Der Mandant

Hey, this isn't half bad at all. I'll be honest and say I wasn't expecting much, so it was nice to be pleasantly surprised. Okay, it's no 'Primal Fear' - but it's as good as any Grisham adaptation.

The script is pacey and smart, with some excellent lines from the central character - played with just the right balance of sass and integrity by Matthew McConaughey. In fact, everyone in the cast was up to the mark - and it's always a pleasure to see Marisa Tomei up there: a fine actress who deserves to be seen more often. Willliam H Macy, too, is always worth watching.

As for the story... I thought it gave an interesting angle on the classic legal/moral problem : the failed defence in which an innocent client goes to jail, and the successful defence that acquits a killer.

I haven't read the Michael Connelly novel, but I think I will now - if only to see more of the Mick Haller character. His back-story wasn't much more than suggested in the film - lost licence, broken marriage, smartness that's a combination of natural intelligence and life at the grittier edge of things. I want to know more!

A couple of quiet spots, and a little bit of overstating the obvious (a la 'CSI'), but otherwise this is a highly entertaining film. The perfect antidote to some of the blockbusters and cartoons on offer at the moment.

8/10

I remember that there was a time, not that long ago, when I really could not stand any movie that featured Matthew M. However, slowly and steadily, the guy started picking or getting better roles and started to gain some good movies under his belt. Even his acting skills that seemed total rubbish in movies such as reign of Fire seemed to improve massively over the course of the years. Now, you could even say that if Matthew M. is acting, the movie must be at least decent. And that's exactly what The Lincoln Lawyer is. A pretty good movie that I enjoyed to watch and would even watch a second time when my fish memory has erased the contents of it from my brain. More Matthew M., more good m.

Mick Haller (Matthew McConaughey) is sleazy but efficient defense lawyer that has scum clients. He has a daughter with the attorney Maggie McPherson (Marisa Tomei) and his car is a Lincoln driven by his loyal driver Earl (Laurence Mason). When the wealthy Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe) asks Haller to defend him in a case of raping and beating the prostitute Regina Campo (Margarita Levieva), Roulet claims that he is not guilty and the woman is trying to get money from him despite the evidences against him.

Haller asks his investigator Frank Levin (William H. Macy) to check Rooulet's story. Soon Haller discovers that Roulet's case is connected to an old case of his. Further, Haller can not use his findings against Roulet due to the confidentiality. When Roulet threatens Haller's family, Haller is behind the eight ball. But he is a smart guy and has an ace in the hole.

"The Lincoln Lawyer" is an entertaining thriller with many plot points and a great cast. Matthew McConaughey is excellent in the role of a sleazy and smart defense lawyer that finds that has been used by a psychopath and who has a crisis of conscience for not believing in his client. The efficient Ryan Phillippe is also great in the role of a cynical psychopath and Marisa Tomei is sweet as usual. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Poder e a Lei" (The Power and the Law")

WOW ! Reading the reviews on this movie were more about Matthew M. being cast and his supposedly poor films. People do you not recall "A Time To Kill" he was very great, "Frailty" very good, very scary. "Thirteen Conversations About One Thing" Amazing. "Ed TV' great and sweet.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 Michael C's concept. I truly dislike when a book is made into a movie and manipulated.

As for Matthews performance, he seems a little more laid back then as in the movies mentioned above, but I do enjoy seeing him play the clever lawyer type.

The titular Lincoln lawyer is smooth Mick Haller who is just as smooth as Matthew McConaughey. His sleaziness is entertaining, but his lawyering is smart and intriguing. This film has pretty much the perfect mix of a smart plot, with inventive twists, amusing one-liners, and captivating thought-out characters.

Limited action and instead using characters who have an actual story, we get a film that sets itself above its competitors. A charming, but also smart and strong, Matthew McConaughey introduces us to a lawyer who has a few inner turmoils that develop along with the plot. There may be a few too many twists in the story (and with the camera), but the evolution of McConaughey's Haller is rather subtle and not cliché.

Questions of innocence versus guilt surround Louis (Ryan Phillippe) as Haller agrees to take on his case. But as the case starts to collide with incidents of the past, present and future, similar questions of guilt and innocence start plaguing Haller, his other clients, and the other lawyers. The fact that all these other characters are played by great actors only increases the entertainment value of this film. I highly recommend taking a thoughtful ride with "The Lincoln Lawyer".