Trurow's novel was long and dealt with all the legal details unfolding with tremendous justice and competence. Think of this movie as a very abridged version of the novel trying to cram in a lot of character and plot development with a lot of very competent actors. There are 'hints' of Barbara Sabich's psychological problems from the onset, and you have to deftly catch them to make sense of the movie as it develops. Of course, Marcia Gay Harden does justice playing the part very carefully and not obviously if you don't look for her frailties from the start. Bill Pullman playing Judge Rusty Sabich, his son played by Callard Harris, the court clerk who ends up being the mysterious mistress for the prosecution and girlfriend played by Mariana Klaveno are all capably performed considering the pressures of an 'abridged' version. The prosection played by Richard Schiff and Tahmoh Penikett - the latter plays an over enthusiastic, careless and doltz of an assistant prosecutor to Schiff's diligence and care, while the defense handled by Alfred Molina and Janet Kidder are just great at letting the prosecution exhaust itself with its poorly constructed case against the judge. "Hey", it's an entertaining movie if you have the time and mindset to watch it carefully. It's not a 'disappointer' at all! (And you don't have to be 60 years or older to appreciate the contradictions presented between impatient youth and crafty and forbearing senior adults in the movie.)
