The Lincoln Lawyer

Everyone likes a good courtroom drama: the epic struggle of the little, everyday person against the smarmy lawyers and the powers that be. But what if you turned the concept on its head, and made one of said smarmy lawyers your protagonist; surely that couldn't work? The Lincoln Lawyer is evidence to the contrary.

The last time a car lent its name to a film of this gravitas was Gran Torino, and although lawyer Mick Haller's (Matthew McConaughey) Lincoln doesn't play such an integral part as Clint Eastwood's motor, it speaks volumes about its owner. Cruising the L.A. streets in the black limo with its license plates "NTGUILTY," here's a man who's not averse to bragging, neither to wheeling and dealing with whomever in order to chalk up wins for his clients. When Haller signs up for his next case, then, as defense attorney for accused murderer and stinking-rich brat Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), we're not sure whether to trust Haller. Does he really want to see justice done, or is he more interested in pocketing enough dough to keep his chauffer behind the wheel?

The Lincoln Lawyer thrives on ambiguities like these, and will force you to try to figure out who's really up to what for a while, before everything becomes clear. McConaughey's preened yet street-savvy lawyer might seem a thoroughly dislikable man, but there's more to him than meets the eye. His family life, for instance, is not the trite, shattered wreck they usually are in these films. Though divorced from his wife (Marisa Tomei), the two are refreshingly at ease with one another, cracking jokes over a beer, amiably sharing time with their young daughter, not slamming each other against walls or ripping each other's hair out.  

When the bomb is dropped, revealing the real reason Roulet has chosen Haller to represent him, The Lincoln Lawyer steps on the gas and becomes a thriller fraught with tension. Haller's old friend and confidante Frank Levin (a leonine-weaved William H. Macy) is shot dead, and the once-cocky lawyer finds himself backed into a corner.

Emerging from all this are Haller's real fears, not only for the safety of his friends and family, but also the fear of his own complacency. After all, as he himself quips, "There's no client as scary as an innocent man." Are his past oversights about to catch up with him?

With a presence like Haller, going over the top with sliminess wouldn't be hard, but McConaughey's act is more delicately shaped than that. His Texan accent is sometimes sinister, sometimes strangely comforting, and the same capriciousness goes for the way he treats his acquaintances.

It takes a defined performance to get an audience on the side of a man like Haller, and after seeing McConaughey in the role, it's tricky to imagine anyone else doing it as well (well, Christian Bale actually springs to mind, but apart from him).

Everything boils down to a good old-fashioned court-case showdown. In this, The Lincoln Lawyer does not let us down either, providing the requisite back-and-forth that is the tennis match of an immersing legal drama. Josh Lucas as prosecution attorney Ted Minton gives Haller a run for his money, and the trial throws a couple of unexpected twists into the proceedings.

The really accomplished twist, though, is something we've seen coming for a while: Haller doesn't want to protect his client, yet he has no choice but to do so.

Intelligent, slick and engaging as a well-prepped attorney, The Lincoln Lawyer engages in a brave balancing act and makes it work. Despite his numerous peccadilloes, you'd want Haller representing you, should you ever find yourself in a spot of legal bother.

Will Noble can be reached at
wnoble@praguepost.com