I like to think that the DIMP audience is a little bit cynical and a little bit off-beat but generally fairly well versed in educated in film. In recognition of this, I shouldn’t have to go into great detail about the 1970’s cinema.

The films of the era were revolutionary and entertaining simultaneously, and there is damn good reason for this. American screenwriters had a lot to say about the times, government and culture and the new school of directors had similar voices which complemented them. It’s only one of many reasons why the 1970s are considered by a great deal of film fanatics to be the best decade the medium ever had, and particularly American films such as All the President’s Men, Network and Taxi Driver brought these themes to a wide audience.

…And Jusitce for All is Norman Jewison’s contribution to this revolutionary genre of controversial challenging of America’s practices of those in power. In this case, instead of going after the government cover-ups or media influence, here the attack is clearly against the judicial system, and its terrible inconsistencies and counterproductive means. Here we have Al Pacino playing Arthur Kirkland, a court-appointed and hirable defense attorney widely respected by both his clients and his peers. He can be viewed as a bit soft emotionally, but willing to go the extra mile for any client who is honest with him. When a case is lost, he will continue to work for his clients provided he feels they are innocent or that the justice system dealt them a bad hand.

Sadly, it appears that this is happening all too frequently. We learn at the beginning of this film that a previous client, Jeff McCullaugh (Thomas Waites, The Warriors, The Thing) was found guilty of a crime which he never committed. He’s at the beginning of his very long prison term when Arthur is convinced that he can prove his innocence if he could get a retrial or have the case back opened. His current client a transvestite named Ralph (Robert Christian, Bustin’ Loose) who, dressed as a woman unwittingly became an accomplice to a robbery went terribly wrong.

Unlike in your typical courtroom drama, Kirkland’s main nemesis isn’t, as you might expect, any prosecuting attorney, but instead Judge Henry Fleming (John Forsythe of Dynasty and Charlie’s Angels, the unseen Charlie, fame) who has refused McCullaugh a retrial and has constantly been a thorn in what Kirkland perceives as justice. The shocking twist here is that Kirkland practically gets forced into being Judge Fleming’s attorney when a rape victim accuses him of being her assailant.
                                                                                                
The greatest thing about …And Justice for All is that the main plot isn’t near all there is to the film. The whole movie has very comical overtones even when dealing with the dark subject matter of injustice. One of the other Judges is damn near suicidal over the thought of having to preside over Fleming’s case. A very successful fellow attorney is steadily going insane after a client that he helped free has continued his murder spree and another fellow lawyer, who forgot a very simple task that was clearly explained to him by Kirkland made an error which resulted in a client sentenced to years in prison and finally a suicide. Like the aforementioned Network was a sartirical attack on the media, …And Justice for All blends melodrama with satire making the courtroom look like Romper Room.

There is a real humanity in Kirkland that makes him much more likeable than other legal characters from other films. It’s perhaps in that he is the last person that represents the judicial systems goals with seemingly everyone and thing else being an “obstruction of justice.” While it’s arguable that the film is too one sided, and perhaps an over-exaggeration of real events, this matters not when the film as a whole is just perfectly enjoyable. The story is simple, the characters are singularly motivated and really only Pacino’s Kirkland has much depth (or morality) at all willing to fight the machine. But, it’s also extremely well acted by not just the expectedly awesome Pacino, but also every member of the supporting cast. …And Justice for All is also incredibly efficient. It runs at nearly two hours, but none of it is excessive fluff. Every scene is integral to make a point or move the plot regardless of what the set is, where or who the characters are on screen. This movie breezes by, and any attentive viewer will get caught up into the protagonist’s plight. It’s a simple story, but it’s perfectly made.

I hesitate to give too much away about the finale of the film. The final courtroom scene is an incredible performance by Pacino that even Jewison presumes was the reason that Pacino was nominated for an Oscar for this role (the film was also nominated for best writing). It’s a perfect scene for someone who even then already had an incredible resume. This is the decade which saw Pacino in Dog Day Afternoon, Serpico, and a little film you may have heard of called The Godfather, and that films sequel. I wouldn’t say that …And Justice for All is better than all or any of those films, but it sure complements them nicely and if you haven’t seen it, you’re missing out.

