Defending Your Life
Albert Brooks is certainly one of the most underrated of comic writer / director / actors, going back to his hilarious short films back in the early days of Saturday Night Live, and this 1991 concoction is pretty much his best work: Brooks plays a yuppie killed in a head-on collision with a bus, who finds himself in âJudgment Cityâ, a kind of perfect limbo with the best food and accommodations, where he must face trial (complete with his own lawyer) as to whether or not he was able to âconquer his fearsâ in life, and be sent either to Heaven or back down to Earth to be reincarnated. Itâs a fine, original premise seen through very well particularly with the bickering and nitpicking of the lawyers: Rip Torn has probably never given a bad performance in a film, and here he is at his best, jovially explaining the rules of the universe to his client and pulling out every possible argument against his prosecutor adversary played by Lee Grant. The âclipsâ used in the trial used to show the good and bad points of Brooksâ life are pretty hilarious, especially their subjectâs either bemused or embarrassed reaction to them. The problem is the film slows down whenever they show Brooks out enjoying the nightlife in this perfect utopia, particularly in his romance with another recently dead soul played by Meryl Streep: While Streep certainly is charming in the part, one canât help but think that their attraction is partially based on the fact not only are they the only two people there who are NOT senior citizens, but that Brooks employs a non-stop standup comedy routine around her that keeps her laughing, and as silly as he is, most women can only be brought so far with the gift of mirth. There are some good bits, as when Brooks attends the local comedy club and heckles the onstage comedian (who is bombing) and finally gets the audience to laugh, or the overly excited Japanese chefs at the local sushi place (âTAKE A PISS!  YESSSS!â). There is also a brief, awkward cameo by Buck Henry as Brooksâ âreplacement lawyerâ for one day at the trial, who sits there and does next to nothing to defend his client, possibly a piece of irony that went over my head. As the film builds towards the end and the âFinal Judgmentâ, it starts to pick up steam on both fronts, as Streep offers to spend the night with him and Grantâs prosecutor pulls out a dirty trick to try to get the win. However, Brooks smartly saves the filmâs emotional high point for the ending, a truly touching and moving act of defiance that changes the main characterâs fate, and ends the film on an uplifting (and slightly teary) note. Overall, probably the best thing Brooks ever came up with, and a neat satire of both legal process and the afterlifeâŚ
8/10