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A Civil Action (1998)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
8 January 1999 (USA) moreTagline:
Justice has its price.Plot:
The families of children who died sue two companies for dumping toxic waste: a tort so expensive to prove, the case could bankrupt their lawyer. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 8 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(16 articles)
Gibson's Payback (From Studio Briefing - Film News. 9 February 1999)
Oscar In Love
(From Studio Briefing - Film News. 9 February 1999)
User Comments:
Well made drama about the more important things moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| John Travolta | ... | Jan Schlichtmann | |
| Robert Duvall | ... | Jerome Facher | |
| Tony Shalhoub | ... | Kevin Conway | |
| William H. Macy | ... | James Gordon | |
| Zeljko Ivanek | ... | Bill Crowley | |
| Bruce Norris | ... | William Cheeseman | |
| John Lithgow | ... | Judge Walter J. Skinner | |
| Kathleen Quinlan | ... | Anne Anderson | |
| Peter Jacobson | ... | Neil Jacobs | |
| Mary Mara | ... | Kathy Boyer | |
| James Gandolfini | ... | Al Love | |
| Stephen Fry | ... | Pinder | |
| Dan Hedaya | ... | John Riley | |
| David Thornton | ... | Richard Aufiero | |
| Sydney Pollack | ... | Al Eustis |
Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for some strong language.Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
115 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreCertification:
USA:PG-13 (certificate #36309) | Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | Philippines:PG-13 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (original rating) | Australia:PG (TV rating) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 (w) | Norway:7 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Singapore:PGFun Stuff
Trivia:
Based on a true story. moreGoofs:
Continuity: Near the end of the movie, the envelope from the EPA appears on Facher's desk before the employee places it there. moreQuotes:
James Gordon: [Regarding the case and the following settlement] Mrs. Anderson, you're looking at four guys who are broke. We lost everything trying this case.Anne Anderson: How can you even begin to compare what you've lost, to what we've lost.
more
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Theme moreFAQ
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John Travolta gives a pretty good performance here in Steve Zaillan's (scripter of Schindler's List) Civil Action as a hot shot lawyer who gets a case of people in a small town poisoned by the local water. Then the lawsuit begins, though we learn more here than any Grisham film. A film about being humane and trying to do the right thing over money. The entire supporting cast is a big boost, including Robert Duvall as the opposing attorney, William H. Macy, Tony Shalhoub as Travolta's attorney's, Kathleen Quinlann who is the heart of the movie and James Gandolfini as a resident. A