LGM Film Club, Part 413: The Verdict
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Somehow I had never seen Sidney Lumet’s 1982 film The Verdict. So I took care of that problem. It’s pretty damn good, as I am sure many of you know. Written by David Mamet and starring Paul Newman as the alcoholic down on his luck lawyer who gets a big medical malpractice case against a Catholic hospital, it’s not only one of the great Boston films and one of the great legal films, but also a fantastic character study. For as great as we all known Newman was, is he almost underrated? I mean, his range and the subtle power he brought to roles is almost unprecedented. He was never the Towering Presence of Brando or the comedic ham of Lemmon, but he could almost do both and work that incredible charm into just about anything. If he had a major role without much charm at all, it was this one and he didn’t need that either. Sure he’s a good looking slightly beyond middle aged man here, but he also plays as a man who the barrels of booze has impacted pretty heavily here.
Charlotte Rampling is the love interest and I was wondering for a bit whether she wasn’t shoved into the film just for that but, uh, nope, there’s quite a story there. Late era James Mason is fantastic as the Catholic church’s lawyer with no scruples at all. Mason was so great in almost everything. It’s slightly unclear why Jack Warden, playing Newman’s buddy and mentor, gives him so much time and favors. In fact, it’s not clear what Warden is even doing here. Like what is his normal job? What are his motivations? Does he not have to do other things? But whatever, who doesn’t love Jack Warden?
Anyway, this is a completely banal statement about a film most of you have probably seen, but it’s one of the best films of the 80s and if you were as dumb as me and hadn’t seen it, solve that problem.
And here’s one of the best scenes from the film: