those films.
Mark Ruffalo portrays Robert Billott, a Cincinnati-based attorney who is part of a law firm that represents dozens of multi-billion dollar corporations, the biggest not only in America but the world at large as well. But when he hears about a farmer in his own hometown of Parkersburg, West Virginia who has lost nearly two hundred head of cows because they drank from toxically polluted water, he wades into the situation (albeit reluctantly at first) and discovers that one of the companies he has represented in his time, no less than DuPont, is the corporation whose dumping of their toxic waste is responsible for not having only killed livestock, but poisoning and/or severely deforming almost everybody there in Parkersburg, nearly seventy thousand in all. Combing through documents dating all the way back to the 1970s, he learns that some of this poisoning may be connected to a very well-known product, that DuPont created back in the early 1960s (everyone will know all too well what the name of that product is), and is in practically everything in every home in the United States, including pots and pans. The toll it took on him and his family, including the relationship with his wife (portrayed by Anne Hathaway) was almost too much for him (he ended up in the hospital for a time); but he kept on fighting for the people in his town, getting blood samples from everyone tested to be used as evidence of DuPont's corporate malfeasance, which virtually bordered on corporate homicide.
Based on Nathaniel Rich's article "The Lawyer Who Became DuPont's Worst Nightmare" that appeared in the New York Times Magazine in 2016, DARK WATERS is quite well directed by Todd Haynes (I'M NOT THERE; WONDERSTRUCK), and co-written by Matthew Michael Carnahan (LIONS FOR LAMBS; DEEPWATER HORIZON). Ruffalo, who portrayed one of the Boston Globe reporters in the much-acclaimed 2015 drama SPOTLIGHT, ably portrays Billott in a way that gives us a glimpse into his way of thinking that, just by having represented DuPont in his time, he himself may have been somewhat responsible for the years-long poisoning of his own hometown, even if only indirectly. The atmosphere conjured up by Haynes is not too dissimilar to what we saw in ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, SPOTLIGHT, or THE POST, one that is decidedly sinister, shadowy and arguably corrupting. Tim Robbins, well known for his highly liberal political beliefs, does a good job of playing Ruffalo's partner in the firm, who is initially extremely reluctant to take his side but then does when the facts about DuPont become too big to ignore. Mare Winningham is also good as one of Parkersburg's many residents who have to face what the town's biggest employer has been doing to then for decades.
While it may seem all too common for movies to take what may seem like potshots at multi-billion dollar conglomerates, when they do the wrong thing (which seems to happen all too frequently, as it did with DuPont), then those wrongs have to have a light shone on them. This is what DARK WATERS does; and as a result, it was one of the best films released in 2019.
Mark Ruffalo portrays Robert Billott, a Cincinnati-based attorney who is part of a law firm that represents dozens of multi-billion dollar corporations, the biggest not only in America but the world at large as well. But when he hears about a farmer in his own hometown of Parkersburg, West Virginia who has lost nearly two hundred head of cows because they drank from toxically polluted water, he wades into the situation (albeit reluctantly at first) and discovers that one of the companies he has represented in his time, no less than DuPont, is the corporation whose dumping of their toxic waste is responsible for not having only killed livestock, but poisoning and/or severely deforming almost everybody there in Parkersburg, nearly seventy thousand in all. Combing through documents dating all the way back to the 1970s, he learns that some of this poisoning may be connected to a very well-known product, that DuPont created back in the early 1960s (everyone will know all too well what the name of that product is), and is in practically everything in every home in the United States, including pots and pans. The toll it took on him and his family, including the relationship with his wife (portrayed by Anne Hathaway) was almost too much for him (he ended up in the hospital for a time); but he kept on fighting for the people in his town, getting blood samples from everyone tested to be used as evidence of DuPont's corporate malfeasance, which virtually bordered on corporate homicide.
Based on Nathaniel Rich's article "The Lawyer Who Became DuPont's Worst Nightmare" that appeared in the New York Times Magazine in 2016, DARK WATERS is quite well directed by Todd Haynes (I'M NOT THERE; WONDERSTRUCK), and co-written by Matthew Michael Carnahan (LIONS FOR LAMBS; DEEPWATER HORIZON). Ruffalo, who portrayed one of the Boston Globe reporters in the much-acclaimed 2015 drama SPOTLIGHT, ably portrays Billott in a way that gives us a glimpse into his way of thinking that, just by having represented DuPont in his time, he himself may have been somewhat responsible for the years-long poisoning of his own hometown, even if only indirectly. The atmosphere conjured up by Haynes is not too dissimilar to what we saw in ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, SPOTLIGHT, or THE POST, one that is decidedly sinister, shadowy and arguably corrupting. Tim Robbins, well known for his highly liberal political beliefs, does a good job of playing Ruffalo's partner in the firm, who is initially extremely reluctant to take his side but then does when the facts about DuPont become too big to ignore. Mare Winningham is also good as one of Parkersburg's many residents who have to face what the town's biggest employer has been doing to then for decades.
