...And Justice for All (1979)

Too much of everything

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

This movie could have been done in 1/3 the time.What was good ws the potential story, what was bad was the over acting from everybody -Jeffrey Tambor and the person who played the trans girl especially.The music was atrocious....ohh so brutal.Who would think that this music should be in there should have their ears pulled off their heads.Endless dialogue which has nothing to do and is uninteresting at all points.Scenes which come out of nowhere and go nowhere.Characters who don't appear again and who aren't need to begin with.Dialogue which doesn't sound real and camera work which seems like a first year film student is doing a sample shot of work.It's not in tune with the 70\s or even the 80\s, 90's or 60's for that matter - and it definitely ain't in tune for anything 40 years later.I watched it for free and I only did so because I want to see how bad it really was.The only spoiler here is the bad performances which should have been nixed from the editor before making it's way into the film...and there were plenty.There was no need for a bedroom scene at all, it offered nothing at any point and took away from everything.Lousy writing overall - even for a 1970's era film.

I loved this in 1979. It was a good evening's entertainment. Lots of fun. Pacino was in his element. We all cheered him. The good guys won. The bad guys and the corruption they represented took it on the nose. I would have given it a '10' back then.The thing is, it ain't 'back then' anymore. And boy does this movie show its age. I know it's heresy to say but entertainment gets dated. This one hasn't aged well. It's none too subtle. As one of the IMDb reviews I just read said, less would be more. Charlie Chaplin was hilarious in 1925. He ain't that funny today. This was a bravura performance back in '79. In fact, several of them were. The writing seemed crisp. It felt almost embarrassing today. The "5" is for how much I enjoyed this 30+ years ago. It wasn't there for me anymore. I can only imagine how this film would look to a young audience today.

"And Justice For All" is an entertaining yet meaningful movie in that it exposes the many flaws in our system of jurisprudence. It does so by taking a satirical look at the system through a variety of characters in the film. When Judge Henry T. Fleming is accused of rape, he hires defense attorney Arthur Kirkland (Al Pacino) to represent him. Kirkland is a fiery, idealistic lawyer who cares for people- and who detests Fleming, a man with whom he's battled in the courtroom and regards as both uncaring and arrogant. Furthermore, Fleming is holding up the release of a Kirkland client falsely accused of murder. This is of no consequence to Fleming, who instead sees an opportunity to make his innocence more apparent by having an adversary defend him. Kirkland wants no part of this charade, until Fleming threatens to blackmail him with long buried information on a breach of attorney-client privilege. Reluctantly, Kirkland takes the case.Several events rattle Kirkland as he prepares his defense; a near-fatal helicopter ride with a presumably suicidal judge (Jack Warden) and the public nervous breakdown of his law partner (Jeffrey Tambor). Things turn tragic when two of Kirkland's clients die in separate incidents. A harmless, transgender man hangs himself when he is mistakenly sent back to jail in Kirkland's absence, and McCullough- the man Fleming prevented from being released- is shot in a hostage situation, as Kirkland attempts to diffuse it. Enraged and disillusioned at such an unthinkable turn of events, Kirkland sits on a bench outside the courtroom and ponders his role in a system he perceives as terribly indifferent and cruel.Shortly thereafter, Kirkland receives photos from another client that show Judge Fleming engaged in S&M acts with a prostitute. When shown the pictures, Fleming smirks and admits his guilt in the rape for which he is accused. A disgusted Kirkland leaves the room as a haughty Fleming reminds him that "he'll see him in court". The trial begins, and after the prosecution's opening statement, it is Kirkland's turn. After what appears to be a legitimate attempt to discredit the prosecution for their "lack of a case", he stuns everyone by declaring Fleming's guilt and proclaims "he should go right to f*ckin' jail". As the judge objects and the crowd erupts into chaos amidst this blatant breach of etiquette, Kirkland is dragged from the courtroom. He screams at Fleming- who looks on with a mixture of both disbelief and disgust- for disgracing the law and the people he represents.Pacino is outstanding. His courtroom scene is one of those moments in film that is stamped indelibly on one's memory. He perfectly conveys the disenchantment of a man hopelessly swimming against the tide despite his best efforts. In the end he all but sacrifices a career to ensure that a thoroughly detestable man, a person who is "supposed to protect people" is ruined professionally. Fine character work is turned in by both John Forsythe as Fleming and Jack Warden as an eccentric judge who keeps a rifle in his chambers and eats his lunch on the ledge of a 4th floor balcony.A highly recommended movie and a must for Pacino fans.

An ethical Baltimore defense lawyer (Al Pacino) disgusted with rampant legal corruption is asked to defend a judge he despises (John Forsythe) in a rape trial. But if he does not do it, the judge will have him disbarred.Roger Ebert says of this film that "it's not a statement, it's an anthology." And that is absolutely right. The plot above, and a similar plot on the back of the movie's case, only cover about one quarter of what goes on in this film. We have a crazy attorney, a prison riot, a suicidal judge (played expertly by Jack Warden)... the rape trial actually turns out to be such a small part.But that is a good thing, because we get to see Al Pacino being a little bit excited in a variety of different circumstances. And the tone is incredible -- some parts are deadly serious (rape, murder and suicide have to be to some degree) while much of the movie is a very, very dark comedy. And it is incredible.