The Fifth — and possibly the last
Well, the Oscars are tonight, and has become a tradition at this time (I have done four of these before), I've decided to provide yet another list of 10 legal movies. At one time I would list of the ones I'd already covered — but by now, that list would fill up all available space. So here are another ten legal films deserving of another (or a first) look:
10. Philadelphia. (1993) Back when AIDS was still a scary disease to many — almost as scary as, say, gay people — Tom Hanks essayed the role of an attorney working for a powerful Philadelphia law firm when he's fired after they learn he has AIDS. So, in a twist, he sues the firm, represented by the only attorney whom Hanks can find (Denzel Washington) — who has to overcome some prejudices of his own. The role won Hanks the first of two consecutive Best Actor Oscars.
9. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) Slightly dated divorce drama, with Dustin Hoffman suddenly finding himself a single dad when his former spouse (Meryl Streep) walks out. The courtroom byplay at the climax, where Hoffman is represented by blustery Howard Duff, is what lands it in this list — but it's worthwhile mainly for the scenes between Hoffman and his son as he slowly learns how to be a parent.
8. In the Name of the Father. (1993) A different kind of based- on-a-true story criminal case (this one from Ireland) with Daniel Day-Lewis as smalltime criminal Gerry Conlon, who happened to be near a pub when it's bombed by the Irish Republican Army. Arrested, he's tortured into a confession, then spends 15 years imprisoned fighting his conviction — even meeting the real bomber, whose confession the police suppressed.
7. The Firm. (1993) The first of (arguably too) many films adapted from John Grisham novels, it's enjoyable despite Tom Cruise' rather leaden performance as a Memphis lawyer who begins to suspect his firm is really a mob front. What saves the film is its delightful supporting cast, including Jeanne Tripplehorn, Gene Hackman, Wilford Brimley, Ed Harris, Hal Holbrook, and David Strathairn. But don't blink or you'll miss all 5 minutes of Holly Hunter's Oscar-nominated role.
6. Compulsion. (1959) Fictionalized version of the Loeb-Leopold murders of the 1920s. The real Loeb and Leopold were rich boys trying to commit the “perfect crime” but ended up serving long prison sentences. Dean Stockwell and Bradford Dillman are good as the dissolute young killers — but Orson Welles is mesmerizing, delivering almost verbatim the Clarence Darrow closing argument that saved his clients from execution.
5. The Conspirator. (2010) Another true-life story, this one about Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), the boardinghouse owner who allowed her son John and several of his conspirators meet under her roof to plan Pres. Lincoln's assassination. Robert Redford's direction isn't quite as sure as in some of his other films, but it's still a compelling story of someone who, depending on your perspective, either didn't deserve conviction, or at least the punishment.
4. Dark Waters. (2019) Mark Ruffalo plays a corporate defense attorney who, at his grandmother's request, looks into a cancer- cluster in Parkersburg, West Virginia. He discovers that chemical giant Du Pont dumped tons of carcinogenic precursor chemicals to Teflon there. It's highly reminiscent of 1998's A Civil Action and 2000's Erin Brockovich; spend the evening watching those 3 films and you'll swear off Better Living Through Chemistry forever.
3. Amistad. (1997) Steven Spielberg- directed tale about a slave ship whose captives rebelled, eventually taking it into U.S. custody in 1839. Prominent abolitionists like ex-president John Quincy Adams (Anthony Hopkins) fought for the men's freedom all the way to the Supreme Court. Mesmerizing debut performance by charismatic Beninese actor Djimon Hounsou as the uprising's leader — though the cleverest casting was a cameo by former Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun as Justice Joseph Story.
2. Marshall. (2017) Speaking of Supreme Court Justices, the late Chadwick Boseman stars as a young Thurgood Marshall. Long before his success overturning legalized segregation, Marshall represented a Connecticut chauffeur accused of raping his white employer. Marshall's defense is all the more remarkable because the judge who admitted him to practice in Connecticut for this one case forbade him to speak in court — so an insurance attorney had conduct the defense as Marshall's “mouthpiece.”
1. Lincoln. (2012) The story of how, before his assassination, Abraham Lincoln helped make the Emancipation Proclamation the law of the land by setting the groundwork for adoption of the 13th Amendment. Day-Lewis won a record third Best Actor Oscar for his remarkable transformation into the 16th president — even getting Lincoln's high-pitched voice right.
And who knew Spielberg would deliver so many films based on true stories?