<*chomp!*> <*chomp!*> That's the sound of Al Pacino chewing the scenery.
Let me elucidate a bit. There are bad ham actors (Rod Steiger and late period Donald Pleasance come to mind) and ham actors that are so terrible that they achieve a kind of brilliance (like William Shatner). Then there are those rare ham actors that are actually pretty good. One name that occurs to me in this regard is Kenneth Branagh. Another is the Original 1970's Operatic Method Man, Al Pacino.
In the wake of his breakout roles in "The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part 2" (couldn't they have thought of a more creative title for that one?), Al Pacino embarked on a series of histrionic, mega-intense Method Acting roles in great movies like "Serpico" and "Dog Day Afternoon." In 1979, he appeared in what seems to me to the apotheosis of the Era of the Method, "...And Justice for All." Here he plays Arthur Kirkland, an idealistic lawyer (!) who becomes Disillusioned with the System; he wants to see justice done, but all he sees around him is injustice, bestowed on the needy and innocent by the System. (I could follow an earlier reviewer's lead and mention that a lot of this injustice comes from his own incompetence and carelessness as an attorney, but I'm not enough of a legal expert to make such a call).
Roped into defending a thoroughly unlikeable judge (John Forsythe, in a kind of proto-Blake Carrington role) from a rape charge, Kirkland soon becomes convinced of his client's guilt. What should he do? Defend him anyway (that's his job, after all), or walk away? Meanwhile he has to deal with his aging grandfather (Method Mentor Lee Strasberg), his law partner (Jeffrey "Hey Now" Tambor), who's increasingly eccentric behavior is starting to worry his friends and colleagues, an amiable but crack-brained judge (Jack Warden), an overly smug prosecutor (Craig T. Nelson, the King of Authoritarian Smug) and the obligatory 1970's love interest (Christine Lahti).
I can never watch this movie without noticing that Al Pacino is Acting!, a sure sign that he is over-Acting! Nevertheless, I find this movie truly entertaining. It's kind of like watching Iron Chef. You might not want to eat the food, but it's fun to watch them cook.
Let me elucidate a bit. There are bad ham actors (Rod Steiger and late period Donald Pleasance come to mind) and ham actors that are so terrible that they achieve a kind of brilliance (like William Shatner). Then there are those rare ham actors that are actually pretty good. One name that occurs to me in this regard is Kenneth Branagh. Another is the Original 1970's Operatic Method Man, Al Pacino.
In the wake of his breakout roles in "The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part 2" (couldn't they have thought of a more creative title for that one?), Al Pacino embarked on a series of histrionic, mega-intense Method Acting roles in great movies like "Serpico" and "Dog Day Afternoon." In 1979, he appeared in what seems to me to the apotheosis of the Era of the Method, "...And Justice for All." Here he plays Arthur Kirkland, an idealistic lawyer (!) who becomes Disillusioned with the System; he wants to see justice done, but all he sees around him is injustice, bestowed on the needy and innocent by the System. (I could follow an earlier reviewer's lead and mention that a lot of this injustice comes from his own incompetence and carelessness as an attorney, but I'm not enough of a legal expert to make such a call).
Roped into defending a thoroughly unlikeable judge (John Forsythe, in a kind of proto-Blake Carrington role) from a rape charge, Kirkland soon becomes convinced of his client's guilt. What should he do? Defend him anyway (that's his job, after all), or walk away? Meanwhile he has to deal with his aging grandfather (Method Mentor Lee Strasberg), his law partner (Jeffrey "Hey Now" Tambor), who's increasingly eccentric behavior is starting to worry his friends and colleagues, an amiable but crack-brained judge (Jack Warden), an overly smug prosecutor (Craig T. Nelson, the King of Authoritarian Smug) and the obligatory 1970's love interest (Christine Lahti).
I can never watch this movie without noticing that Al Pacino is Acting!, a sure sign that he is over-Acting! Nevertheless, I find this movie truly entertaining. It's kind of like watching Iron Chef. You might not want to eat the food, but it's fun to watch them cook.