While it may seem all too common for movies to take what may seem like potshots at multi-billion dollar conglomerates, when they do the wrong thing (which seems to happen all too frequently, as it did with DuPont), then those wrongs have to have a light shone on them. This is what DARK WATERS does; and as a result, it was one of the best films released in 2019.
A dark film about corporate power
Red-12520 December 2019
Dark Waters (2019) was directed by Todd Haynes. It stars Mark Ruffalo as Robert Bilott, a corporate lawyer, and Anne Hathaway as his wife, Sarah Bilott
The movie, "based on a true story," is powerful, but somewhat formulaic. Lawyer's job is defending corporations, he learns of serious corporate evil, and he takes on the job of defending the little people harmed by the corporation.
However, even though you can predict what will happen, you will still be frightened by the terrifying power of a giant corporation.
Naturally, Ruffalo and Hathaway are great. It's wonderful to watch them act, and even better to watch them act opposite each other.
We saw this film at Rochester's great Little Theatre. It will work almost as well on the small screen.
The movie, "based on a true story," is powerful, but somewhat formulaic. Lawyer's job is defending corporations, he learns of serious corporate evil, and he takes on the job of defending the little people harmed by the corporation.
However, even though you can predict what will happen, you will still be frightened by the terrifying power of a giant corporation.
Naturally, Ruffalo and Hathaway are great. It's wonderful to watch them act, and even better to watch them act opposite each other.
We saw this film at Rochester's great Little Theatre. It will work almost as well on the small screen.
"Dark Waters" will open your eyes.
SnobReviews30 December 2019
"Dark Waters" is a stunning and surprising film that gets under your skin.
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In this drama based on a true story, an attorney takes on an environmental case against a large chemical company exposing a lengthy history of pollution.
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From the beginning of the film, "Dark Waters" never lets go. It's a shocking and informative drama that will have you questioning if you've been exposed to this type of pollution. I was very surprised how much I enjoyed this film and thought that Mark Ruffalo was fantastic in the lead. It's a solid dramatic thriller that will have you enthralled throughout and have you talking about it afterwards.
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I feel angry.
SkepticalSy1 February 2020
This movie is a powerful presentation of the dangers of unregulated markets. And I walked away from this movie with genuine outrage. If companies are persons then Dupont was a sociopath. How could they do this.
In terms of acting, it is excellent. I was glued to the screen throughout the whole movie.
In terms of acting, it is excellent. I was glued to the screen throughout the whole movie.
First Hit: An excellent portrayal of corporate malfeasance and arrogance, finally getting its comeuppance.
michaeldoud2 December 2019
Warning: Spoilers
First Hit: An excellent portrayal of corporate malfeasance and arrogance, finally getting its comeuppance.
Robert Bilott (Mark Ruffalo), a corporate attorney, is a thorough pragmatic defender of corporations. He's just made partner in his firm and is a powerful asset to the company because he's so good at his work.
During an important meeting, he's interrupted by Wilber Tennent (Bill Camp) and friend who come from a farm in Parkersburg, West Virginia. They come to see Bilott because Roberts's grandmother, "Grammy," is a friend of Tennent. They hand Bilott a box full of videotapes explaining that no local Parkersburg lawyer will help them with the problem of their cattle dying. They believe the animals are dying because the town's largest employer, Dupont, is polluting the water with chemicals from their facility.
Bilott tries to deter Tennent and not get involved, but Tennent's plea knags at him, so he visits his Grammy, verifies she knows Tennent and then drives to Tennent's farm. When Wilbur shows him his field full of buried cows, "190 of them," he realizes there is a problem.
Although Bilott's firm doesn't have Dupont as a corporate client, they are reluctant to take on a nonpaying client that is going to end up suing Dupont as it will hurt their reputation with their own corporate clients.
However, Tom Terp (Tim Robbins), Bilott's boss, supports Robert continuing his investigation even though his client cannot pay. There is a great scene when all the partners convene to hear and discuss Bilott's work.
Finally, Dupont sends over all the discovery information that Bilott had requested, and it is massive. Hundreds of boxes of memos, reports, and other documentation. Being a team of one, dutifully Robert sits down on the floor and begins categorizing each document by year and subject. This is a great scene because it cements Robert's commitment to do the right thing no matter what it takes.
His years of research comes up with proof that Dupont knew that they were poisoning people and animals through the creation, use of, and byproducts from POFA (C8), a chemical creation used in Teflon© the non-stick coating that everyone was using. C8 is one of those chemicals that cannot be broken down by nature, let alone the human body and therefore it stays in the body and slowly causes various types of cancer.
The film takes us through this story as it develops over the years of difficult lonely hard work on Bilott's part. The filmmakers did a great job of showing the passage of time by giving the audience quick glimpse of his three boys growing up in front of him. He barely interacts with them because he's so clearly focused on this one case, this man is all in.
In the meantime, because of the court's slow processes, Dupont's putting roadblocks at every turn, and the slowness of a medical testing company that was reviewing, over sixty thousand blood tests, people were continuing to be poisoned and die from being exposed to C8.
