The Verdict
by Robbo
Posted on 8 June 2021
Rating -
The Verdict is a 1982 American legal drama film directed by Sidney Lumet and written by David Mamet from Barry Reed’s 1980 novel of the same name. It stars Paul Newman, Charlotte Rampling, Jack Warden, James Mason, Milo O’Shea, and Lindsay Crouse.
As a young lawyer Frank Galvin (Newman) was high flying, with a promising career ahead until he was framed for jury tampering and fired from his elite Boston law firm. Years later he is now an alcoholic ambulance chaser whose practice is on the verge of collapse.
As a favour, his friend and former teacher, Mickey Morrissey (Warden), sends him a medical malpractice case in which it is all but assured that the defence will settle for a large amount. The case involves a young woman given an anaesthetic during childbirth, after which she choked on her vomit and was deprived of oxygen. The woman is now comatose and on a respirator. Her sister and brother-in-law are hoping for a monetary award in order to give her proper care and Frank assures them they have a strong case.
Frank visits the comatose woman and is deeply affected. Later, a representative of the Catholic hospital where the incident took place offers a substantial settlement. Without consulting the family, Frank declines the offer and states his intention to take the case to trial, stunning all parties including the presiding judge and the victim’s relatives.
Frank’s case quickly experiences several devastating setbacks and he has to go into the courtroom against the high-priced attorney Ed Concannon (Mason), who has a large legal team at his disposal as well as the presiding judge (O’Shea), who despises Frank and tries to undermine his case throughout the whole trial.
The Verdict is a film about redemption. Frank Galvin is at his lowest point, the film opens with him approaching families at funeral homes and wakes hoping to pick up some scraps of a case. You see him as morally ambiguous, almost a pitiful character.
He is then offered this lifeline, a way to make easy money. All he has to do is negotiate a settlement on a medical malpractice case. After seeing a young woman whose life has been destroyed by two doctors, and suspecting a cover up by the hospital and church he suddenly grows a conscience and decides to take the case to court.
This is also a David vs Goliath story, the lone man up against a large legal team in a courtroom where truth is objective and open to interpretation.
In the end Frank Galvin becomes the lawyer he always had the potential to be.
The film is really well directed and acted by a strong cast, particularly Jack Warden, James Mason and especially an Oscar nominated Paul Newman.
The film doesn’t get bogged down in the legal matters, it focuses more on the characters and their relationships.
Although the ending is a little cliched, The Verdict is a fantastic film and definitely one I would highly recommend.
Leave a Reply