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Erin Brockovich
List Price: Unknown [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie:
Director Steven Soderberg seems to be getting better with each passing film. First was "Out Of Sight", which got the first "real" acting performance from George Clooney. He then did "The Limey", which brought great performances from Peter Fonda and Terence Stamp. With "Erin Brockovich", he gives Julia Roberts a character that's funny and dramatic, and she's able to run with it.
Roberts stars as Brockovich, and the movie opens with her desperately seeking work all around LA. After a court case from a car wreck doesn't work out too well, she's out looking for work yet again to be able to feed her kids. She's a sweet lady, but will speak her mind when confronted; this happens most when dealing with her lawyer and eventually employer, Ed Masrey(Albert Finney).
When a real estate case comes across her desk, Erin investigates further and finds that the water of the property was polluted by a highly toxic substance that can cause cancer and other illnesses. While working, she finds a helper to take care of her children in George(Aaron Eckheart), an unemployed biker.
Brockovich is easily Roberts's best role in quite some time. I have no problem with "Runaway Brides" or especially the "Notting Hills" of the world, but this is a role that's not only funny, but sharp and at times, dramatic. Finney plays her boss to perfection as well, consistently offended by this young woman but also inspired by her intensity. She convinces him to take on a case that has his small team up against a massive company that was responsible for making this small town ill.
"Brockovich" doesn't move quickly, but it is certainly never boring, either. Soderberg consistently offers satisfying moments and engaging characters. Much is made of Erin's revealing outfits, but Roberts plays it as much more than that, a woman who not only wants to be a good mother to her children, but wants respect and to do something right and important. This is really the first time that Roberts moves beyond Roberts and really becomes a character. We're still aware that this is "Julia Roberts", but this is the first time that she's begun to dissapear into a character.
The film also thankfully never drops into the turns that most legal thrillers take. Similar to the way that Soderberg spun the crime thriller genre in "Out Of Sight" and "The Limey", he's able to take the legal genre in new directions throughout "Brockovich". It's a very entertaining movie with great performances; a crowd-pleaser that's honestly satisfying.
The DVD
VIDEO: This is an excellent but not quite perfect transfer from Universal. Soderberg's visual look has always been surreal, but just within the borders of reality, and he goes for that again here, with help from cinematographer Ed Lachman("Limey", "Virgin Suicides"). The film washes the exteriors in a golden California sunlight that's somewhat similar to what he did with "The Limey".
Sharpness is solid throughout, and images are consistently crisp and smooth. There are some instances where trace amounts of pixelation occur, but these are so minor as to be hardly distracting at all. The print used is clear and free of any marks or scratches. As for colors, both the bold colors of the movie itself and the golden tone that washes over the film both look solid and never show any problems.
This is a very pleasing transfer, and the minor flaws that do pop up never really cause any problems.
SOUND: The audio element is a bit of a dissapointment, but not because there's anything problematic or flawed. The film simply does not choose to really take advantage of sound. While I can understand that with a dialogue-driven movie with this one, but the film really makes no use of the surrounds and keeps the audio in the front. The score sounds clear and clean, and dialogue is natural and easily heard. Gets the job done; no more-no less.
MENUS:: The main menu is nicely animated with scenes from the film playing in the background as well as the score. Sub-menus are well-done, but don't contain anything special.
EXTRAS:
Spotlight On Location: Universal's usual documentary focusing on the production of their films, in this case they take a look at the entire story of "Erin Brockovich". The documentary takes the viewer through the story of the real Erin Brockovich as well as tales from the production. The documentary lasts 15 minutes and falls on the side of actually being informative and interesting rather than being purely promotional. Interviews with Roberts, Soderberg, the real Erin and others are included.
Erin Brockovich: A longer interview with Brockovich that lasts about 4 minutes. I found her to be a fantastic and engaging person, and in the matter of a couple of minutes, she shows herself as a caring, kind person.
Deleted Scenes: Similar to Universal's "For Love Of The Game", they have included a wealth of deleted footage for "Erin Brockovich"; there's about 30 minutes or so of deleted scenes here, which can be viewed with commentary from director Steven Soderberg. Why he didn't provide a commentary for the entire film (he's done one for many of his other films) I don't know, but he does provide interesting comments here about why these scenes were cut.
Some of these scenes are rightly cut for pace or other reasons, but there are a couple of interesting moments that could have been saved. Still, I understand Soderberg's desire to keep things moving(which he did quite well in his 89 minute "The Limey").
Also: The rest of the extras are the usual: the film's theatrical trailer in Dolby Digital 5.1; there are also production notes and cast/crew bios; additional trailers include "Notting Hill" and "Out Of Sight"(both 2.0). Also, weblinks and DVD-Rom material.
Final Thoughts: Although not quite as feature-rich as some of Universal's Collector's Edition titles, "Erin Brockovich" on DVD does pack one great thing: the movie, which I enjoyed quite a bit. Recommended.
