In Canton, Mississippi, a fearless young lawyer and his assistant defend a black man accused of murdering two white men who raped his ten-year-old daughter, inciting violent retribution and revenge from the Ku Klux Klan. Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey.
88 Metascore. Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his children against prejudice. Director: Robert Mulligan | Stars: Gregory Peck, John Megna, Frank Overton, Rosemary Murphy. Votes: 303,966.
Atticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his children against prejudice. Director: Robert Mulligan | Stars: Gregory Peck , John Megna , Frank Overton , Rosemary Murphy
Two New Yorkers accused of murder in rural Alabama while on their way back to college call in the help of one of their cousins, a loudmouth lawyer with no trial experience. Director: Jonathan Lynn | Stars: Joe Pesci, Marisa Tomei, Ralph Macchio, Mitchell Whitfield. Votes: …
The Client - A small boy who saw the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to help protect him when the DA tries to use him to take down the mob family.#N#Length: 119 minutes# N#Director: Joel Schumacher#N#Stars: Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro#N#Watch Movie: The Client
Inherit the Wind - Based on the real-life Scope Trial, two esteemed lawyers argue the case for and against a science teacher accused of the crime of teaching evolution.#N#Length: 128 minutes#N#Director : Stanley Kramer#N#Stars: Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, Gene Kelly#N#Watch Movie: Inherit the Wind
...And Justice for All - An attorney is forced to defend a guilty judge, while still helping other innocent clients, and trying to find punishment for the guilty and provide justice for the innocent.#N#Length: 119 minutes#N#Director: Norman Jewison#N#Stars: Al Pacino, Jack Warden, John Forsythe#N#Watch Movie: ...And Justice for All
Breaker Morant - Three Australian lieutenants are court martialed for killings prisoners as a way of diverting attention from war crimes committed by their superiors.#N#Length: 107 minutes#N#Direct or: Bruce Beresford#N#Stars: Edward Woodward, Jack Thompson, John Waters#N#Watch Movie: Breaker Morant
Murder in the First - A young attorney defends an Alcatraz prisoner who has been accused of killing another inmate, despite his client having just spent over three years in solitary confinement.#N#Length: 122 minutes#N# Director: Marc Rocco#N#Stars: Christian Slater, Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldman#N#Watch Movie: Murder in the First
Length: 107 minutes. Director: Michael Anderson. Stars: Michael York, Richard Attenborough, Trevor Howard.
Deemed one of the greatest courtroom dramas of all time and based on the novel with the same title, Anatomy of a Murder follows Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler (played by James Stewart), who has his work cut out for him after agreeing to defend Lt. Manion (played by Ben Gazzarra), who murdered a local bar owner after learning he’s been accused of rape.
The only lawyer who will help him with his case is Joe Miller, played by Denzel Washington.
Trivia: Julia Roberts’ salary for her role as Erin Brockovich made her the first actress in Hollywood to earn more than $20 million. 9.
Set in 1839, Amistad tells the story of a slave ship sailing from Cuba to the United States. In the film, directed by Steven Spielberg, Cinque (played by Djimon Hounsou) leads the slaves in an uprising, which results in them being held as prisoners in Connecticut.
Philadelphia (1993) Directed by Jonathan Demme, Philadelphia tells the story of lawyer Andrew Beckett, who struggles to hide his homosexuality, as well as his HIV status, for fear that they will have a negative impact on his career at a prestigious Philadelphia law firm.
Trivia: Witness for the Prosecution was the last film that Power completed before he died of a heart attack in November of 1958. 6. Legally Blonde (2001) Based on the novel by Amanda Brown, Legally Blonde is a courtroom comedy that stars Reese Witherspoon as Elle Woods, a sorority girl from California.
2. 12 Angry Men (1957) This classic courtroom drama was directed by Sidney Lumet and details the deliberations of 12 men, all of whom are part of the jury deciding the fate of a poor young man who’s been accused of murder. If found guilty, he will face the death penalty.
Brigance admits the possibility that the rapists will walk free. Carl Lee goes to the county courthouse and opens fire with an automatic rifle, killing both rapists and unintentionally injuring Deputy Dwayne Looney, whose leg is later amputated. Carl Lee is arrested and Brigance agrees to defend him.
The film was a critical and commercial success, making $152 million at the worldwide box office. It is the second of two films based on Grisham's novels directed by Joel Schumacher, with the other being The Client released two years prior.
Production. Grisham had apparently not wanted to sell the film rights to the book. He sold the rights for a record $6 million. He received casting approval for the film and overruled the director's choice of Woody Harrelson as the lead role, which was based on Grisham himself.
During closing arguments, a deeply-shaken Brigance tells the jury to close their eyes and listen to a story. He describes, in slow and painful detail, the entire ordeal of Tonya. Brigance then asks the jury, in his final comment, to "now imagine she's white.".
