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Dark Waters (Todd Haynes) revitalises the ‘court-room crusader’ of a bygone era… weaving heart-racing legal spectacle with slow burning emotional turmoil into a well crafted story of lies, litigation and loyalty.
The story follows the weary eyed Rob Billot (Mark Ruffalo), a corporate attorney fighting for the people of Parkersburg, West Virginia in their plight against the DuPont Company, a duplicitous chemical corporation. Haynes wastes no time setting the tone for this David and Goliath tale, alluding to the film’s namesake with an opening shot of a brooding, shimmering, moonlit lake occupied by a few angsty, skinny-dipping teens. Had this not been titled-carded as Parkersburg, you’d be forgiven for thinking Haynes was shooting an alternative opening to Jaws, and while I’m sure the scene encompasses an element of Spielbergian homage, there’s something slightly more sinister than a great white shark lurking beneath these waters. DuPont Chemicals have been knowingly dumping their toxic waste into the reservoirs of local farmers – destroying the ecological balance, killing or zombifying the animals, and perhaps most disturbingly, poisoning the water source. This has been wantonly carrying on for decades until – in textbook ‘underdog’ form – the cantankerous and curmudgeonly Wilbur Tennant (Bill Camp) says enough is enough, pointing his gnarled finger at the multibillion dollar conglomerate for answers.
The likes of paper dumps and drawn-out court cases have never felt so thrilling, propelled by Ruffalo’s brilliant performance. Yet thankfully, his take on Billot is far from the morally divine protagonist we’ve come to expect from the spew of biopics littering the silver screen of late. His hair greys, his skin wrinkles, and his face grimaces with the pain of this enduring impotence of justice. Rarely are issue-based films as uncompromising and spectacle-less as this; surely a product of Haynes’ dogged determination to tell the story…right. Inner-America is gifted with the stark yet gorgeous cinematography of longtime collaborator Edward Lachman, encapsulating the rolling hills of West Virginia and the bustling cityscape of Cincinnati with a filmic grain that never tries to sensationalise the reality of what we’re seeing. Notions of a warm and fuzzy celluloid adventure are nullified by the muted tones of office interiors and farmhouse kitchenettes, once again refusing to fall victim to the part and parcel nostalgia of your generic ‘based on a true story’ film.
Understandably, this decades-long legal battle takes a painfully realistic toll on Billot’s family. The relationship between Rob and his wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway) begins to deteriorate as the surmounting pressures of the case hinders his ability to be a present father for their three young boys, and a husband for her. Unfortunately, we rarely get to see the Oscar-winning actress step outside of this clichéd maternal role, despite the film’s best efforts in giving her a rip-roaring diatribe at her husband’s boss, a ‘white collar – golden heart’ type played with passion by Tim Robbins. Undoubtedly her grievances are warranted, but feel misplaced in this scene, which takes place in a hospital corridor where Rob is recovering from his ischemic stroke. Vis-à-vis, where should our sympathies lie? The rest of the supporting cast gives a well balanced character schematic to the film, from Victor Garb’s vile yet charming turn as DuPont execute Phil Donnelly, to Bill Pullman’s fiery third act performance as Harry Dietzler, a small-town lawyer with a fierce courtroom demeanour.
Overall, as much as I’d like to say this film was a joy to watch, that would arguably be paying it a disservice. It should more prudently be described as an unflinchingly authentic, emotionally taxing journey that pulls no punches in neither its form nor its content. Haynes gives a voice to the voiceless, and hits DuPont where it hurts…just check their stock price history for yourselves.
Dark Waters is in Irish cinemas from February 28.
