The Verdict Summary
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Sidney Lumet
Genres: Drama
Rating:
In Sidney_Lumet's powerful courtroom drama The Verdict, Paul_Newman stars as Frank Galvin, an alcoholic Boston lawyer who tries to redeem his personal and professional reputation by winning a difficult medical malpractice case. Frank, down on his luck, is presented with the case of his life when he is approached by the family of a woman who has been left in a coma following an operation in a large Catholic hospital. Helped by his assistant Mickey (Jack_Warden), he agrees to take the case, hoping for a fast settlement. When he visits the victim in the hospital, he becomes emotionally involved, turns down a sizable settlement offer made by the hospital, and decides to bring the case to trial despite the formidable opposition of the Church and its lawyer, Newman (James_Mason). He is also assisted by his new girlfriend, Laura (Charlotte_Rampling), a woman who turns out to have an unusual past. Oscar-nominated for "Best Picture" and "Best Director" (Lumet) as well as for "Best Adapted Screenplay" (David_Mamet from a novel by Barry Reed), The Verdict is an outstanding, if not very legally accurate, courtroom drama; Frank's decision to try the case without telling the family of the victim of the settlement offer would probably lead to his real-life disbarment. Paul_Newman and James_Mason give fine, Oscar-nominated performances, and Charlotte_Rampling is quite good as the deceitful Laura, who never seems to turn down a drink. Linda Rasmussen, Rovi
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