Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-24 23:39:47

GOOD TO VERY GOOD

Based on a novel by Michael Connelly, who incidentally seemed pleased with the adaption. A cynical yet very competent lawyer takes on the case of an "innocent man" and finds himself in for a number of surprises. Matthew McConaughey gives a stellar performance and is well suited for the role. His acting is truly one of the highlights for this film and a few of the dialogues sparkled. There's a good cast here, too, and while the elements of this thriller didn't floor me it was pretty good. The budget for this film was $40M and it yielded a bit over $85M at the Box Office. CHARACTERS/DIALOGUE: B plus; STORY/PLOTTING: B LEGAL THRILLER QUALITY: B to B plus; WHEN WATCHED: mid December 2011; OVERALL GRADE: B to B plus.

2012-05-24 03:49:23

Good old-fashioned legal thriller

This legal thriller is a refreshing break from all of the mindless, style-over-substance 3D fare Hollywood is churning out lately. It's a throwback to the days of classic courtroom dramas and police procedurals, with enough interesting twists and turns to keep eyeballs glued to the screen. Matthew McConaughey is superbly cast as the smooth operator lawyer. The rest of the casting is also exceptional, down to some of the bit parts like the bail bondsman, the jailhouse snitch, the biker, and the busted hooker. (I especially appreciated William H. Macy as the private investigator; I do wish that Marisa Tomei had a meatier role that allowed her to shine as she did in "My Cousin Vinny.") Michael Connelly is one of the best current authors in the hard-boiled police procedural genre, and the adaptation stays pretty true to his spirit. As someone who works in the criminal justice system, I appreciated the realism. Money, connections, backroom wheeling and dealing, and simple twists of fate often trump justice. Just four stars because although it was solid and great fun to watch, it lacked a profound message or deep impact that would make it memorable. You certainly won't regret watching it.CAUTION: If you have not seen this movie, do not watch the trailer. It spoils the plot.

priyantha-bandara 2012-05-23 18:26:40

It sure can hook you up for good two hours

When the deal of a life time comes his way, the low rent defenseattorney Mickey Haller decides to grab the most out of it. Defendinglow life criminals who cannot afford good attorneys, Mickey usuallyworks his cases on the backseat of his Lincoln. With a broken marriageand a cute daughter and a still friendly x wife in his life Mickeysomehow keeps his head above the water when the tides are high. Butwhen this new high price deal comes his way unexpectedly and a richfamily boy and his mother is involved in it Mickey sets to sail thedeep water. But soon he realizes that he is becoming a pawn in a wickedgame which he cannot simply quit even though his life is at stake.Lincoln Lawyer is a crime thriller with a twist of legal background toit. The story is fast phased and gives little details to hang in tomost of the time. It has flashbacks of events which occur earlier andassumptions which is normal to crime scene story telling. Yet as themain lead is an attorney than a police investigator makes this twist abit uniquely.The plot doesn't make a great deal of sense but it sure can hook you upfor good two hours. When the story starts like a normal drama thatfeatures a twisted attorney in the middle it gradually evolves in to athriller with quite a bit of blood and gore. Like I said before it canmake you wonder throughout the plot of what's to come next.Good performance by the feel free Matthew McConaughey and more thangood performance by Ryan Philippe. If your 'thing' is crime and dramathen this will keep you entertained.more at flickshout.tk

oahumom 2012-05-23 03:42:56

Good movie but poor camera technique

This movie was unexpectedly good. I thought the plot was terrific andthe acting was superb. Glad to see Michael Pare is still around. Iwould have gladly given a vote of 10 EXCEPT for the horrible camerawork.I should have read the reviews before I went to see the movie and Imight not have gone. This type of camera work is just awful and tendsto make someone with a weak stomach, slightly nauseous. What happenedto the good old fashioned steady camera with the faces not too closeup. I mean the camera REALLY came in way too close on people and youcould not see the rest of the scene.Personally, I feel that the person filming (or the director) should geteither more experience or more teaching to keep a steadier camera witha different perspective on a scene. I am asking for today's cameramento PLEASE keep the camera STEADY. It's much more enjoyable for aviewer.

