Courtroom Movies to Watch This Spring

Ever consider attending a trial in your spare time?

Most legal cases being argued in court are open to the public. Come one Come all!  Attendance is free!

Not interested? Didn’t think so.

Unless they have a stake in the outcome, most folks have no desire to poke their heads inside a courtroom. Most of us can find plenty of other diversions more to our liking.

But when it comes to watching high drama, or even low comedy, play out in the courtroom, most of us are quite happy to engage so long as the proceedings on a movie or television screen.

The transition from real to reel life seems to make a world of difference.

Whether based on actual events or 100% fiction from a screenwriter’s imagination, cinema has long been mining the courts for material. One can go all the way back to 1908(!?!) No. That is not a typo. 1908. In that year, a short film was made called “Falsely Accused.” Even then, the premise of the innocent man on trial for something he didn’t do was a favorite theme.

Suffice to say, through the decades there have been dozens, probably hundreds, maybe thousands of movies set in the halls of justice that have enthralled and entertained us.

In the spirit of a good closing argument, here’s our plea for the five best legal movies to don the silver screen.

1. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

If earnestness, sincerity, character, commitment and integrity could be personified in one representative of the legal profession on film, it would have to be Atticus Finch. The hero-defense attorney of this southern drama from 1962 could only have been played by one actor – Gregory Peck. A classic Hollywood star whose career spanned 61 years, Peck’s portrayal of Finch earned him the Academy Award as best actor in 1963.

One of the rare instances where a great book (written by Harper Lee in 1960) is made into an equally great movie, “Mockingbird” stands the test of time. There’s nothing light or airy about the subject matter – rape and racial injustice in depression-era deep south – yet somehow there is a warmth to the movie. A lot of that warmth comes from scenes outside the courtroom depicting Finch’s relationship with his six-year-old daughter, Scout. Inside the courtroom, there’s much to admire about Mr. Finch’s lawyering, though as far as juries go, this one is a tough sell.

If you’ve never seen it, or haven’t done so for decades, this grand old courtroom drama is must-see. It stands the test of time and earns our top spot.  Movie trivia: Robert Duvall makes his screen debut in this movie in the small but pivotal role of “Boo Radley.”

2. The Verdict (1982)

“The Verdict” has it all. First and foremost, it has got star power. Paul Newman. One of the all-time greats. Newman plays an aging ambulance chaser with a penchant for strong drink. In a David vs. Goliath matchup, he takes a wrongful death case against the Arch Diocese, which has a crack legal team led by an evil-genius defense attorney played by James Mason. He’s referred to as the “Prince of Darkness,” at one point, and for good reason. Newman, on the other hand, has only one helper on his legal team, a weary but wily old-timer played by one of the great character actors of all time, Jack Warden. Not only does this movie have an involving storyline and memorable performances  it has generous helpings of American jurisprudence. The legal scenes manage to be realistic yet entertaining.

Of course, as the title suggests, the intriguing storyline comes down to a courtroom verdict. But in between, we get insightful scenes that play close to the reality of preparing for a trial. Still, it manages to entertain in the process. A meeting in the judge’s chambers between Newman and Mason is especially insightful, showing the contrast between the informal goings-on that often take place between the lawyers and the judge in chambers and what transpires in front of a jury in open court.

The tone throughout is somber, so don’t expect a lot of laughs. But this one makes the legal profession proud. The Verdict is in: Great movie.

3. A Few Good Men (1992)

“A Few Good Men” has more than a few great performances and contains one of the all-time great climatic courtroom scenes ever. It’s riveting watching screen legends Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson square off during a court martial of two marines accused of murdering a fellow marine in a hazing-style incident.

Nicholson, looking every bit the Marine officer as Col. Jessup, is on the hot seat/witness stand. Cruise is the brash young military lawyer who, after initially just going through the motions defending two marines accused of murder, takes on Nicholson’s egomaniacal marine colonel.

“You want answers?” bellows Nicholson.
“I want the truth!” roars Cruise in return.
And then, the famous payoff: “You can’t handle the truth!”

When Nicholson’s character proceeds to spill forth the truth, it’s a stunning moment when a witness, so enamored of himself and his righteousness, ends up giving a spontaneous confession for all to hear. It’s an amazing fall from grace for the cocksure colonel.

The military setting gives “A Few Good Men” helps to set it apart from most courtroom dramas. For another military-themed great with a legal angle, there’s “The Caine Mutiny” from 1954. Humphrey Bogart’s Capt. Queeg’s crack-up on the witness stand is not to be missed.

4. And Justice for All (1979)

At once a comedy, a drama, a satire, a farce, this movie is one wild ride through the American justice system. Al Pacino plays Arthur Kirkland, a passionate defense attorney who actually believes in, well, justice for all. Rarely known to underplay a role, Pacino has a field day with the courtroom scenes and has some great supporting characters off of which to play.

Among the cavalcade of memorable characters is a cruel, villainous judge with not an ounce of sympathy for criminal defendants, even those who are innocent ; another jurist who is not above firing off a pistol to maintain decorum in his court (“there’s law, and then there’s order” he reasons), more than a few harried counselors on the verge of a crack-up; and, of course, Al Pacino at the center of it all.

The cantankerous relationship between Pacino and the villainous judge played by John Forsythe binds the movie together. Things take an unexpected turn when the judge gets accused of sex crimes and turns to, who else, Pacino, to defend him. But will he? Yes and no. He takes the case, but instead of defending his own client, as the law mandates, Pacino’s character decides to turn the tables on his own client. It’s an unhinged finale to a film that points an accusing finger at a legal system where everyone, supposedly, is equal under the law.

5. My Cousin Vinny (1992)

“My Cousin Vinny” is light, fun and more akin to romper room than a court room. But it makes our list for those reasons. (Is it really a better film than, say, “Judgment at Nuremberg?” Probably not. But we need to mix things up here a little bit.)

The first tipoff of the courtroom high jinks to come ought to be the casting of Fred Gwynne as the judge of the proceedings at hand. Fans of classic TV sitcoms will remember the tall, deep-voiced Gwynne as Herman Munster, patriarch from the old Munsters TV show from the mid-1960s. No, Gwynne’s small-town southern judge doesn’t have the green complexion, or the infectious Munster laugh. But his reactions to the shenanigans of novice NY defense attorney Vinny Gambini (Joe Pesci) make for a lot of guffaws in this fun frolic.

Imagine being arrested on a murder charge and the only lawyer you can find to defend you is your cousin who failed his bar exam half-dozen times, wears a leather jacket in court instead of a suit coat, knows virtually nothing about the law and has a knack for annoying the judge.

From a legal standpoint, it’s interesting that the subject of an “expert witness” comes up.
Testimony from “experts,” individuals who have special expertise in a field, is often needed to bolster one’s position in a trial. “Cousin Vinny” finds a clever to work in Vinny’s girlfriend (Marisa Tomei in an early, star-making role) as an expert on tire tracks. The way in which she gets admitted as an expert is, well, not the way things work in real court, but hey, this one’s for laughs.

Conclusion: Pick a good movie tonight!

There are plenty of other great legal dramas out there ranging from Anatomy of a Murder to The Pelican Brief. We hope you’ll enjoy one of these good movies and have time to consider the value of good courtroom advocacy.