...And Justice for All

Arthur Kirkland is a Baltimore defence attorney permanently at war with the system he has chosen to stay inside. Then he is forced to defend a judge he knows is guilty, and a professional dilemma becomes a moral collapse. The famous moment is Pacino's courtroom explosion: you're out of order, the whole trial is out of order. It has been parodied across dozens of shows and is probably not remembered in its correct form. Barry Levinson and Valerie Curtin wrote the screenplay. Norman Jewison deliberately pulled the film toward both satire and absurdity, saying he did not want to make a message picture. It took two Oscar nominations, Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay, and Pacino was also nominated for a Golden Globe. On a 4 million dollar budget it grossed 33.3 million domestically and finished as the 24th highest earner of 1979. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 78 percent, with critics split on the comedy and drama mix and several calling it overstuffed. Who it is for: people who like courtroom drama and Pacino at high voltage. Who it is not for: anyone wanting a measured legal film. It leaves realism for caricature at regular intervals, and does so on purpose.