Sash5034 2012-05-22 15:52:11

Surprisingly great.

The reason I say surprisingly great is because McConaughey has beenmaking watered-down fluff for the past several years. I almost forgotthat he could actually act. The acting is great from everyone here. There are plenty ofrecognizable faces in the film. The directing is also great. The filmhas a very striking look to it, particularly during the flashbacks.It's also nice to see a director who knows when to use shaky-cam andwhen to leave it alone. I can imagine how some people would have issues with the pacing. Themovie moves along at a very fast speed. If you can pay attention anddigest all of the information quickly, you'll enjoy it even more.The best thing about the film for me is that it's a great film forgrown- ups. This isn't watered-down PG-13 garbage. The charactersaren't always nice to each other(boo-hoo), and it actually requires youto think. For that, I loved it.

2012-05-22 07:43:01

Although the book is much better, the film is terrific

Michael Connelly is a great writer. All of his books are excellent and well written. They are filled with interesting plots, characters, and suspense that develop in an appealing and exciting manner. As with most books that are made into films, the films may be very good, as in this case, but the books are generally better because authors are able to tell us much more than the films have time to show and the books are usually filled with more interesting incidences that the films have insufficient time to portray. Yet, as stated, this is a very good film because the acting is consistently very good, and Matthew McConaughey gives an even better performance than he usually gives. The story is well told in the film, and we see how McConaughey discovers that a couple of his cases are not what he thinks they are and we find out that some lawyers and prosecutors are acting improperly.

aGuiltySoul 2012-05-21 21:00:56

Well made, entertaining film with a really compelling story

Brad Furman, the director, has managed to take an old fashioned genreand make it feel new and modern. The movie stays sharp and interestingthroughout. Helping out is a fantastic musical score. From the firstmoments that you hear the downbeat playing over the opening credits youknow you're in for something you my not have known you've been missing.Craft and art perfectly melded.The cast is superb and the acting first rate. Matthew McConnaugheycreates layers for his character, Micky Haller, taking him from suaveand slick through troubled and desperate all the way to cold anddiabolical. Excellently done. We meet many interesting characters inthis film and no performance lags behind. But chief among them is RyanPhillippe as Micky's client , Louis Roulet, who places Micky into anunfamiliar, ultimately dangerous crossroads of conscience. Phillippeevolves his character as the story progresses, from wide eyed wealthyplayboy to someone much darker and frightening. I've read peoplereactions to his performance with the ultimate compliment, "I wanted topunch him in the face." Yes, he's authentically slimy. Well done.Although not 100% faithful to the book, of which I am a fan, what filmis? It captures all the energy and hits all the plot points of thenovel and takes the story to a new level. I know Michael Connelly hassaid how happy he is with the final product.All in all this is a thrilling ride and very entertaining.

jDriftyx82 2012-05-21 08:22:07

The Lincoln Lawyer

Enter: Matthew McConaughey. In his best performance (behind A Time toKill). It is obvious he was born to play the lawyer. The next lawyer TVshow, they should cast McConaughey. With the watered down crap he'sdone for the past few years, it's amazing to see him in a good role.The Lincoln Lawyer is a brilliant movie about the flaws in the justicesystem, and one man who tries to correct them.I can imagine how some people would have issues with the pacing. Themovie moves along at a very fast speed. If you can pay attention anddigest all of the information quickly, you'll enjoy it even more.If you enjoy law movies, movies involving crime, movies with greatacting, then watch this.

2012-05-20 09:52:34

great lawyer flick, well thought out plot

my wife and I really enjoyed this. we read many reviews, and knew this was for us. Matthew actually kept his shirt on too.

