James R. Elkins
"And Justice For All"
(1979)
Law and Lawyers and the World Around Them: What kind of change do you see reflected in the worlds depicted in "Adam's Rib" and "Anatomy of a Murder" and the world portrayed in "And Justice for All"?
How does the world in which we find ourselves affect the way a lawyer tries to practice law?
James Berardinelli, in his review of "And Justice for All," points out that: "Once, practicing law was considered a worthy, honorable career. No longer. In a bloated legal system where technicalities count more than justice, and where wealth and fame can buy freedom, lawyers have become the parasites who feed off the desiccated remains of human suffering. To be sure, there are some who still enter the profession with the best of motives, but they are in the minority. Law is not about idealism; it's about money and back-room deals." Berardinelli says "And Justice for All," with its "bleak, absurd look at lawyers" and shaped by elements of satire and black comedy, "would be hilarious if it wasn't so true-to-life."
One might wish for a more nuanced, and carefully argued statement as to the nature of the problem we face in the legal profession, but Berardinelli's point, too easily dismissed as a gross exaggeration, need not be dealt with by dismissal, denial, or defensiveness. We need to reflect on this question: What does it mean, to enter a profession, which so easily characterized by the views expressed by Berardinelli?
Even if Berardinelli over paints his canvas, isn't there a critique of law and the legal system lurking in "And Justice for All"?
Anti-lawyer Films: Some academics, film reviewers, and law-trained viewers of films consider films like "And Justice for All" and "Devil's Advocate," films that portray the dark, shadow side of our profession, to be "anti-lawyer." How are we to read lawyer films in which law and lawyers are portrayed as accomplices in what James Berardinelli refers to as "deeply-rooted hypocrisy and cynicism that defines American law"?
One problem, of course, with this notion of Hollywood films as being "anti-lawyer" is that the films in which negative elements of the profession are portrayed also present lawyers like Arthur Kirkland (in "And Justice for All") who passionately cares for his clients, fights for them at every turn, and is willing to risk his career to maintain his own integrity in a world where law destroys or devours everything it touches. If today's lawyer films are "anti-lawyer," how do we explain lawyers like Arthur Kirkland?
Conflict: What is the nature of the conflict represented in "And Justice for All"? What conflict in law do we find presented?
Kirkland says of Judge Fleming: "This Judge Fleming goes by the letter of the law." The problem is that his client, Jeff, is innocent and by upholding the law the judge sanctions a cruel injustice. (Gail Packer also seems to endorse this view that following the law takes precedence over any concern we might have for justice.) It's not all that hard to see the attraction in such a view: keep your eye on law and let justice take care of itself. Arthur Kirkland seems troubled in ways that Gail Packer (and Warren, the lawyer who takes the probation hearing for Arthur when he ministers to his friend Jay) are not. The pay-off from following conventional views (of lawyering, society, life) is that you are more insulated from the world around you. Arthur Kirkland sees/knows/understands the world in a way that leads, at the end of the film, to an unconventional, career-threatening stance, to recognize the truth in a world of lies and deception.
Opening Scenes: The opening scenes of a film are important—and thus, the abhorrence of dedicated film buffs at arriving late and missing the opening moments of the film. (In an earlier era, movie theaters were not emptied after each showing so it was possible to see the beginning of the film you had missed by simply staying on for the beginning of the next showing.)
"To Kill a Mockingbird" opens with the the beautiful presentation of objects and a child drawing—we later learn that these objects have been found by Jem Finch in the knothole of a tree, objects placed there by the reclusive Boo Radley. The objects intrigue the children, are hidden away so that their father will not learn they have them, and are Boo Radley's link to these children he admires (and watches over) from a secluded distance.
In "And Justice for All" there is a voice-over of young children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, making mistakes as young children will do, but earnest, and passionate in their efforts to get it right. As we listen to this children and their recitations the camera walks us up the steps of an official building, the jail in which we are introduced to the lawyer, Arthur Kirkland.
Gail Packer: Gail Packer, the lawyer on the ethics committee, is according to one student, "the voice of reason." I think of her as the "voice of convention."
Arthur Kirland tells Gail: "Your conning the public. Your skimming the surface. You're not going after the real power." Isn't there some pernicious mischief on the part of those who are eager to punish minor wrongdoers when serious corruption goes unchallenged? Shouldn't one be concerned that our criminal justice system seems more intent and efficient in locking up drug offenders than in prosecuting complex, white-collar, corporate crime?
Judges in Films: Judge J. Howard Sundermann, Jr.
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