Usually, when a mainstream documentary focuses on a subject that’s less-than-uplifting, the filmmakers are able to find some angle through which they can put an optimistic stamp on the story. At the very least, they might toss up some title cards with links to websites that can allow the audience to “take action” on any relevant social issues. There’s none of that in Dinosaur 13. This is an underdog story in which the underdogs never have a prayer of winning. Goliath laughs at the rock David tosses at him, then reduces David to a red smear on the ground. Or, to use a metaphor more fitting with the topic of the movie, a T-Rex stomps on a tinier, vegetarian dinosaur, barely noticing as it does so.

Given that this is the age of Jurassic Park and The Land Before Time, it’s safe to assume that, at one point or another, all of us went through a phase where we were fascinated by dinosaurs. I know I was, and I remember how during this time, I learned about “Sue,” a 65-million-year-old skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex that remains one of the most complete fossils of that species to be discovered. But, as is the case for many things on the public record, there was an entire history behind the excavation of Sue that was never even hinted at by any educational materials or museum placards. This information wasn’t hidden by any means — the controversy in question made appearances in the nightly news for years — but now it is simply ignored. And the reason for this is that even paleontology is not free from insidious corruption.

The first 20 minutes or so of Dinosaur 13 are devoted to breathless enthusiasm. The team that discovered Sue talks about the unlikely chain of events that lead to their stumbling upon the fossil. Pete Larson, the team’s leader, gushes over the excitement as they excavated the skeleton and realized how beautifully intact it was. Sue itself is built up as a character, the paleontologists explaining how details in the fossil demonstrate how the T. Rex lived. This is the only way the doc really distinguishes itself stylistically. It may be bad science to anthropomorphize dinosaur bones, but it’s an excellent way to get us to care about who ends up with them. Sue, it seems, had a violent life. And after resting for tens of millions of years, new unpleasantness was about to be visited upon its remains.

The government swooped in and seized Sue, claiming that the spot in the South Dakota hills where it lay was federal land. What followed was a 10-year battle between Larson’s team and the government, the FBI, the IRS, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (the land was also part of a reservation), and the owner of the property in which Sue was found. “Battle,” though, is putting it loosely, since it was mostly Larson and his associates trying desperately to make sure that the ridiculous cavalcade of charges filed against them didn’t stick. The end result was Larson spending 18 months in jail. Sue, at least, ended up going on display in a public institution where everyone can look at and appreciate it, but only after more than $8 million were paid to some asshole.

Dinosaur 13 sticks to the documentary formula of talking heads / historical footage / Ken-Burns-effect photographs to an exacting degree. The artistry is not nearly at the level of the story director Todd Douglas Miller and his crew had on their hands, which is a shame. This easily could have been one of the best documentaries of the year, but instead, it settles in the middle of the pack. It’s the latest example of how we need to be asking more of our docs.

Grade: C+