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lkovathana
Reviews
In Pursuit of Honor (1995)
Deserves another showing
I was reminded of this movie again when reading a brief note about a lawyer who, among other things, investigated and prosecuted persons who committed the killing of horses for profit.
This movie raises several difficult issues. When is it our duty to act to protect those who are in no position to act for themselves? The story sets up a clear conflict of conscience: Who wouldn't want to prevent the slaughter of 500 innocent horses who have performed the involuntary duty of carrying soldiers into war? Yet, how many of us would have had the courage to completely undo their lives in order to stand for such a principle? The soldiers involved in the rescue of the horses in question chose to actively prevent the carrying out of a direct order, at great risk to themselves. The effect of the telling of the story is to serve as inspiration; stories of courage are more thought-provoking when based on an actual event.
I felt this movie was well acted, well told, and at times wrenchingly realistic. I haven't seen its reappearance on cable since it was first shown in the late 90's, but it's worth seeing by a new generation of viewers because its story is timeless.
A Civil Action (1998)
True story, with some historical import
Just saw it on AMC last night; I'm glad they ran it. This was a true story. At the time environmental torts were novel -- one example of how general scientific acceptance of an idea colors the burden of persuasion. In this case, the burden of persuasion was insurmountable, and Schlictmann calculated incorrectly that he needed to spend on the technical preparation heedlessly. From an environmental torts standpoint, if this had happened today, the result would likely have been different; the standard for establishing this type of cause and effect, with the evidence they had, is more forgiving today. I thought the movie adaptation was very good. Having read the book, the way the movie depicted the financial ruin of a law firm was more vivid than I had imagined. I agree with another review on this site; everything about the way the movie was executed was well done, the cinematography, wonderful portrayals of Judge Skinner, Jan Schlictmann, his partners, Anne Andersen, Al Love by James Gandolfini (wow! unbelievable performance - watch his eyes) both opposing counsel, especially Jerome Fascher -- all gave subtle and memorable performances. One regret, I couldn't get my husband to watch it, even though his parents lived in the area (I showed him the map) and his mom perished of cancer. But they got their water from a different well -- different town. They moved there after he moved to college, but every time he went home he would become deathly ill. He drank the water, and I refused, I drank fruit juice. I once woke his parents up to try to take him to the hospital. I guess it was too personal. They never sued; they just moved out of state.