Director Steven Soderberg seems to be getting better with each passing film. First was "Out Of Sight", which got the first "real" acting performance from George Clooney. He then did "The Limey", which brought great performances from Peter Fonda and Terence Stamp. With "Erin Brockovich", he gives Julia Roberts a character that's funny and dramatic, and she's able to run with it.
Roberts stars as Brockovich, and the movie opens with her desperately seeking work all around LA. After a court case from a car wreck doesn't work out too well, she's out looking for work yet again to be able to feed her kids. She's a sweet lady, but will speak her mind when confronted; this happens most when dealing with her lawyer and eventually employer, Ed Masrey(Albert Finney).
When a real estate case comes across her desk, Erin investigates further and finds that the water of the property was polluted by a highly toxic substance that can cause cancer and other illnesses. While working, she finds a helper to take care of her children in George(Aaron Eckheart), an unemployed biker.
Brockovich is easily Roberts's best role in quite some time. I have no problem with "Runaway Brides" or especially the "Notting Hills" of the world, but this is a role that's not only funny, but sharp and at times, dramatic. Finney plays her boss to perfection as well, consistently offended by this young woman but also inspired by her intensity. She convinces him to take on a case that has his small team up against a massive company that was responsible for making this small town ill.
"Brockovich" doesn't move quickly, but it is certainly never boring, either. Soderberg consistently offers satisfying moments and engaging characters. Much is made of Erin's revealing outfits, but Roberts plays it as much more than that, a woman who not only wants to be a good mother to her children, but wants respect and to do something right and important. This is really the first time that Roberts moves beyond Roberts and really becomes a character. We're still aware that this is "Julia Roberts", but this is the first time that she's begun to dissapear into a character.
The film also thankfully never drops into the turns that most legal thrillers take. Similar to the way that Soderberg spun the crime thriller genre in "Out Of Sight" and "The Limey", he's able to take the legal genre in new directions throughout "Brockovich". It's a very entertaining movie with great performances; a crowd-pleaser that's honestly satisfying.
The DVD
VIDEO: This is an excellent but not quite perfect transfer from Universal. Soderberg's visual look has always been surreal, but just within the borders of reality, and he goes for that again here, with help from cinematographer Ed Lachman("Limey", "Virgin Suicides"). The film washes the exteriors in a golden California sunlight that's somewhat similar to what he did with "The Limey".
Sharpness is solid throughout, and images are consistently crisp and smooth. There are some instances where trace amounts of pixelation occur, but these are so minor as to be hardly distracting at all. The print used is clear and free of any marks or scratches. As for colors, both the bold colors of the movie itself and the golden tone that washes over the film both look solid and never show any problems.
This is a very pleasing transfer, and the minor flaws that do pop up never really cause any problems.
SOUND: The audio element is a bit of a dissapointment, but not because there's anything problematic or flawed. The film simply does not choose to really take advantage of sound. While I can understand that with a dialogue-driven movie with this one, but the film really makes no use of the surrounds and keeps the audio in the front. The score sounds clear and clean, and dialogue is natural and easily heard. Gets the job done; no more-no less.
MENUS:: The main menu is nicely animated with scenes from the film playing in the background as well as the score. Sub-menus are well-done, but don't contain anything special.
EXTRAS:
Spotlight On Location: Universal's usual documentary focusing on the production of their films, in this case they take a look at the entire story of "Erin Brockovich". The documentary takes the viewer through the story of the real Erin Brockovich as well as tales from the production. The documentary lasts 15 minutes and falls on the side of actually being informative and interesting rather than being purely promotional. Interviews with Roberts, Soderberg, the real Erin and others are included.
Erin Brockovich: A longer interview with Brockovich that lasts about 4 minutes. I found her to be a fantastic and engaging person, and in the matter of a couple of minutes, she shows herself as a caring, kind person.
Deleted Scenes: Similar to Universal's "For Love Of The Game", they have included a wealth of deleted footage for "Erin Brockovich"; there's about 30 minutes or so of deleted scenes here, which can be viewed with commentary from director Steven Soderberg. Why he didn't provide a commentary for the entire film (he's done one for many of his other films) I don't know, but he does provide interesting comments here about why these scenes were cut.
Some of these scenes are rightly cut for pace or other reasons, but there are a couple of interesting moments that could have been saved. Still, I understand Soderberg's desire to keep things moving(which he did quite well in his 89 minute "The Limey").
Also: The rest of the extras are the usual: the film's theatrical trailer in Dolby Digital 5.1; there are also production notes and cast/crew bios; additional trailers include "Notting Hill" and "Out Of Sight"(both 2.0). Also, weblinks and DVD-Rom material.
Final Thoughts: Although not quite as feature-rich as some of Universal's Collector's Edition titles, "Erin Brockovich" on DVD does pack one great thing: the movie, which I enjoyed quite a bit. Recommended.
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