We watch as the stress of doing the right thing for his client requires him to take reductions in pay because he's spending all his time on this case that has no paying client. We watch him feel the pain while watching his clients deteriorate because of the poison.
His wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway) tries to keep their family together, showing undying support, even as she sees the deterioration of her husband because of the deeply committed compassion to see this lawsuit through for the people who are being harmed.
One thing the film made sure of was the darkness of this subject. Every scene is dark in color or filled with gray skies.
Ruffalo was excellent as the committed attorney who gave up almost everything, including his life, to find and fight for the truth. Hathaway was superb as his supportive wife attempting to keep their family together while Robert fights for the truth. Robbins was influential as Bilott's boss and senior managing partner of their law firm, showing support for Robert on this long trail to truth. Camp was terrific, and the driven farmer and rancher who committed his life to making sure Dupont was charged for their crimes against his community. Victor Garber, as Phil Donnelly, a senior executive in Dupont, was supreme in his portrayal of being the mouthpiece of corporate malfeasance. Mare Winningham, as Darlene Kiger, a Parkersburg resident, was fantastic. It was lovely to see her on the screen again. Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan wrote a powerfully detailed script. Todd Haynes did a great job of creating the feel corporate malfeasance and the difficulty of making wealthy companies pay for their crimes against humanity.
Overall: This is an excellent story about the power of perseverance.
Robert Bilott (Mark Ruffalo), a corporate attorney, is a thorough pragmatic defender of corporations. He's just made partner in his firm and is a powerful asset to the company because he's so good at his work.
During an important meeting, he's interrupted by Wilber Tennent (Bill Camp) and friend who come from a farm in Parkersburg, West Virginia. They come to see Bilott because Roberts's grandmother, "Grammy," is a friend of Tennent. They hand Bilott a box full of videotapes explaining that no local Parkersburg lawyer will help them with the problem of their cattle dying. They believe the animals are dying because the town's largest employer, Dupont, is polluting the water with chemicals from their facility.
Bilott tries to deter Tennent and not get involved, but Tennent's plea knags at him, so he visits his Grammy, verifies she knows Tennent and then drives to Tennent's farm. When Wilbur shows him his field full of buried cows, "190 of them," he realizes there is a problem.
Although Bilott's firm doesn't have Dupont as a corporate client, they are reluctant to take on a nonpaying client that is going to end up suing Dupont as it will hurt their reputation with their own corporate clients.
However, Tom Terp (Tim Robbins), Bilott's boss, supports Robert continuing his investigation even though his client cannot pay. There is a great scene when all the partners convene to hear and discuss Bilott's work.
Finally, Dupont sends over all the discovery information that Bilott had requested, and it is massive. Hundreds of boxes of memos, reports, and other documentation. Being a team of one, dutifully Robert sits down on the floor and begins categorizing each document by year and subject. This is a great scene because it cements Robert's commitment to do the right thing no matter what it takes.
His years of research comes up with proof that Dupont knew that they were poisoning people and animals through the creation, use of, and byproducts from POFA (C8), a chemical creation used in Teflon© the non-stick coating that everyone was using. C8 is one of those chemicals that cannot be broken down by nature, let alone the human body and therefore it stays in the body and slowly causes various types of cancer.
The film takes us through this story as it develops over the years of difficult lonely hard work on Bilott's part. The filmmakers did a great job of showing the passage of time by giving the audience quick glimpse of his three boys growing up in front of him. He barely interacts with them because he's so clearly focused on this one case, this man is all in.
In the meantime, because of the court's slow processes, Dupont's putting roadblocks at every turn, and the slowness of a medical testing company that was reviewing, over sixty thousand blood tests, people were continuing to be poisoned and die from being exposed to C8.
We watch as the stress of doing the right thing for his client requires him to take reductions in pay because he's spending all his time on this case that has no paying client. We watch him feel the pain while watching his clients deteriorate because of the poison.
His wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway) tries to keep their family together, showing undying support, even as she sees the deterioration of her husband because of the deeply committed compassion to see this lawsuit through for the people who are being harmed.
One thing the film made sure of was the darkness of this subject. Every scene is dark in color or filled with gray skies.
Ruffalo was excellent as the committed attorney who gave up almost everything, including his life, to find and fight for the truth. Hathaway was superb as his supportive wife attempting to keep their family together while Robert fights for the truth. Robbins was influential as Bilott's boss and senior managing partner of their law firm, showing support for Robert on this long trail to truth. Camp was terrific, and the driven farmer and rancher who committed his life to making sure Dupont was charged for their crimes against his community. Victor Garber, as Phil Donnelly, a senior executive in Dupont, was supreme in his portrayal of being the mouthpiece of corporate malfeasance. Mare Winningham, as Darlene Kiger, a Parkersburg resident, was fantastic. It was lovely to see her on the screen again. Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan wrote a powerfully detailed script. Todd Haynes did a great job of creating the feel corporate malfeasance and the difficulty of making wealthy companies pay for their crimes against humanity.
Overall: This is an excellent story about the power of perseverance.
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