"Do they teach lawyers how to apologize? Because you suck at it." -- Erin Brockovich to her lawyer

Based on a true story. Those words always make me cringe for just a second when I see them flashed upon a movie screen, just before the movie begins. I wonder if too much artistic license is taken with the facts, or if the writer and director will somehow fail to get the flavor of the real story across while trying to make a good movie. Any fears I had about Erin Brockovich were groundless. Director Steven Soderbergh (The Limey and Out of Sight) and writer Susannah Grant (Ever After) take this story from the real world and put it on the big screen in a way that preserves the reality of the story while creating a high quality film.

Julia Roberts plays the real-life Erin Brockovich. A woman with three kids under 9 years of age, including an infant, who has two ex-husbands, not much money in the bank, and little in the way of hope. A strange turn of events brings her into the employ of L.A. based attorney Ed Masry (Albert Finney) and it is while she is working there that she comes across a pro-bono real estate case that piques her curiousity. Why? Because there are medical records in with the real estate records. Erin asks Ed if she can look into the case a little while he is distracted, and he agrees.

A truly fateful moment.

Erin finds herself in Hinkley, CA, a small town with a large PG&E power plant right there in and among the homes. She eventually uncovers a horrifying corporate wrong and ultimately convinces Ed to go after the giant utility in court.

This is unquestionably the best work Julia Roberts has ever done. When you add that to the amazing ability of Albert Finney to steal many scenes from her, you begin to realize you're seeing first-rate acting on the screen. Aaron Eckhart's performance as Erin's boyfriend is also a fine piece of work. There are moments that will make you laugh out loud followed by things that will wrench your guts. It is impossible not to identify with the victims of this horrible corporate deception.

Whether or not the "awards" world will recognize the wonderful work in this film is questionable at best. It was released at the wrong time of the year. But that's alright. That just means that the usual dearth of quality movies we normally have to deal with isn't so bad this year. We've got at least one really good one in theaters. That's Erin Brockovich.