In recent years, Matthew McConaughey has received more recognition for his bongo playing, Lance Armstrong wingman-ing, and being the inspiration for some great impersonation work by Matt Damon each and every time he visits Dave Letterman. His leading man status dropped drastically leaving him in the doldrums of romantic comedies like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past and the scandalously unwatched Surfer Dude. Frankly, I am still waiting for my opportunity to see Tip Toes even if it only delivers half of what Tosh 2.0 promised.
Wisely, McConaughey returned to his roots as the defense attorney with a drawl -- this time taking on the lead of Michael Connelly's wildly best-selling crime thrillers. He's not quite as sweaty and swarthy as he was in A Time to Kill -- but this is LA and it's been about fifteen years. My apologies to my little sister and to Casey Wait Fitzgerald -- McC's arms ain't what they used to be. But the man still has a sick body as does co-star Ryan Phillippe -- and director Brad Furman wisely showed their and Tomei's tone off. This is an adult crime thriller after all -- you can't just have a bunch of beaten women and gangsters rolling around. There has to be a bit of skin and intrigue to keep the audience hooked. And I must say, The Lincoln Lawyer does just that.
It is unquestionably good. Great? Well that gets dangerous. But who says it has to be great? In this era of multiple "CSI" franchises, Law & Orders of all varieties, Cold Cases, NCISes, Without A Traces, Criminal Mindses -- it does seem like the crime story you're going to charge for needs exceptional intrigue. However, this is often greatly offset by the fact that movies needn't be completely formulaic and that you can stack a picture with gads of stars -- putting a recognizable face in each role. Everyone here is a known quantity -- and a good one at that. Again, a smart move by McConaughey -- one that probably left co-star Josh Lucas wondering why he wasn't helming the picture and where the hell Bradley Cooper had run off to leaving both of them with significant acting opportunities that could easily be the start of a Michael Connelly run.
The film is at least as good as Kiss the Girls and if Alex Cross is going to get multiple films, why not Connelly's Mick Haller?
Though it isn't raking in the dough at the box office -- this was an exceptional career move that must be praised. The Lincoln Lawyer is doing everything for Matthew McConaughey that Mel Gibson's Edge of Darkness didn't. Perhaps a portion of that success is the quiet roll out of this very simple star vehicle that perfectly shows a side of LA we haven't seen -- despite the fact that it was supposed to be a key player in Street Kings. Yes, I subjected myself to that.
This is a good sign for McC after working his way down the ranks from Grisham's new man on the scene, to the religious expert Jodie Foster refused to date, to the motorcyclist who knew a thing or two about hunting dragons at twilight, to Kate Hudson, to Sarah Jessica, to projects whose camp value is so out of control -- they haven't been released. Bring it back in, get yourself a little drunk and teary eyed, have a close friend die, scream about justice, play it like a chess game, and have the case turn out just as it should. Nice work.
If you don't believe me, toss it into the Netflix queue if only to enjoy Tomei, William H. Macy, Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, Frances Fisher, and Catherine Moennig. This is a good little legal thriller. You won't be let down.
- Matthew J. McCue
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