Exciting Fiction -- An Oliver Stone Movie Without Oliver Stone

Rating: 8/10 (21 June 2001)

"Erin Brockovich" tells a ripping tale. Julia Roberts is appealing in the title roll and has never been more charming and charismatic. Albert Finney as the lawyer for whom Roberts works is, as usual, masterful. As recent press reports have revealed, however, the interesting, exciting story the movie tells is only incidentally similar to the events it purportedly depicts. But that's all right. This is entertainment, not history. As we all know, when we hear the term, "Based on a true story!" we should be warned that the emphasis is on the word "based" and a whole lot of the truth is sacrificed to the needs of dramatic story-telling. Oliver Stone has done this sort of thing a lot, most prominently in "JFK" and "Nixon": good films that mix historical fact with outrageous fiction in the name of dramatic license. 8 out of 10.