FILM: LINCOLN LAWYER
Review By Duncan McLeod
Director: Brad Furman
Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy, Josh Lucas, Laurence Mason, Frances Fisher, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, Margarita Levieva, Bob Gunton, Reggie Baker, Mackenzie Aladjem, Michaela Conlin, Bryan Cranston, Michael Pare
Synopsis: Based on the best-selling novel by Michael Connelly, The Lincoln Lawyer stars Matthew McConaughey as Michael Haller a Los Angeles criminal defence attorney who operates out of the back of his Lincoln sedan. Haller has spent most of his career defending run of the mill garden-variety criminals. That is until he lands what could possibly be the case of his career. He is hired to defend Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), a Beverly Hills playboy accused of rape and attempted murder. But the seemingly straightforward case suddenly develops into a deadly game of survival for Haller.
Review:
This is one cruise through the mean streets you don’t want to miss.
“ If guilty people have rights, then what about innocent people?” – Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe)
It’s great to see Matthew McConaughey flex his acting muscles. To date, his strongest talent has been being shirtless. Here McConaughey leads a largely talented ensemble through a rolling court drama piece with great conviction. This film, like the manoeuvres of Mick Haller (McConaughey) is very slick.
The cinematography by Lukas Ettlin and editing by Jeff McEvoy give the movie a classy and snappy feel. Ettlin recently worked on BATTLE LA. Even though the scale of visual events is diminished in this film, his talents are still put to good use. The film is visually lush. McEvoy lauds the movie with clever angles, quick cuts and a generally fluid appearance that serve the plot well.
The two weakest links in the cast are Josh Lucas and Ryan Phillippe. Phillippe is usually a one-dimensional wooden actor and that is no different here. The thing is that a lack of colour and emotion is what the character required. It is the fault of clever casting and an amount of laziness on the part of Phillippe that things go so well for him here. Lucas was just lifeless and unlikable. It couldn’t have been the character. There were enough words to make the part engaging, Lucas just failed to deliver.
The rest of the ensemble delivered on promise. It was particularly good to see Macy and Gunton in the same film. Whilst they did not share scenes, both are great dramatic talents that gave gravitas to the overall piece.
Tomei is always great to watch. Her interplay with McConaughey was lathered in sexual chemistry, and her character’s general demeanour was engaging and weighted in appeal.
This is not an original screenplay. It was adapted from a bestselling novel by Michael Connelly. This reviewer is not an avid reader, but sometimes it occurs to me that when a movie is so good it inspires a want to read the book. That is the case here.
LAWYER is an engaging dramatic thriller that packs a punch. Its sound track is littered with some cool old school hip hop. Sometimes you get the distinct impression you’re in a classy music video or a TV cop drama (a good one) but, you’re certain that what you’re watching is quality and you’re hanging out for the next piece in the puzzle.
If McConaughey can continue to keep his shirt on save for sex scenes then the calibre of his performances should continue to improve. There is plenty of fun to be had with this film. It almost inspires the audience to think about becoming a lawyer- albeit a corrupt one.
Very good read. Boom! Boom! from the first few pages right to the last few pages. This is on my short list to take in the theater. Review here is giving me more reason to see it.
thank you sir much appreciated
that texan charm is what makes mathew a guy you will always forgive for making a few less than perfect movies( although I actually enjoyed all of his movies)
Matthew was on the top of his game! All the actors was awsome!