Mark Ruffalo True Story Thriller Is Actually A Lovecraft Horror In Disguise, See Patton Oswalt Make The Case
When you think of a true story thriller, a comparison to a Lovecraftian horror might not be the first one you draw, but that’s the case with Dark Waters featuring Mark Ruffalo. Though it’s based on real life and you won’t see any giant cosmic entities appear in the film, it has similar themes and horrors that you would find in any story by H.P. Lovecraft. Patton Oswalt’s description of the movie compares it to one of his short stories in particular, called The Colour Out of Space.
Mark Ruffalo In Dark Waters
The movie follows the story of a real-life lawyer and his fight against an American chemical conglomerate.
Although Dark Waters isn’t quite supernatural, there are some rather eerie similarities to Lovecraft’s tales.
Chemical giant DuPont poisoned areas in West Virginia with substances known to be toxic, contaminating farming land and the water supply, leading many people in the area to develop illnesses such as various forms of cancer.
Rob Billot, the lawyer Mark Ruffalo played in Dark Waters, originally worked for large chemical companies. After a farmer, Wilbur Tennant, asks him for help, he switches sides.
Not The End Of Real-Life Story
Though it took decades, Mark Ruffalo’s real-life inspiration secured a settlement of over $671 million for the nearly 4,000 plaintiffs he spoke for.
Though this is where Dark Waters ends, it’s not the end of the real-life story. In 2018, Bullot ended up filing a new lawsuit against several more companies, including 3M, Arkema, and Chemours focusing on the PFAS chemicals used in fire suppression, waterproof jackets, and shaving cream.
Addressing The Chemicals
Here is what Billot had to say about the class action when questioned by TIME, “We are leading the industry by supporting federal legislation and science-based regulatory efforts to address these chemicals. We also have announced a series of commitments around our limited use of PFAS, including the [sic] eliminating the use of all PFAS-based firefighting foams from our facilities and granting royalty-free licenses to those seeking to use innovative PFAS remediation technologies.”
Comparing To H.P. Lovecraft
As with the first case, this could take years, if not decades, to resolve. If he ends up as successful with the lawsuit as he was with the first, there could be another movie, similar to Dark Waters in a few decades about his success, as well as a few fewer contaminants in the world. Who knows, Mark Ruffalo may even have the chance to play the impressive lawyer yet again.
In his interview, Patton Oswalt compares Dark Waters to The Colour Out of Space, a short story by H.P. Lovecraft. For those unfamiliar with this piece, it’s about a fictional town in Massachusetts that was hit by a meteor that corrupted everything in the area, making people and animals go insane and transform into grotesque shapes and turning plants bitter an inedible.
Dark Waters Stars
Focus Features’ Dark Waters is directed by Todd Haynes. In addition to Mark Ruffalo, there are several other A-list actors in Dark Waters, such as Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables, Interstellar), Bill Pullman (Independence Day, Spaceballs), and Tim Robbins (Mystic River, Howard the Duck).
Dark Waters
While Mark Ruffalo doesn’t exactly fight Cthulu in the movie, he does go up against a similarly giant and terrifying monster.
Like many movies based on true crime, Dark Waters isn’t entirely accurate. However, the overall process of Bilot fighting against DuPont is pretty close to the truth, and it’s a good watch if you want to learn more about this impressive case.
