Directed by: Brad Furman
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy, Ryan Phillippe, John Leguizamo, Bryan Cranston, Frances Fisher, Laurence Mason, Josh Lucas, Shea Whigham, Michael Pena
Mick Haller (McConaughey) is a special type of ambulance chaser. His office is the back seat of his Lincoln driven by his chauffeur Earl (Mason). He is street-smart, connected, and deals only in cash. A motorcycle gang has him on retainer. But he has a heart and a conscience on occasion, and he still feels guilty about a innocent client (Pena) he talked into a plea bargain for a murder he didn't commit. A client more affluent than Mick is used to comes along in Louis Roulet (Phillippe), a young man from a wealthy Beverly Hills family accused of assaulting a prostitute. Louis insists he is innocent, and Mick takes the case, much to his detriment later on. Louis requested Mick to be his attorney, but he isn't what he seems, and may be materially connected to the case which landed his former client in prison. Could the normally smart and cynical Mick have been bamboozled? One character tells Mick, "You have one client in prison for what your other client did."
The Lincoln Lawyer is a slick legal procedural with McConaughey in top form doing what he does best: Playing the oily, charming slickster who knows the angles and the score. Mick can wheel and deal with the best of them and doesn't mind stomping on a few toes to get there. But Louis soon presents a problem he can't simply talk his way out of, and he goes into high gear hatching a scheme to deal with Louis and his innocent former client in one fell swoop. It won't be easy, because Louis is dastardly and heartless, and knows he has Mick by the balls.
The Lincoln Lawyer fills Mick's world with some top notch performances in memorable supporting roles, including William H. Macy as his investigator who can uncover things most can't, Marisa Tomei as Mick's ex-wife who works in the district attorney's office trying to send Louis to prison, and Bryan Cranston as a cop who doesn't much care for Mick. The Lincoln Lawyer shows us the seedier side of L.A. law and for the most part it doesn't stop moving. The ending may be a bit too neat, and one development comes out of nowhere, but that doesn't stop The Lincoln Lawyer from being fun.
There is one scene which encapsulates the type of guy Mick is, and tries hard to conceal. His driver suggests (with dread) that Mick won't be needing him once his license is restored. Mick's reply, "I got my license back three months ago," We see Mick will do the right thing by those loyal to him, but if you get on his wrong side, look out.
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