2012-05-19 20:55:42

classical law system flaws

This review is from: Lincoln Lawyer (Amazon Instant Video) in this movie a client setup his lawyer to make sure the later will defend him to the end and efficiently. so classical in the way that the lawyer can use the law system flaws to change the truth. interesting movie but not that great.

bg11215 2012-05-19 01:50:33

Fairly well written...

...with some exception. My first impression: it was fairly original;the writer managed to craft a fairly original take on a who-dunnitthriller, which is an achievement in itself. There remains however someroom for improvement. For example, some of the story seemed phoned in,scenes gratuitous, as if the writer were asking us to go along withparts of the story rather than giving us a reason to. There could havebeen much more drama and suspense, especially in the key relationshipbetween attorney and client, especially at the end when you wonder justhow the whole thing is going to resolve. They could have added suspenseby playing up Mccoughnehey's toying with Roulet; in general making moreof a dance out of that. In essence, there were some angles that couldhave been worked more. But I guess sometimes having 80% of a good storyis enough.Other than that: excellently cast. Frances Fisher was superb. RyanPhillippe's performance is a bit stiff, but he shows incredible abilityand talent in some scenes. Overall, worth seeing.

vdminkovi 2012-05-18 15:21:42

Great movie! I really enjoyed it.

What distinguish it from other thrillers and crime dramas is theatmosphere and quite unconventional characters and situations. I reallyenjoyed the soundtrack of the movie. Also I liked the most thebeginning of the movie, which introduced us to the main characterHaller, before he starts to deal with the rape case. I haven't read thebook but in the way this character was so fully depicted, mentioningand seeing his other clients, I realized that the movie isn't going tobe only for a particular case but telling us a story of a lawyer whogets small criminals out of jail and his consciousness about it. Heseemed unscrupulous and unprincipled but at the same time we see thatthere are some clients he really cares for. Matthew McConaughey didvery good job in this movie in my opinion. I really believed him inmost of the situations. Ryan Phillippe and Josh Lucas were hilariouslybad. I laughed at every scene they were, so theatrical and naiveperformances. Marisa Tomei was OK though a little not believable as awoman whose profession is a prosecutor. But I guess her character'smain goal was to bring a little warmth and sex appeal to Haller andnothing more. Other actors who stood up for me were Katherine Moennig,who played the hooker in the jail and Shea Whigham, who played thesnitch. Although their roles were very small and screen time limitedthey were very believable, real and their characters wereunconventional and interesting to watch. The scene with McConaughey andMoennig in jail was quite moving and showed depth of Haller anddesperation of a lost kid in the hooker, which is not usually howsomeone will play a hooker. I also like a lot the rockers in the moviewhich brought quite a color and entertainment. I cannot say anythingabout the other actors because their roles were very standard andnothing deep or unconventional. As a whole I recommend this movie toanyone, who want to see a good crime drama with a little humor and someaction.

dpusellis 2012-05-16 15:57:25

missing exploration

I just saw The Lincoln Lawyer this evening at it's last showing. I'vebeen told that this is the first movie of 2011 that deserves AcademyAward discussion. To that notion, I'd say that I think this movie is alittle bit over-hyped. Don't get me wrong, it has a strong cast andsurprisingly engaging performances by Matthew and Ryan (great as thebad guy). Marisa Tomei is such a natural that it's impossible not tofocus on her when the camera grabs her essence. Anyway, it's a great story...intense and lots of twists and turns...Ithink it's the first time that I've respected a performance byMcCaunahey...but I knew the mother was in on it well before her trueidentity came into focus.The only part of the story that I wish had been explored more was thereasoning behind the character's psychology for killing prostitutes. Tome, it was clear that after what happened to his mother, he was filledwith such hate and vengeance that he wanted to hurt any woman who wasnot emblematic of his mother. It was his way of justifying his mother'srape. He felt that if he could hurt those who truly deserved to bebrutalized, he would slowly remove himself from the trauma andreasoning behind his mother's rape...distancing himself from the act(in a very deeply traumatic sort of way) I wanted the story to explorethe subconscious sociopathic elements of the character.

