Criminal Law (1989)
A rising young attorney successfully defends a man accused of murder, only to have the same type of murder then happen again. Right away the previously defended man hires the attorney again, and although the attorney is quite certain that he is the killer, he agrees to again defend him... much to the consternation of his friends. However, he explains that by being his attorney he will be better able to catch the man in a mistake... and on this the rest of the film develops, with the killer playing a cat and mouse game with the attorney until, at last, they both must recognize that they are not all that different.
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You won't be disappointed!
Why so much hype?
This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.
It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.
Terrible psychological thriller that is almost painful to sit through, every aspect being awful.The combined talents of top actors Kevin Bacon and Gary Oldman are totally wasted, and though they give good performances, one wonders why they bothered. The script from Mark Kasdan is a complete mess, and Martin Campbell has the narrative jumping all over the place, but if you're unable to follow it, take it as a blessing. There are far too many pointless, crazy scenes that just don't make sense. Jerry Goldsmith's music is not much help either.Even if there was potential in the plot, director Campbell's approach has utterly ruined it. Avoid at all costs!Monday, February 26, 1996 - Video
Criminal Law is a different thrilling movie starring Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldman, Tess Harper, Karen Young, and Joe Don Baker! All of these actors and actresses performed very well especially Bacon and Oldman! Criminal Law is a very thrilling and is very interesting film. You never know what is going to happen next and the characters are very colorful in My opinion. The music by Jerry Goldsmith is very good and fits the film very well. Kevin Bacon plays a very good villain here and it something else how he is in this picture. Oldman has a fantastic performance! If you are looking for a great entertaining and thrilling crime film with a good cast, excellent acting, and many thrills then I strongly recommend this film that today!
There are indications that the script has some interesting things to say about vigilante justice and law enforcement (among other subjects), but they're lost in a film that's much too long, too slow and too dark (when it's night, you can barely make out what's happening). The characters are very sketchy, and the plot has almost no surprises. Perhaps the film would've worked better if Oldman (who's over-the-top as the lawyer) and Bacon had switched roles. (**)
I really wanted to like this film because it had two of my favourite actors in it- Gary Oldman and Kevin Bacon. Their performance is great, as with some of Martin Campbell's (Goldeneye) direction, but it is the story-line that ruins this film comprising of some decent scenes but overall the plot is unbelievable and ridiculous.See this film if you're a huge fan of either Gary Oldman and Kevin Bacon! 'Criminal Law' has got some good moments but it equally has it's tedious ones due to a poor storyline and unbelievable plot! Visually, director Martin Campbell has a unique style and the performances from it's two leads are very good and intense in parts, but unfortunately doesn't save this film! 'Criminal Law' gets a **1/2 out of *****!