To see product details, add this item to your cart. You can always remove it later.
FREE Returns
Added to

Sorry, there was a problem.

There was an error retrieving your Wish Lists. Please try again.

Sorry, there was a problem.

List unavailable.
Other Sellers on Amazon
Added
Sold by: Hoje61
Sold by: Hoje61
(1035 ratings)
90% positive over last 12 months
Shipping rates and Return policy
Added
Sold by: dallastexasmedia
Sold by: dallastexasmedia
(53858 ratings)
96% positive over last 12 months
Shipping rates and Return policy
Added
Sold by: S. Boston Books
Sold by: S. Boston Books
(380 ratings)
92% positive over last 12 months
Shipping rates and Return policy

A Civil Action

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 2,328 ratings
IMDb6.6/10.0
Amazon's Choice highlights highly rated, well-priced products available to ship immediately.
Amazon's Choice

To see product details, add this item to your cart. You can always remove it later.
FREE Returns
Additional DVD options Edition Discs
Price
New from Used from
DVD
July 13, 1999
1
$3.98 $2.19
DVD
1
$12.10 $9.98
DVD
December 18, 2001
$39.99
Watch Instantly with Rent Buy

Purchase options and add-ons

Genre Drama
Format Closed-captioned, Multiple Formats, Letterboxed, NTSC, Color, Widescreen
Contributor Dan Hedaya, David Thornton, Robert Duvall, Mary Mara, John Lithgow, Tony Shalhoub, Peter Jacobson, Conrad L. Hall, Bruce Norris, William H. Macy, Sydney Pollack, Kathleen Quinlan, Steven Zaillian, James Gandolfini, Stephen Fry, Zeljko Ivanek, John Travolta See more
Language English
Runtime 1 hour and 55 minutes
Available at a lower price from other sellers that may not offer free Prime shipping.

Frequently bought together

$9.39
Get it as soon as Sunday, Mar 24
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
$6.93
Get it as soon as Sunday, Mar 24
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
$4.99
Get it as soon as Sunday, Mar 24
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Details
Added to Cart
Choose items to buy together.

Product Description

Product Description

Jan Schlichtmann is a cynical, high-priced personal injury attorney who only takes big-money cases he can safely settle out of court. Though his latest case at first appears straightforward, Schlichtmann soon becomes entangled in an epic legal battle ... one where he's willing to put his career, reputation, and all that he owns on the line for the rights of his clients! Also featuring Robert Duvall, William H. Macy, and John Lithgow -- this gripping, widely acclaimed hit delivers edge-of-your-seat entertainment!

Amazon.com

Jonathan Harr's nonfiction bestseller was a shot in the arm for those seeking more than last-minute heroics akin to a John Grisham thriller. Here was a labyrinthine case involving industrial pollution by two highly regarded corporations, contaminated drinking water, and the deaths of innocent children in New England, circa 1981. The case has hundreds of twists and takes our hero--a steady, respectable lawyer named Jan Schlichtmann--and turns his life into personal disaster. Instead of celebrating the law, the story is a maddening and rewarding look at the elusiveness of the courtroom case.

Steven Zaillian, who won an Oscar for adapting Schindler's List and directed Searching for Bobby Fischer, boils Harr's 502-page book into a complete, satisfactory film experience. Book readers will no doubt jeer the streamlining Zaillian had to perform to make the movie flow. Most changes can be quickly defused with the exception of the film's portrait of Schlichtmann. The lawyer has been turned into a movie star, an ultra-slick, cold-hearted gentleman who finds his purpose in working the case. Casting a stalwart John Travolta again diverges from the book, which right from the opening pages showed us a Schlichtmann with feet of clay. As Schlichtmann's partners (including William H. Macy and Tony Shalhoub) descend into the case, the unbridled sense of power and money is abandoned. This case is ultimately about survival.

Zaillian provides an excellent narrative for the sordid facts of personal injury suits, in which money is the only reward for lost or broken lives (deftly introduced in the film's opening scene). Zaillian also stays away from dwelling on the illness of the children involved, focusing on the gaunt faces of the parents who survive (Kathleen Quinlan, James Gandolfini) in controlled anguish. His evil characters--an industrial plant's owner (Dan Hedaya) and a corporate lawyer (another fine acting spin by director Sydney Pollack)--are so human it's terrifying. Zaillian's final ace in the hole is Oscar-nominee Robert Duvall. Perfectly cast as Travolta's opposition, Jerome Facher, Duvall steals scenes with the abbreviated dialogue; he turns a fancy settlement meeting into a farce with one line. Facher is not a callous, love-to-hate-him lawyer like James Mason in The Verdict. Facher represents the law at its brilliant foundation: to best represent one's client. With a taped-together briefcase and dry humor, Facher, not Schlichtmann, is the character who captures us by the film's end. --Doug Thomas

Product details

  • Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.85:1
  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ PG-13 (Parents Strongly Cautioned)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 0.01 ounces
  • Item model number ‏ : ‎ WD01679000DVD
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Conrad L. Hall, Steven Zaillian
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ Closed-captioned, Multiple Formats, Letterboxed, NTSC, Color, Widescreen
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 55 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ July 13, 1999
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ John Travolta, Robert Duvall, Tony Shalhoub, William H. Macy, John Lithgow
  • Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), Unqualified
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ TOUCHSTONE PICTURES
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 630542828X
  • Writers ‏ : ‎ Steven Zaillian
  • Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 2,328 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
2,328 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2018
8 people found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2023
One person found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2008
3 people found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2023
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024
One person found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2023

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
Eric Perrinjaquet
5.0 out of 5 stars VHS finden/ zurück zu kriegen wird's leicht heute!
Reviewed in Germany on February 4, 2024
Brad Mrazek
5.0 out of 5 stars One of Travolta’s best roles.....
Reviewed in Canada on January 17, 2021
Steven Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Film
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 8, 2021
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Drama legal verídico, crudo y apremiante
Reviewed in Spain on September 25, 2017
4 people found this helpful
Report
silversurfer
2.0 out of 5 stars juste un telefilm moyen
Reviewed in France on November 26, 2022