Twodude Review 2012-05-16 00:52:51

The Verdict is in..and it's a winner

When a movie is made based on a popular author's book, more often thannot the movie never lives up to what was written. A few examples ofthis are John Grisham's The Rainmaker, Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones,and endless others. I haven't had the opportunity to read The LincolnLawyer yet, but it was such an enjoyable movie; I want to read theMickey Haller series. Matthew McConaughey really shines as an attorney;previously for A Time to Kill and now in The Lincoln Lawyer.McConaughey, appearing more recently in films such as Fool's Gold andGhosts of Girlfriends Past is able to flex his acting muscles insteadof his pectoral muscles. Although surrounded by talented actors,McConaughey is far and away the star of this show. His screen presenceis commanding, and he's allowed to be more than just a pretty face.Director Brad Furman takes John Romano's engaging screenplay andpresents a picture that's filled with suspense. Furman may not have along resume, but I expect we'll be seeing more of him considering thequality of this film McConaughey portrays Mickey Haller, a defenseattorney working out of his Lincoln Town Car. McConaughey reallyshines, and hasn't looked this good on film since We are Marshall. RyanPhillippe, not seen in a good movie since Flags of our Fathers, playswealthy Realtor Louis Roulet, and unfortunately is unconvincing in hisdelivery of emotions throughout the film. Furman does a masterful jobof surrounding McConaughey with a fantastic supporting cast: MarisaTomei as Mickey's ex-wife and also an Assistant District Attorney; JoshLucas as Ted Minton, the Assistant District Attorney opposing Mickeyduring the movies main trial; and William H. Macy as Frank Levin, aprivate investigator and long-time friend to Mickey.It's no secret that Matthew McConaughey is a good looking guy andextremely charismatic but often times those two qualities over shadowan important detail. Matthew McConaughey is a very talented actor.Unfortunately as of late he's appeared in mostly romance comedies,which to be honest doesn't really require much range. In The LincolnLawyer McConaughey's talent is on full display, and he makes the mostof it. It's a shame the movie didn't make a bigger splash in theaters,because it deserved to. If you enjoyed Primal Fear than check this oneout. It's definitely a movie worth seeing on Blu-Ray or DVD…why notmake a date night out of it? Grade: B+visit our site at www.twodudereview.com

bobbobwhite 2012-05-16 02:28:26

Best Mac role since Two For The Money

Good entertainment if you don't look too close for reality. It was agood ride and kept your attention, as Mac had his best role since his2005 pairing with the great Al Pacino, as he has to be cast into"presence" roles to be really effective. Just as John Wayne and CharlesBrosnan were cast, as movie "acting" is much more personal presence andcharisma than classical acting for the stage. Mac knows his strongpresence and does well with his limited talent, and he is veryeffective in the right parts, as in this film where cool and slickprevailed. He can do so well his fake warmth, soft voice, but ice coldface of threat that only some can do right. As has been said, if yougot it, flaunt it, and he does that. He is limited in many nuances ofacting ability, but he does do some things really well that many moreesteemed actors cannot do well at all. That false warmth, soft voice,ice cold threatening face is his best one, IMO.Tex did a good one for a change. Been way too long, and I thought for awhile he was going to follow Nick Cage into crap movie hell, but thisone pulled him out, for now.

2012-05-15 11:23:19

Found This Just So-So -- Story Good, Writing and Performances Uneven

I found this overall to be just so-so. On the plus side, the story is interesting, a justice system whodunit with a fair number of unexpected twists. Matthew McConaughey plays a hustling defense attorney who at first seems to possess no scruples, but who soon emerges as much more complex. Ryan Phillipe is his rich playboy client, who initially proclaims his innocence, but of course doubt prevails. Marisa Tomei co-stars as McConaughey's ex-wife who is also a prosecutor, and William Macy as his investigator.The main problem with the movie for me was the writing, particularly the dialogues. Most of the conversations feel very artificial, and rushed - the story is at pains to fit in all the twists I think, and so each scene revolves around the information it is meant to convey, as opposed to being driven by character or realism. In that it felt a bit like an extended Law and Order episode, rather than a high- level feature film. The characters felt thin for the same reason, particularly the Marisa Tomei and William Macy characters - both fine actors who are completely under/mis- used here. Matthew McConaughey and Ryan Phillipe both felt a bit wooden to me, even when they were angry, also probably partly due to the writing.So story is OK, writing and acting so-so, just a 3-star film for me.