Presentation
As far as standard DVD goes, the transfer for …And Justice for All looks really good. The print is pretty clear of any dirt or damage, and the colors, while usually brown tones, come across nicely. It’s also anamorphic, thankfully replacing the full-screen only release and OOP original Widescreen DVD. The audio mix however, isn’t quite so even. It’s not so much that the 5.1 surround mix is bad, as it is excessive and unnecessary. There isn’t a lot of action in this film, and it’s more often talk, so the surrounds here are more to complement the admittedly jazzy and ironically upbeat score. It’s a shame that a Blu-ray release wasn’t done simultaneously. I just got the movie for free to review, and I still would have bought a Blu-ray upgrade. For the Portuguese audience, there is a 2.0 stereo mix, and subtitles are available in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

Extras

Commentary with Norman Jewison –
Mr. Jewison seems like a great guy, but the commentary ranges from drab to reasonably good. Never great, but never unlistenable, the director all too frequently comments exactly on what is happening on screen, sometime repeating dialogue with no real purpose. However, his viewpoints on the film are interesting. However, most of this is more enthusiastically delivered in the featurette, so I would stick with that.

Norman Jewison: The Testimony of the Director – (12:13)
This is a really good overview of the film and Jewison’s feelings on the making of it. There are some revelations of how he feels on the judicial system, the miscarriage of justice and how things have changed over the last 30 years. I particularly enjoyed his chats about the reactions that the film received after its release.

Barry Levinson: Cross Examining the Screenwriter – (6:55)
The unsung hero of …And Justice for All was, like Pacino, also nominated for the Academy Award. Here, Barry Levinson talks about the origins of the project and how it was originally envisioned as a network television series, but it was shot down. This is a good reveal into Levinson’s mind about the judicial system as a whole. If you’re renting this, these two features are musts.

Deleted Scenes – (10:52)
Four deleted scenes are included here. For the first time in a long while, I found all of these scenes interesting. There is an especially great confrontation between Kirkland and Fleming, a couple of scenes further showing another attorney’s trip to insanity and another involving Kirkland’s client Jeff McCullaugh. None of these are essential or necessarily should have been kept, but fans will be interested in seeing these.

88 Minutes – Behind-the-scenes Sneak Peak – (10:33)
Male no mistake, Sony had an agenda in releasing Bobby Deerfield and the new edition of …And Justice for All on DVD. Cross-promotion baby, all the way! Pacino is in a new flick coming out called 88 Minutes and this promo piece is here to encourage you to see it. This movie looks pretty awesome, and I personally can’t wait to check it out. Plus, Alicia Witt = HOT!

88 Minutes - $10 in Movie Cash –
The first run of this DVD will include a Movie Cash coupon worth $10.00 towards your admission to see 88 Minutes. The film opens April 18th, 2008 and the coupon expires on May 18th, 2008 giving you a month to go use it. Hey, I like free movie tickets! Thanks, Sony! Here’s a tip. Get this DVD and Bobby Deerfield and you and an acquaintance can go and you’ll own two great movies to boot!

Damages – TV Pilot Episode – (55:53)
In another interesting bit of cross promotion, Sony included the first episode of the television series Damages, which was recently released on DVD in a complete season. Personally, I have little interest in this show, but I wouldn’t have experienced it if not for this show. For more on this series, read the DIMP review by Van Roberts here.

Theatrical Trailer – (2:36)
I was a bit surprised to see the trailer, since Sony’s trend has been removing them. I’ll be the first to say I’m delighted that it’s included though. I love trailers, this is a great example of one, and it’s even presented in anamorphic widescreen.

Previews –
Here you get Close Encounters of the Third Kind – 30th Anniversary Ultimate Edition, We Own the Night, Damages – Season 1 and Taxi Driver – Limited Collector’s Edition.

The Bottom Line
…And Justice for All may not be as widely remembered today as the best film in Pacino’s cataloge, or the best 1970’s film, or even the best courtroom drama of the decade. This is a shame, and I sincerely hope that this new DVD release opens some eyes to the film, as it easily ranks right up there with the best Pacino films and courtroom dramas. All films strive be this perfect from every single angle. Do whatever you can to see this movie. Rent it, buy it blind, or see if it’s on On Demand somewhere. Just see it. If you like it, this is the DVD for you. For a film nearing its thirtieth anniversary, it looks remarkable.