Matthew McConaughey stars as Mick Haller in the film adaptation of “The Lincoln Lawyer” alongside Marisa Tomei and Ryan Phillippe. | Lionsgate Publicity
Matthew McConaughey’s latest film, “The Lincoln Lawyer,” opened Friday and brought in $13.4 million to the weekend box office. Based on the novel of the same name by Michael Connelly, the film features cynical defense attorney Mickey Haller (Matthew McConaughey) who uses Lincoln Town Cars as his office.
With multiple clients depending on him, Haller continually turns tricks in the interest of those clients — but not without receiving a paycheck in return. After being hired by Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe) for an assault case, Haller thinks he’s finally found the case that will make him rich.
However, as he digs deeper into the case, more and more inconsistencies pile up. He suddenly finds himself between a rock and a hard place as his life is put at risk and the lives of his family are being threatened.
The movie begins with opening credits, random pictures of the city and Haller’s Lincoln, which reminds viewers of a theme song at the start of a TV show such as “Law & Order.”
“Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City” — the song that was picked top play over the opening credits — was questionable and the different music that play throughout the movie never seem to really fit.
Right from the beginning, minor points of the book are rearranged in the movie. The film’s main focus is the Roulet Case and how Haller deals with it, and all other cases shown in the beginning of the movie seem to be there only to show Haller’s characteristics. As the movie continues, some elements were omitted or changed, but the overall story is mostly the same.
McConaughey portrays the fast-talking and cynical lawyer surprisingly well. This role allowed him to display a wide range of emotions that many of his previous films have not. However, what wasn’t displayed in this film was McConaughey’s abs, which is an interesting turn in his film career.
The plot is very character-driven and McConaughey continues to deliver throughout the whole movie. The supporting cast of ex-wife Maggie (Marisa Tomei), investigator Frank Levin (William H. Macy) and driver Earl (Laurence Mason) bring out more sides of McConaughey’s character. The actors clearly work well together — they have great on-screen chemistry.
As the movie draws to a close, Haller’s latest trick is only hinted at and aims to keep the audience guessing. The court room is where everything falls satisfyingly into place as he attempts to make things right. A small plot twist happens right after the case, something he had assumed turned out to be wrong. But it didn’t seem to affect the story overall and the issue was quickly resolved.
For anyone who likes movies involving court drama, they are in for a treat. The cast is excellent and the book itself is a New York Times Bestseller.
