The Verdict (1982)

Note des utilisateurs:

7.7/10   

Réalisateur:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Barry Reed (novel)
David Mamet (screenplay)

Release Date:

8 décembre 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Drame

Plot:

A lawyer sees the chance to salvage his career and self-respect by taking a medical malpractice case to trial rather than settling.

Plot Keywords:

Lawyer | Malpractice | Medical Malpractice | Career | Ambulance Chasing

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations

Avis des utilisateurs:

A Classic

Ensemble

Paul Newman	...	Frank Galvin
Charlotte Rampling	...	Laura Fischer
Jack Warden	...	Mickey Morrissey
James Mason	...	Ed Concannon
Milo O'Shea	...	Judge Hoyle
Lindsay Crouse	...	Kaitlin Costello
Ed Binns	...	Bishop Brophy (as Edward Binns)
Julie Bovasso	...	Maureen Rooney
Roxanne Hart	...	Sally Doneghy
James Handy	...	Kevin Doneghy
Wesley Addy	...	Dr. Robert Towler
Joe Seneca	...	Dr. Thompson
Lewis J. Stadlen	...	Dr. Gruber (as Lewis Stadlen)
Kent Broadhurst	...	Joseph Alito
Colin Stinton	...	Billy

Autre(s) titre(s):

Le verdict (France) (TV title) [fr]
The Verdict (France) [fr]

Durée:

129 min

Pays:

USA

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Son:

Mono

Classification:

Australia:M | Norway:16 | Iceland:L | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:6 | Singapore:PG

Emplacements De Pelliculage:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Anecdotes:

Among the people in the courtroom during the dramatic closing speech is a young Bruce Willis.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Early in the film, Frank two-finger-types a note on a manual typewriter to tape on the door of his office suite. When we see the note, however, we can see that the typed letters are perfectly uniform in darkness and thickness, indicating that the note was actually typed on an electric typewriter.

Guillemet:

Judge Hoyle: This case should never have come to trial. But you know better. You're mister independent. You want to be independent? Be independent now. I have no sympathy for you.

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers: America's Most Inspiring Movies (2006) (TV)

A Classic

I love this film, I own a copy and I watch it at least once a year. It's hard to pick a "best work" from Sidney Lumet, Paul Newman or David Mamet, but this film ranks up there for all three. And really, when you say those three names on one film, that says it all, doesn't it?

Newman plays a down and out lawyer, a drunk ambulance chaser whose life changes when he turns down a pultry settlement offer to try a case that he can't possibly win. There are so many great scenes in this film, it's hard to pick a favorite. Possibly, the very end, the ringing phone Paul Newman ignores as he sips on some coffee, rather than whiskey, might be one of the all time greats. The scene sums up the movie so well. My other favorite is a long, single shot where Newman is on the phone trying to get another doctor to testify and Jack Warden paces the room. The camera is at the other end of the room, on the floor and the scene is about five or six minutes long, one continuous shot, beautifully done.

I read a book a couple years ago that covered blunders in film regarding court cases and apparently there were a couple in this one. But this is a film that is so great, so well done, I think Godzilla could have trampled part of Boston and Lumet could have made it believable. Although Cool Hand Luke is my favorite film of all time, The Verdict is my second favorite Newman film. See it if you can.