dianeoffutt 2012-05-14 04:48:37

Fantastic Movie

Wow - this was a a really wonderful and fantastic movie. It was such agreat plot and such beautiful acting. It truly was a well-written storyand all the actors did such a wonderful job. I truly think a sequelwould be perfect - or a TV series. Like a great book, I found it wasthe kind of movie you just don't want to see end. The characters werejust so believable. I truly think Mathew should play these type ofcharacters more often, instead of the beefy types he usually plays. Asan attorney he was very effective. On a talk show, I believe it wasRegis and Kelly he mentioned he once wanted to be an attorney. I bet hewould have been one GREAT lawyer. I smell an Oscar for Mathew!

2012-05-13 18:36:40

Great Book and great movie

I read the book first and then went to see the movie. I think the book was better but the movie was real good. They changed a few things in the movie but was still one of the best I have seen in a while. I enjoyed the twist and turns of it all. I like not knowing till the end "who done it".I sure want to buy the Movie!!

riti ja 2012-05-13 12:02:37

Good Movie, Great Book, Stop Picking on Matthew !

WOW ! Reading the reviews on this movie were more about Matthew M.being cast and his supposedly poor films. People do you not recall "ATime To Kill" he was very great, "Frailty" very good, very scary."Thirteen Conversations About One Thing" Amazing. "Ed TV' great andsweet.and more where his shirt stays on. Cut it out!!!The movie is good, it stuck to the book and did not get bent of MichaelC's concept. I truly dislike when a book is made into a movie andmanipulated.As for Matthews performance, he seems a little more laid back then asin the movies mentioned above, but I do enjoy seeing him play theclever lawyer type.

TxMike 2012-05-12 17:22:52

Well made and interesting legal murder mystery..

I became a Matthew McConaughey fan when I saw him in two of his earlymovies, in "Lone Star" and as a young lawyer in "Amistad." Here he is lawyer Mick Haller, who operates mostly out of his car, aLincoln, thus the title "Lincoln Lawyer." He has a reputation as asmart, slick lawyer who most of the time appears to get the guilty off.This story revolves around a wealthy single young man, Ryan Phillippeas Louis Roulet, who is arrested for rape and battery of a prostitute,but insists he is innocent, and video of the night at the nightspotappears to support his statements. He claims he was set up to make itlook like he had done the crime so the woman could get a big financialsettlement from him, to buy herself a better life. Mick takes his case,convinced Roulet is innocent.Marisa Tomei as Maggie McPherson works for the L.A. DA's office, sheand Mick had at one time been married, and they have a young daughterthat they share. Plus they seem to get along well, even though they aremostly on opposite sides of cases.William H. Macy is good as long-haired Frank Levin who Mick often hiresas a private detective to investigate evidence. Josh Lucas is TedMinton, a lawyer in the DA's office and the prosecutor in this case.John Leguizamo is Val Valenzuela, a bail bondsman.Good movie, interesting all the way, its almost 2 hours passes quickly.SPOILERS: As things evolve Mick begins to strongly suspect his clientis in fact guilty. As his attorney he must continue to defend him, butsets things up so that, after the judge issues a directed verdict of'not guilty' after the prosecution presented a proved liar as awitness, new charges are made against Roulet for a murder several yearsearlier, where Mick had his client plead for life instead of death, butnow realizing he was in fact innocent and Roulet was the murderer.