Murder In The First
One of the things that make the USA the greatest country in the world is the fact that we have perhaps the most humane of all correctional systems, unlike in foreign lands where beatings and torture are dished out on a regular basis, turning the prisoners into even more depraved animals as opposed to being ready to re-enter society. That being said, it is VERY important to know that the “true story” this film is based on is actually a gross distortion of the facts in the case of Henri Young, a convicted murderer (and not a petty thief) who attempted escape from Alcatraz Island before being recaptured and later killing one of his accomplices, before going on trial and getting off due to the “abuses” he suffered there and NOT becoming a martyr like the film depicts but instead getting released in 1972 and promptly disappearing, leading to the possibility that he may still be alive today (and may have even seen this movie in theatres upon its 1995 release). For those reasons, the film can be seen best as a work of fiction, a plea for prisoner human rights that surely any inmate in the aforementioned countries (particularly Communist ones) would appreciate if they could. There is NO doubt however, that Kevin Bacon gives bar none the best performance of his career as Young, portrayed as a sympathetic figure who was so physically and psychologically scarred by what he has gone through that almost all sense of humanity is gone and he more resembles a wild animal when he commits the killing that led to his trial. Bacon gives all of himself to the performance, making one easily forget his cult status as the six degrees actor that anyone can connect another actor to, and truly deserved to be nominated at least for an Academy Award for Best Actor (probably because the film was released in January and was not eligible for a full year, causing voters to overlook him). Christian Slater, still red-hot during this period, plays his lawyer in the case, and does a credible job for his own part, even as the script gives him some cutesy bits (like running down the street to catch a trolley or an underdeveloped romance with his assistant). Then there is Gary Oldman as the sadistic associate warden responsible for Bacon’s animalistic state: Even though he obviously gets off on his cruelty, he tries to justify it by saying he has to do the best job possible to prevent escapes, lest he gets fired and is unable to support his family (definitely the film’s most chilling scene). Other notable roles include Embeth Davidtz as Slater’s girlfriend / assistant, William H. Macy huffing and puffing as the prosecutor, renowned movie asshole Stephen Tobolowsky as Slater’s belligerent boss in the public defender’s office, Brad Dourif as Slater’s lawyer brother who is concerned that his sibling is throwing his career away, Mia Kirshner as Bacon’s long-lost sister, and best of all R. Lee Ermey kicking ass and taking names as without a doubt the coolest movie judge in history, raising his voice when necessary and not tolerating any shenanigans in his courtroom (he should get his own courtroom reality show as that would be far more entertaining than Judge Judy). As touching and emotional as Bacon’s acting is, the screenplay does manage to work in a few laughs and smiles, as when Davidtz visits Bacon in prison to consult about the case and causes Bacon (who early on admits that he’s a virgin) to get a little TOO excited, and later when Slater brings a hooker into Bacon’s cell to solve that very problem, made doubly funny because she is played by Bacon’s real-life wife, Kyra Sedgwick. The late director Marc Rocco manages to keep the film on track, never losing the viewer over two plus hours, and using the camera angles for maximum effect in capturing Bacon’s incredible performance, even as the film does at times conform to the inescapable clichés of Hollywood courtroom dramas (like having Slater do all the legwork himself). Overall, a film worth seeing for Bacon’s powerhouse performance, if not to be taken as gospel for what the true story was about…
8/10