It started off well. I thought I was going to see a conventional courtroom battle where the defendants win. There was justice in the end but I found no pleasure in the journey there.

An interesting premise and filled with tension, but ultimately unfulfilling after the long drawn out legal battle. Travolta's character loses his bearings getting so caught up in the case that common sense goes out the window. Good performances by the cast. Robert Duvall was stellar as usual. Being based on a true story makes it more compelling. A variation on the theme of might makes right.

Required reading for Civil Procedure in law school. This is a good movie. I wish such results were more often rendered.

There are too many stories just like it and the script did nothing to rise above some of the others.

Robert Duvall gives an amazing performance, as well as Macy, Shaloub, and Ivanek. Travolta is ok. Worth it all to watch Duvall give a masterful performance.

An exceptionally good blend of an environmental tale and a story of a selfish man becoming a good man.

john b4 he went of the deep end

No, this film is not "based on a true story" or the cringe-inducing "inspired by a true story" (the latter which can mean anything, and usually does)--the fact is, this film IS a true story. It is the true story of how a materialistic personal injury lawyer pursues a noble yet unwieldly case, at the cost of all the materialistic benefits that he had spent his entire career in creating for himself. Yes, this case really did exist. Yes, there really was (and still is) a lawyer named Jan Schlichtmann (as portrayed by Travolta), who really did pursue this case against two large corporations, Beatrice and W.R. Grace (both named in the movie), who really did illegally dump pollutants in a neighborhood somewhere in Massachusetts, and which really did cause the deaths of 12 children from leukemia. Yes, Mr. Schlichtmann really DID comment cynically when he was first presented with the case, "I really don't see the value in a bunch of dead babies." There really was a corporate defense attorney named Jerome Facher (as portrayed by Duvall) who played this case as if constantly hedging his bets at a Vegas casino poker table. And so on...you get the idea. This film is brutally honest, names names, pulls no punches...and forgoes the typical, traditional Hollywood-style happy ending for one that is completely real, unfabricated, and ultimately satisfying in the realization that, it too, is real. That doesn't mean that it is emotionally unsatisfying. After all, after investing nearly two hours with this case, and these characters, about which we grow to care completely (especially because we know they're real), this film does provide the payoff in the end. I just won't tell you which one; you have to see this brilliant film in order to find out. This film proves, for once and for all, that the truth really is stranger than fiction! MOST RECOMMENDED.

This movie blew me away. It's time for me to watch it again. It is stylishly produced, with first-rate acting, and realistic views into our environmental and legal systems. But never boring about it.

I liked this movie a lot loserinos.

Excellent film that can actually be used to help teach law students. http://www.speedingticketkc.com/

4/5, I can imagine how this movie would motivate law students!

Good one ! Travolta stops thinking about money for a while and decides to help the parents with a case to find the responable ones for the dead and sickness of their children , and lost all his money in the progress...My 31-movie of Travolta . SOMDVD

Intelligent but underwhelming, and quite a few unexplained things. Reading the book first will help.

It's an ok movie but for the court room genre it doesn't have much impact. Travolta makes the most of it and Duvall is always good but the standouts are John Lithgow as the judge, the always wonderful William H. Macy, and the late great James Gandolfini

This is a very solid adult, courtroom drama, but nothing particularly memorable. Still it's a good watch with good acting.

Erin Brockovich-type movie about a lawyer taking on the system except this time the system wins.A bit depressing really.

While Travolta is absolutely phenomenal in this courtroom drama, it packs the punch that it should. It wasn't powerful enough to be great, it wasn't vicious enough, and it just didn't hold that weight that these type of movies with these type of casts should have. Travolta is still awesome here, but a so so ending polished off an above average film that could of been lots better.

People looking for exciting action scenes are defiantly going to hate this film. But I enjoyed the performances, I enjoyed how smart it was, and how it didn't talk down to its audience.

Absolutely stunning. This film is a far reaching mortality play that is unconventional and written brilliantly. The performance by the stellar cast is without fault. Travolta's best work. Watch for the late James Gandolfini in an amazing turn. This is a neglected classic that will stick in your memory years later.