Oil and Amazon rain forest don't mix

A long-running lawsuit against Chevron claims that the company (which merged with Texaco in 2001) has done $27 billion worth of damage in the Amazon rain forest.

According to Chevron/Texaco representatives, the pollution is the result of poor sewage treatment. The corporation also argues that con men and trial lawyers have attempted to whip up a controversy for their own benefit.

Which authorities do you believe? Director Joe Berlinger, who created such provocative documentaries as "Brother's Keeper" and "Paradise Lost," lets both sides have their say in his absorbing nonfiction legal thriller "Crude."

Charismatic environmental activists make their case with claims that cancer led to premature deaths. Stiffer and less charismatic, the spokespeople for Chevron/Texaco argue that their company brought no more pollution to the forest than was already there.

Gradually the natives gain ground. Their first big break is a Vanity Fair article that calls attention to their leader, Pablo Farjardo, glamorously crowned "Jungle Man." Then the rock star, Sting, takes up their cause.

If you ever had doubts about the impact that celebrities can have on such a David-and-Goliath struggle, Berlinger methodically removes them. He also suggests how much has changed in the lives of South American villagers who still regard helicopters and other technology as Godlike phenomena.

Especially compelling are the close-ups of oil-soaked ground and the emotional testimony of a villager who lost two children to polluted river water.

The case, nicknamed "Amazon Chernobyl," continues without a resolution.

John Hartl: johnhartl@yahoo.com