Being an admirer of both Sidney Lumet and Paul Newman and having heard many great things about 'The Verdict', expectations were high. Luckily those high expectations were met.
Not quite top 3 Lumet like '12 Angry Men', 'Network' and 'Dog Day Afternoon', but it is very close ('The Wiz' being his weakest by considerable distance), while Paul Newman's role here in 'The Verdict' is one of his long and great career's crowning achievements. Being constantly shown Galvin's drunkenness and self-disgust occasionally got a little heavy-going for my tastes and one is not hugely surprised by the case's outcome.
On the other hand, 'The Verdict' is a superbly made film, the dark and gritty visual works so well and complements the subject equally so. Lumet directs subtly but in a way that still feels skillful and engaging. The music is suitably atmospheric, and the script is wordy but still taut and compelling, avoiding sentiment and clichés and not dragging the film down into too much exposition while still making the characters interesting.
The story does have a slow start but compels ceaselessly from the twenty five minute or so mark, succeeding as a quiet yet still edge-of-your-seat courtroom drama and even more so as a character study, with Galvin a fascinating character. There are great scenes here, especially the movingly powerful summation and the whole of Lindsay Crouse's appearance. While not the biggest fan of ambiguous endings, the ambiguity and open-interpretation of the ending didn't bother me here at all and Galvin's change was believable to me and wasn't that sudden.
As hoped, Newman dominates the film and his powerful performance (like when he shuts himself in the bathroom, a master class of verbal-less acting) is one of his best and deservedly nominated for an Oscar (losing to Ben Kingsley in a strong and tough competition in that category that year). The supporting cast are more than up to his level, James Mason especially is on splendidly silky smooth yet quietly menacing form, as is a touching Lindsay Crouse, a charming Jack Warden, a blood-boilingly good Milo O'Shea and emotive Charlotte Rampling.
In summary, helped primarily by the performance of Newman 'The Verdict' is one engrossing last chance at a big case. 9/10 Bethany Cox
Not quite top 3 Lumet like '12 Angry Men', 'Network' and 'Dog Day Afternoon', but it is very close ('The Wiz' being his weakest by considerable distance), while Paul Newman's role here in 'The Verdict' is one of his long and great career's crowning achievements. Being constantly shown Galvin's drunkenness and self-disgust occasionally got a little heavy-going for my tastes and one is not hugely surprised by the case's outcome.
On the other hand, 'The Verdict' is a superbly made film, the dark and gritty visual works so well and complements the subject equally so. Lumet directs subtly but in a way that still feels skillful and engaging. The music is suitably atmospheric, and the script is wordy but still taut and compelling, avoiding sentiment and clichés and not dragging the film down into too much exposition while still making the characters interesting.
The story does have a slow start but compels ceaselessly from the twenty five minute or so mark, succeeding as a quiet yet still edge-of-your-seat courtroom drama and even more so as a character study, with Galvin a fascinating character. There are great scenes here, especially the movingly powerful summation and the whole of Lindsay Crouse's appearance. While not the biggest fan of ambiguous endings, the ambiguity and open-interpretation of the ending didn't bother me here at all and Galvin's change was believable to me and wasn't that sudden.
As hoped, Newman dominates the film and his powerful performance (like when he shuts himself in the bathroom, a master class of verbal-less acting) is one of his best and deservedly nominated for an Oscar (losing to Ben Kingsley in a strong and tough competition in that category that year). The supporting cast are more than up to his level, James Mason especially is on splendidly silky smooth yet quietly menacing form, as is a touching Lindsay Crouse, a charming Jack Warden, a blood-boilingly good Milo O'Shea and emotive Charlotte Rampling.
In summary, helped primarily by the performance of Newman 'The Verdict' is one engrossing last chance at a big case. 9/10 Bethany Cox