its formulaic scenes while plucking a few heartstrings as
background music. Eventually, singing leads to performing
which leads to a dramatic performance by the choir at Royal
Albert Hall.
Kristen Scott Thomas gives a masterful portrayal of deep
compassion with a British “stiff upper lip.” And there are
some beautiful voices in the mix. Enjoy the performances
but bring your tissues! (Mary Wienke)
The actors make the best of a weak script based on the
true story behind the start of a military wives’ choir. There
is real camaraderie and, at times, heartbreaking emotion.
Dark Waters (Vergiftete
Wahrheit) *****
UK 2020
Opening October 8, 2020
Directed by: Todd Haynes
Writing credits: Nathaniel
Rich, Mario Correa, Matthew
Michael Carnahan
Principal actors: Mark
Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway,
Tim Robbins, Bill Pullman,
Bill Camp
In 1998, farmer Wilbur Tennant (Bill Camp) drives 130 miles
(209 km) from Parkersburg, West Virginia, to Cincinnati,
Ohio, with his brother (Jim Azelvandre) to force a meeting.
They know this lawyer’s grandma; eventually the lawyer, Rob
Bilott, (Mark Ruffalo) sees them. Wilbur wants Rob to look
into his cattle’s unexplained deaths, which he has connected
to the giant chemical manufacturer DuPont. When Rob—a
corporate defense lawyer—hesitates, Wilbur thrusts a box
of VHS cassettes at him and storms out. Thus begins Dark
Waters, which is based on, unfortunately, irrefutable facts.
Most unsettling is DuPont’s unbridled malfeasance and that
the chemical (PFOA [C-8], part of the PFAS family) is still
used, hence still affecting the worldwide community. This
timely corporate cover-up thriller’s relevancy is universally
valuable.
Director Todd Haynes concentrates on salient points
along Rob Bilott’s long journey following the farmers’ visit.
Haynes expressively and cohesively balances how Bilott’s—
brilliantly portrayed by Ruffalo—duties to his family and
clients are tested. Mario Correa and Matthew Michael
Carnahan developed details from Nathaniel Rich’s 2016
New York Times Magazine article, Sharon Lerner’s series
in The Intercept, a 2015 article by Mariah Blake, and Bilott’s
book Exposure into a deliberate, compelling screenplay. For
example, when Rob explains to wife Sarah (Anne Hathaway)
about C-8’s wide-ranging, deadly effects and DuPont’s
culpability, editor Affonso Gonçalves helps audiences
understanding with enlighteningly structured, scathingly
riveting sequence(s). Production values are impeccable:
Edward Lachman’s cinematography, Marcelo Zarvos’s
music, Hannah Beachler’s production design, et cetera.
Ruffalo’s facial and vocal nuances depict Bilott’s increased
inner turmoil while uncovering further subterfuge. The stellar
cast includes: Hathaway’s well-gauged wifely emotive range;
Camp’s perceptive, prescient farmer; Tim Robbins, great
as the law firm’s managing partner whose moral courage
greenlights Bilott’s crusade; Victor Garber as DuPont’s
icy attorney; Bill Pullman as the sharp personal injury
lawyer guiding Bilott; and Mare Winningham and Richard
Hagerman as the dauntless Kiger plaintiffs. These are but a
few, plus hometown cast shown prior to end credits.
Dark Waters’ deep dive into corporate cover-ups penetrates
public trust. The villain PFOA (C-8) is one of many toxic manmade
chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances
that contain carbon-fluorine chemical bonds. Developed
during wartime and repurposed for profits, PFOA is used in
industrial and consumer production, e.g., Teflon. PFOA and
other PFAS are unregulated by the US federal government,
although contamination to the environment and living
creatures’ health systems (globally) is detrimental. Does
its resilience outweigh its misuse? Consider, ironically, that
99% of Americans have PFAS in their blood.
Paradoxically, citizens seem indifferent and culturally
tolerant toward corporate polluters continuing horrific
practices—consider Flint, Michigan, Hinkley, California, et
cetera. In Dark Waters, we feel the community’s despair,
isolation, and, with realization, betrayal. “[T]he system’s
rigged…we protect us,” clarified Billot, still fighting
corporate polluters 27 years on. Community action and
activism is imperative. As this global COVID-19 pandemic
demonstrates, either we take care of Mother Nature or she
will take care of herself. 126 minutes (Marinell Haegelin)
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