Incident in a Small Town

Ever been in Family Court? I have, more than once.

You need to have been there to appreciate this film, which goes into the complex relationships and differing points of view of the participants in our legal system. What goes on behind the scenes?

You also see why our legal system doesn't work. It has little to do with the subject, the protagonist. In murder trials, they are never there because they're always dead! But they do move the story along. Meanwhile, the antagonists are, really, all the rest of the cast, and we see how they make a lot of money realizing their successful careers (how much is never mentioned, of course.)

Director Del Mann and writer Cindy Myers know their way around this material, and make full use of this knowledge. And it was cast beautifully.

Notice the jealousy and rivalry between the judges, who claim proprietary ownership of "their" courtrooms. Notice the conflicts of interest that infects everything that takes place, especially between the lawyers. They all wear their masks. Here we see judges who become part of the case!

So, watch this film, and LEARN, if you're about to seek a restraining order. I was able to see my own case in a different light because of this film. The principles of Greek drama are fully utilized, and the innocent members of the public will be in for surprises and enlightenment.

You may be left with the feeling, if you reach catharsis, that there must be a better (and not illegal) way to settle family disputes. You will also be left with the resolve to stay away from lawyers, judges, and courts, if you're looking for closure.

The TV film is about man who raped girl and after 13 years comes to see her and son again. The plot is about who killed him, girl's father, known judge, girl herself or son.Walter Mathau is lawyer who is involved in defending them in court.

There are apparently three of these "Incident" movies starring Walter Matthau and Harry Morgan as attorney Harmon Cobb and Judge Bell. This is the third one and sadly was nowhere near as good as the first one. It was too easy to predict where the storyline was going. Way before the end of the movie, one could easily guess what happened the morning of the murder.

Some of the scenes were touching involving long-term estrangment and the wishes of a boy to have a father, but not good enough to save the film from a lower star rating than the first film in the series. Walter Matthau is outstanding, though, as a laywer always trying to beat the odds. Maybe the second film in the series will be better.

When an ex comes back into lily's life, she is less than overjoyed. And it brings up all kinds of questions for her son. And the coppers. And the courts. No-one's story matches. Even grandad (morgan) is involved in all this trouble. When there's a murder in town, and someone wakes up d-e-d dead, there are even more questions. And criminal charges. And the judge presiding over the murder case seems to have a prejudice against cobb (matthau) a local lawyer. It's okay. Pretty low budget production. Stephanie zimbalist is mom. The awesome but now departed walter matthau plays the defense attorney on the case. Zimbalist and morgan had already starred in their own television series by now, and matthau was a veteran of many, many huge films. And check out that wide tie in the courtroom! My dad used to wear wide ties like that back in the day. It felt like a bit of a "happily ever after " ending, but you can judge for yourself. Directed by delbert mann. He had won an oscar for marty...way back when.

"Incident in a Small Town" is the third and final TV movie in a series starring Walter Matthau and Harry Morgan as Harmon Cobb and Judge Bell...two lawyers who go into practice with each other. "Incident" came out in 1990, "Against Her Will: An Incident in Baltimore" in 1992 and, finally, this film in 1994. All three feature some terrific acting and the movies are set in the 1940s and early 50s and are well worth seeing.

When the story begins, Judge Bell announces that he's going to see his estranged daughter, a woman he hasn't seen in 13 years! When they meet, she is a bit cold towards him and he learns that he has a grandson! As for Cobb, he comes along for support...and ends up defending both the Judge AND the daughter in a murder trial!! What this is all about you'll need to see for yourself.

This is a very good made for TV movie....just not as good as the previous two. The reason I didn't enjoy it quite as much is that the murder mystery took too many twists...to the point where it became increasingly difficult to believe the story. Still, the excellent acting alone make it worth your time.