Excellent feelgood movie

Rating: 9/10 (12 April 2000)

Erin Brockovich essentially combines two movies. The first being about a single mother of three struggling to support her kids in a materialistic country. The second being about said single mother transcending stereotypes by discovering and investigating a cover up by a large utility about the damage that their plant has caused local residents. The great achievement that director Steven Soderbergh makes is to combine these two elements seemlessly. Julia Roberts is in superb form in the titular role and her co-star, veteran Albert Finney, turns in an excellent performance. Good support comes from Aaron Eckhart as Erin's main squeeze, George and Marg Helgenberger as Donna Jensen, the woman whose Real Estate claim starts the whole thing off. The screenplay by Susannah Grant provides Roberts with lots of snappy one-liners, which I'm not quite sure the real Erin Brockovich said. But hey! It makes for more fun in the movie. I defy you to go see Erin Brockovich and leave WITHOUT a smile on your face.