El defensor

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

Agatha Christie would be proud of the five-twist ending to THE LINCOLN LAWYER. The film is clearly top-notch and street smart. It's the most efficient, solidly crafted courtroom thriller since PRIMAL FEAR and WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION. It has so many twists and turns that it's likely that Agatha Christie would be proud of it.

It also reignites the career of Matthew McConaughey as an actor, not just a charismatic star. He manages to be smoothly appealing despite playing a corrupt lawyer who has no scruples in defending guilty clients as long as they provide the cash flow he demands. It's only after defending RYAN PHILLIPPE from a charge of murder and rape that he realizes he does have a few scruples left. And the plot twists provided by the screenwriter John Romano from the novel by Michael Connelly, are deftly handled for maximum shock effect. Brad Furman keeps the direction tight, forceful and swift-moving.

The cast surrounding McConaughey has been selected with care and all of them offer realistic performances. Marisa Tomei is appealing as his ex-wife who knows his shortcomings but is still attracted to him, and William H. Macy delivers a solid performance as his investigator friend. Ryan Phillippe is excellent as the client whose surface appearance belies the fact that he's as street smart as his sleazy lawyer, and FRANCES FISHER is outstanding in a small but pivotal role as the young man's protective mother.

Not since the days of PRIMAL FEAR and WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION has there been a more intelligent script than this one, designed to baffle and blindside the viewer in the course of unraveling some startling surprises.

By all means, highly recommended for fans of this genre.

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.

I found this movie very enjoyable. Matthew McConaughey played a very believable and spot on performance as Mick...I think the casting decisions were great Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, William H. Macy, Josh Lucas, etc. Did a fabulous job. The plot line was fantastic and left you on the edge of your seat, the script was enjoyable, with both serious dramatic scenes to funny lines that left the whole theatre laughing. Over all a great movie thats targeted toward an older audience 30's-60's. But I'm 13 and my mother took me and I loved it. Although I'm a teenager and most of us just like a bunch of romantic-comedies, I have a wider genre of love in movies. Hope you enjoyed this one as much as I did.

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.