On the first day of the trial, the Klan rallies, only to be outnumbered by counter -protesters consisting of the area's black and multiracial residents, as well as whites who support Carl Lee. The protest erupts into a violent brawl that results in dozens of injuries and the death of Stump Sisson.
Carl Lee replies that he had chosen Brigance as an attorney because he is a white man and has insight into how the jury sees Carl Lee. "When you look at me, you don't see a man, you see a black man. (...) You are my secret weapon because you are one of the bad guys. You don't mean to be, but you are.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 68% based on 56 reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The critics' consensus reads: "Overlong and superficial, A Time to Kill nonetheless succeeds on the strength of its skillful craftsmanship and top-notch performances". It has a score of 54 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 21 reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "A" on a scale of A+ to F.
Both the film and book are inspired by the real events that happened when environmental pollution in the city of Woburn, Massachusetts contaminated a local acquifer.
Al Pacino delivers an unforgettable performance as attorney Arthur Kirkland in the 1979 courtroom drama film “And Justice For All.” The film includes costars Craig T. Nelson, Lee Strasberg, John Forsythe, Jack Warden, Jeffrey Tambor, Thomas Waites and Christine Lahti. The screenplay writers were Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin. The $4 Million budget yielded a whopping $33,000,000 at the box office. Arthur Kirkland is put in jail for contempt of court for the offense of punching Judge Flemin, played by John Forsythe in an argument over the Jeff McCullaugh case played by Thomas G. Waites. Kirkland takes on a few cases in which his clients are arrested for small infractions and then become victims at the hands of an unjust legal system.
The $4 Million budget yielded a whopping $33,000,000 at the box office. Arthur Kirkland is put in jail for contempt of court for the offense of punching Judge Flemin, played by John Forsythe in an argument over the Jeff McCullaugh case played by Thomas G. Waites.
The 1980 British war film “Breaker Morant” outlines the court marshal trial of Peter Handcock, George Witton and Harry Morant, all Lieutenants in the Australian Army. The men were accused of committing atrocities during their service. When his superior asked him to spearhead the prosecution of these men, Major James Francis Thomas instead, became their legal counsel and defense attorney during the proceedings which took place in Pretoria, South Africa in 1902. The film was awarded multiple Australian Film Institute Awards.
Lieutenant Daniel Caffee. The 1992 film “A Few Good Men is a legal drama that involves the court martial of and murder charges against two United States Marines. They are accused of the murder of a fellow marine. This dramatic film is filled with red tape, directives and roadblocks for the defense.
Elle Woods. This is a comedic take on the legal system. In the 2001 film “Legally Blonde,” Reese Witherspoon plays the character Elle Woods who is only pursuing a law degree to get the attention of her love interest. She is joined by Luke Wilson, Matthew Davis, Slema lair, Jennifer Coolidge and Vic Garber.
Matthew McConaughey is Mickey Haller, criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles County. He works out of the back seat of His chauffeured Lincoln Town car. Most of his clients have been low profile until the big one makes itself available. “The Lincoln Lawyer” is a 2011 film that highlights McConaughey’s acting skills as he delivers the role with perfection in unraveling the mysteries and navigating the twists that he discovers as two cases he is working on are intermingled. The film also is an adaptation of “The Lincoln Lawyer,” novel and stars William H. Macy, Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei and Bryan Cranston.
Here's the film that popularized the phrase, “You can’t handle the truth!”. In A Few Good Men, a rookie military lawyer Kaffee (Tom Cruise) is tasked with defending two marines accused of murder after they refuse representation from another veteran lawyer. The two claim they were only acting under orders.
3 Worst: Arthur Kirkland (...And Justice For All) This character is played by Al Pacino, another actor who works better as a bad guy than a good guy. In the movie, Arthur Kirkland discovers that his client is actually guilty and that he's forcing people to be his alibi.
The judge awards custody to Joanna because of the "tender years doctrine" rule which states that under extreme circumstances, the custody should be given to the mother. The father considers appealing but his lawyer Shaunessy (Howard Duff) discourages him, saying he'll be forced to bring his son on the stand.
In the movie, Michael is a lawyer and fixer who makes sure all the cases in a law firm run smoothly. He is brought in to fix the situation after one of the other lawyers suffers a mental breakdown while defending an agrochemicals company that he believes is guilty. Michael soon discovers he might have bitten more than he can chew after his car gets blown up.
In the movie, he is a struggling criminal defense attorney who is unable to afford an office so he uses the back seat of his chauffeured Lincoln town car to prepare for his court cases.
Joe Pesci seems better suited for bad guy roles rather than the good guy. In My Cousin Vinny, he plays a lawyer who defends his cousin against a wrongful murder charge in Alabama. His cousin had just left a store before the store clerk was murdered.
The film tells the real-life story of lawyer and environmental activist Erin Brokovich who had a major legal battle against the energy corporation Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) Erin leads a major case against the company for illegally dumping highly toxic chemicals into a local water source.