“DARK WATERS” — 3 stars — Anne Hathaway, Mark Ruffalo, Tim Robbins; PG-13 (thematic content, some disturbing images and strong language); in general release; running time: 126 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — There’s a lot of competition in the dramatic David-and-Goliath genre — especially in the “exposing the legal evils of big business” category.
In the case of “Dark Waters,” Mark Ruffalo — well known for playing Hulk in the “Avengers” franchise — takes on the little guy role as an attorney who spearheads a series of lawsuits against the giant DuPont chemical company.
Todd Haynes’ film begins with a brief prologue, set in the late 1970s, that shows a pair of mysterious men spraying suspicious chemicals into a lake only moments after chasing away some skinny-dippers. We then fast forward to late-1990s Cincinnati, where we meet Robert Bilott.
Bilott (Ruffalo) is a newly minted partner with Taft, a prominent legal firm that has built a reputation defending the interests of large chemical corporations. This is why Bilott is confused when a Parkersburg, West Virginia, farmer named Wilbur Tennant (Bill Camp) approaches him in the middle of a partner meeting, accusing the DuPont-owned landfill next to his land of poisoning nearly 200 head of his cattle.
Tennant was referred by Bilott’s grandmother and wants him to sue DuPont, since no one else will take the challenge. Administrating partner Tom Terp (Tim Robbins) is wary of the move — DuPont is one of the last big fish clients Taft has failed to land — but he allows Bilott to access an EPA report to find out a little more about the situation.
The highly suspect report is just one in a series of dominoes that begin to fall as Bilott turns tail on his professional trajectory and leads Tennant’s fight, even though he’s dealing with tensions at the firm and at home, where his wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway) — herself a former attorney — is struggling to accept Bilott’s obsessive work ethic.
Tennant has to deal with his own set of conflicted interests, as his lawsuit also happens to be taking on his city’s biggest employer. A transitional montage shows the DuPont name everywhere around Parkersburg, sponsoring just about every spot with space to hang a sign.
“Dark Waters” follows closely in the tradition of similar dramas, where an outmatched lawyer or journalist has to work overtime to uncover the insidious underbelly of a corporate goliath. On its own, it has plenty of merits, and the story keeps you engaged as Bilott realizes that DuPont’s chemical misdeeds expand far beyond a humble West Virginia town.
But when you line the tension and pacing of “Dark Waters” against movies like “The Rainmaker,” “The Insider” and even classic political thrillers like “All the President’s Men,” Haynes’ effort is a bit more routine. The twists and turns aren’t quite as dramatic as they could be, and though the conflict is present, it feels too much like it’s lingering in the background against a pretty linear narrative.
Ruffalo is reliable in the lead role (he also co-produced the film), and Hathaway is strong — even if her talents are underused in the smaller role. As a legal thriller, “Dark Waters” isn’t incredibly thrilling, but its dive into disturbing corporate corruption is a worthy addition to the evergrowing list of David-and-Goliathesque movies.
Rating explained: “Dark Waters” draws a PG-13 rating from gory images of diseased cattle, some profanity (including two uses of the F-word) and some veiled nudity in the opening scene.