The Movie Dude: Pacino serves up 'Justice for All'

I love a good courtroom movie. In life, a courtroom is the last place I’d want to be, but give me two hours of watching someone else having to stand before a judge and I’m entertained.

Judging from the success of legal movies in the past, like “A Few Good Men,” or pretty much any movie based on a John Grisham novel, I’m not alone.

A good courtroom drama can really get your blood flowing. It’s almost like watching a sports movie except in some sports you’re actually allowed to hit your opponent.

“...And Justice For All,” a great example of the genre that will make you ask the question, “Where has justice gone?”

Arthur Kirkland (Al Pacino, Oscar-nominated for the role), is a young defense attorney who is very passionate about his job. So passionate, in fact, that the film opens with him in a jail cell. The charge? Punching a judge (John Forsythe). (So maybe hitting translates to legal thrillers, too.)

Kirkland divides his time between visiting his slowly-becoming-senile grandfather (the great Lee Strasberg) and trying to free an innocent man who’s only in jail due to a technicality, and the reason behind why he punched the judge in the first place.

As if that weren’t enough, he’s not exactly surrounded by a great support system, either.

His two best friends are a suicidal judge (Jack Warden) and an unstable lawyer (Jeffrey Tambor) driven to the brink of insanity by the system he represents.

Completely out of the blue, amidst everything Kirkland has going on, he gets a call for help from a very unusual source-- Judge Henry T. Fleming. If you guessed he was the judge Kirkland was in jail for punching, two points for you.

Fleming was charged with the rape and assault of a young girl, and his only hope of proving his innocence is having a lawyer crazy enough to give a judge a right hook.

In Kirkland’s mind he has the judge right where he wants him. He has the opportunity to look him in the eye, laugh at him, and tell him to go take a long walk off a short pier (only in much more colorful terms).

But Fleming isn’t the nicest of people and ultimately uses blackmail to get Kirkland to take his case.

As you’ll discover pretty early on in the movie, Fleming is a jerk, but he might be more than that. Kirkland may have to deal with the fact that he’s guilty.

At the end of the day, though, Kirkland’s a lawyer and his job is to give his clients the best possible defense, even if said client is as contemptible as Judge Fleming.

Nevertheless, it’ll come down to Kirkland finding himself torn between two options-- doing what’s right for justice and just plain doing what’s right.

The movie is formulaic for sure. But it’s a formula that works.

While a drama, “…And Justice For All” has great moments of comedy, most of which stem from some of the clients Kirkland has. You’re always quick to be reminded, though, that this film is a drama, and a powerful one. For every comedic moment there’s an equally heartbreaking one that almost makes you feel a sense of hopelessness for the legal system in general.

You don’t totally lose hope because Pacino keeps it alive with his portrayal of Kirkland. Now, obviously, the character of the heroic “little guy” lawyer isn’t anything new, but the “little guy” isn’t always played by Al Pacino.

Nowadays he plays his roles with the intensity of a time bomb and you’re just waiting for him to go off. He didn’t used to be like that, though. He used to be calm and reserved and didn’t need to rely solely on his temper, as fun as that is to watch.

“...And Justice For All” is old school Pacino at his best. He doesn’t play a character with power, like Michael Corleone in “The Godfather”, or a powerful character, like John Milton in “The Devil’s Advocate.” For lack of a better word, he plays a schlub, caught in a political machine he can never hope to dismantle, but maybe mildly knock off course.

Bottom line, “…And Justice For All” is a powerful film that throws into question everything we hold true about the justice system. With an amazing performance by Pacino, a great supporting cast, and a finale as explosive as Pacino is now, you won’t be disappointed.

The Movie Dude, Joe Altomere of Fort Myers, grew up in his parents’ video store in Plantersville, Texas. He owns close to 2,000 DVDs and Blu-ray discs and considers that only the start of his collection. E-mail him at jaltomere@yahoo.com.

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