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Lincoln Lawyer (2011)

thereviewers
Sep 27, 2015
3 min read

Lincoln Lawyer is a legal thriller that sees Mickey 'Mick' Haller (Matthew McConaughey), a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, working out of the back of his Lincoln town car. After spending most of his career defending petty criminals, he unexpectedly lands the case of a lifetime - defending a rich realtor accused of rape and murder. As the evidence against his client mounts, Haller soon learns the truth about the allegations with some truly deadly consequences.

Overall Review Score

9 out of 10

Review

Based on the novel of the same name by Michael Connelly, The Lincoln Lawyer is a 2011, 104-minute, crime thriller that explodes onto the scene under the careful guidance of director Brad Furman and screenwriter John Romano. It sees lawyer Mickey Haller (Matthew McConaughey) and wealthy realtor Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe) work together and eventually square off against each other as Mickey attempts to uncover the truth about an attempted rape and murder. The film quickly sets up the characters and drops the audience straight into the action while the backdrop of LA coupled with the films careful music choice helps the audience connect with the unique legal perspective of Haller. As the film progresses the audience are left piecing together the evidence and deciding whether Roulet is guilty or not and how Haller will eventually ensure justice is served. The film blends twists and turns with the legal wrangling of a courtroom in a brisk fashion that is enjoyable and thought provoking in equal measures that makes the film incredibly engaging and easy to watch. Overall, The Lincoln Lawyer is a film that highlights the exceptional skills of its actors as they hook the audience in and keeps them engaged while allowing them subtle quiet, reflection moments so they can play the jury and decide what happened and who is guilty. Ultimately, it is a film that has stayed true to the source material which will please fans of the book series but it has been produced in such a way that it comes across as fresh, engaging and entertaining for those who have no previous knowledge of the books.

Reviewer 1's score & comments:

Score: 9 out of 10

Comments:

The Lincoln Lawyer is a thrilling crime drama centered around a Los Angeles defense attorney as he tries to defend his client against allegations of rape and murder. What really helped The Lincoln Lawyer stand out from the typical crime thriller was the performances of the talented actors as well as the fantastic use of different camera angle, which really helped showcase the raw emotion of the films trial. In addition to this, Matthew McConaughey and Ryan Phillippe's portrayal of the defense attorney and defendant, respectively, came across as both realistic and convincing. Which really helps immerse the audience in this gripping legal crime drama that tackles some really complex issues such as attorney-client privilege, all in all a very interesting and thrilling film that I would truly recommend.

Reviewer 2's score & comments:

Score: 9 out of 10

Comments:

The Lincoln Lawyer is an extremely faithful adaption of Michael Connelly’s novel of the same name and narrowly missed a perfect score, 10 out of 10, from me. Both Matthew McConaughey as Mick Haller and Ryan Phillippe as Louis Roulet are extremely believable, they feed off each other with a unique thrilling but none-the-less menacing chemistry that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats for the entire 104-minute run time. Away from this, an incredible supporting cast ensure Roulet and Haller do not come across as one-dimensional. However, with that said, the film falls down slightly on the events outside of the courtroom rather than the case unfolding within. As the film is a legal thriller first and foremost this lets the film down significantly that I could not award it a perfect score. Overall, The Lincoln Lawyer combines a strong script with an experienced, first-rate cast and mood enhancing music to deliver a crime thriller that starts strong and finishes with a flourish of twists and turns that leaves the audience eager for more. Certainly, a film is worth watching.