Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.5

Dark Waters Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 26, 2020

Corporate policies of profit above people often conjure up images of toxic substances being dumped into the water supply, and that's not just imagery: it's reality. Disregard for human health and well being and putting the almighty dollar on a pedestal above common decency are often at the center of controversy, pitting public health against billion dollar industries. Over the past few decades, it's been very much in the forefront of the public conscience with the teflon controversy, which does not simply refer to politicians to whom no attacks stick. Dark Waters tells the story of Cincinnati attorney Robert Bilott (Mark Ruffalo) who goes to war against the DuPont company, putting at risk career, family, and health to do what's right.

In 1998, Cincinnati attorney Robert Bilott is approached by a West Virginia farmer named Wilbur Tennant (Bill Camp) to prosecute a case against Dupont, the well respected chemical company he believes is poisoning the water supply and killing his cattle. He’s lost 190 head and, when he invokes Robert’s grandmother’s name, Robert decides to look deeper into the case, even though his firm actively defends corporations rather than prosecutes them. Robert gradually comes to believe that there’s something to the case. He garners permission to conduct a “surgical” investigation which becomes a monumental, career defining undertaking decades in the making. Through the investigation, Robert comes to learn that a key component in DuPont’s popular product known as Teflon contains “PFOAs” or C-8, a chemical compound the company knows to be dangerous to practically all biological organisms but continues to put into its products and into the local water supply, anyway. As the case gains national attention, Robert finds himself reaching a personal and professional breaking points in the quest for justice.

"Better living through chemistry,” DuPont's marketing machine claims. Obviously marketing works in a separate department. The movie makes a villain of the company, no two ways about that, persistently presented in a very unfavorable light. Lies, misdirection, cover-up, and when all else fails, throw money at the situation and overwhelm the system. When Robert calls to expand discovery, the law offices are inundated with load after load of musty old boxes pulled from DuPont storage. Nobody will ever be able to sift through it all, he's told. But nobody is so determined as he once the truth gradually comes to light. Mark Ruffalo is terrific as Robert Bilott, building the character as a man on a mission whose personal struggles through the case are always at odds with his steadfast mindset to expose the company and do right by the people DuPont has wronged. But he, and the other whistleblowers, are not universally viewed as heroes. Locals love DuPont. "They're good people," one lady tells him. They're the largest employer in the area and bringing the company down means bringing them down, too. It's a delicate balance between what's right in the arena of justice and what's right in the arena of reality. DuPont does many great things for the community, but it's the secretive nature of its science and the truth behind its products, all of that beyond the public face and funding, that drives Robert to prosecute the case, no matter the cost.

And that cost is high. Throughout the film, he gradually loses touch with his family and his health deteriorates greatly. He grows from doubting the case to damming the company and is both worried and increasingly weary throughout the process. This is Robert's story, and it's through his perspective that it finds its footing and a fascinating point of interest. He's a conduit between the victims and the company, and the audience. He knows both sides of the coin. He knows his way around small town West Virginia and the people who call it home but he also knows his way around big time law. He's a family man who is certainly not immune to the concerns that his own flesh and blood might one day succumb to DuPont's poisoning. The film walks that line between championing justice and telling a compelling story, engaging the audience both socially and politically, finding a way to condemn the practice and point fingers without feeling fully overt about it. It's one sided, sure, but when a DuPont attorney opens his comments in court with a sales pitch, it's the final nail in the coffin for the audience's perception of what the company stands for.

Dark Waters Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Dark Waters was digitally photographed but presents with a pleasing film-like texture. The picture is consistently sharp, showcasing a number of quality details around West Virginia -- brush, trees, worn woods -- with highly impressive visual yield and textural accuracy. The same holds for higher class law offices and courtroom settings where warmer woods and sharp attire appear complex and without flaw. Skin textures in close-up appear pleasantly revealing, showing essential like pores, hairs, and so on with all of the high yield clarity one would expect of a new release picture. Colors are subdued throughout. The palette favors bleak grays and green tints with some warmer, but certainly still downcast, scenes. Skin tones are reflective of any given surrounding color scheme. Black levels are terrifically deep and true; check out a scene at the 1:27:45 mark. There are no noise spikes or other troublesome source issues. The encode shows no problems, either.

Dark Waters Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Dark Waters is not a particularly demanding movie in terms of its audio presentation. Dialogue drives the majority and maintains natural clarity and front-center placement. Music enjoys quality front end stretch and firm, lifelike detail. Surrounds fold in minor accompaniment in support and also carry a number of ambient sound effects to pull the listener into courtrooms, West Virginia exteriors, and a few other locales. There is some well pronounced -- borderline overly pronounced -- low end extension to some music in chapter three when Robert checks out the chemical plant around the 24 minute mark. The low end kicks into high gear again in chapter 17 during a medical emergency, culminating with a high intensity pulse. These are scattered moments of interest in an otherwise dull, but technically proficient, audio presentation.

Dark Waters Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Dark Waters' Blu-ray includes three featurettes. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.

• Uncovering Dark Waters (1080p, 5:38): Ruffalo's collaboration with the real Robert Bilott, narrative construction, technical details and production design, the picture's visual cues, shooting locations, and more.
• The Cost of Being a Hero (1080p, 5:01): A closer look at the film's "hero's journey:" Robert Bilott's journey and dedication and the personal and professional struggles as a result of his longtime battle. It also explores Ruffalo's prep for the film.
• The Real People (1080p, 2:28): A quick look at some of the real people involved in the case who appear in the film.

Dark Waters Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dark Waters' story has also been told in the documentary The Devil We Know, but this dramatized recount is a powerful exploration of the uphill battle between the everyman and an industry with everything at its disposal. The film is engaging and focused, Ruffalo's portrayal is spot-on, and the story is engrossing from the first report of potential malfeasance to the case's explosion in public awareness and courtroom conflicts. Universal's Blu-ray is a little short on extra content but the video and audio presentations are excellent. Recommended.