…And Justice for All movie storyline. Arthur Kirkland (Al Pacino), an idealistic defense attorney in Baltimore, cares about his clients and visits his aging grandfather, who put him through law school, every week. Things aren’t going well for Arthur: two of his clients are increasingly desperate, neither should be in prison, his partner is behaving bizarrely.
He’s begun an affair with an attorney who’s on the bar’s disciplinary committee, his favorite judge may have a death wish. And then, the judge he dislikes most, a by-the-book martinet, demands that Arthur defend him when he’s accused of a brutal assault on a young woman. Is there any way to expose real corruption and find justice for all?
…And Justice for All is a 1979 American courtroom drama neo noir film directed by Norman Jewison and starring Al Pacino, Jack Warden and John Forsythe. Lee Strasberg, Jeffrey Tambor, Christine Lahti, Craig T. Nelson and Thomas Waites appear in supporting roles. The Oscar-nominated screenplay was written by Valerie Curtin and Barry Levinson.
The film includes a well-known scene in which Pacino’s character yells, “You’re out of order! You’re out of order! The whole trial is out of order! They’re out of order!” It was filmed in Baltimore, including the courthouse area. It received two Academy Award nominations: Best Leading Actor (Pacino) and Best Original Screenplay (Curtin and Levinson).
The film was filmed in Baltimore, including the courthouse area, the Washington Monument of the Mount Vernon district, and Fort McHenry. Pacino practiced the “You’re out of order!” scene 26 times at the building ledge. The film premiered as the closing night gala presentation at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 15, 1979.
About the Story
Arthur Kirkland, a defense attorney in Baltimore, is in jail on a contempt of court charge after punching Judge Henry T. Fleming while arguing the case of Jeff McCullaugh. McCullagh was stopped for a minor traffic offense, but then mistaken for a killer of the same name and has already spent a year and a half in jail; Fleming has repeatedly stymied Arthur’s efforts to have the case reviewed. Though there is strong new evidence that Jeff is innocent, Fleming refuses his appeal due to its late submission and leaves him in prison.
Arthur starts a new case, defending the transgender Ralph Agee, arrested for a small crime and becoming a victim of the legal system. Arthur pays regular visits to his grandfather Sam in a nursing home, who is progressively becoming senile. It is revealed that Arthur was abandoned by his parents at a young age, and it was Sam who raised him and put him through law school. Arthur also begins a romance with a legal ethics committee member, Gail Packer.
Arthur has a friendly relationship with Judge Francis Rayford, who takes him on a hair-raising ride in his personal helicopter, laughing as he tests how far they can possibly go without running out of fuel, while a terrified Arthur begs him to land. Rayford, a veteran of the Korean War, is borderline suicidal and keeps a rifle in his chambers at the courthouse and an M1911 pistol in his shoulder holster at all times, and eats his lunch on the ledge outside his office window, four stories up.
One day, Arthur is unexpectedly requested to defend Judge Fleming, who has been accused of brutally assaulting and raping a young woman. As the two loathe each other, Fleming feels that having the person who publicly hates him argue his innocence will be to his advantage. Fleming blackmails Arthur with an old violation of lawyer-client confidentiality, for which Arthur will likely be disbarred if it were to come to light.
Arthur’s friend and partner, Jay Porter, is also unstable. He feels guilt from gaining acquittals for defendants who were truly guilty of violent crimes, and shows up drunk at Arthur’s apartment after one of his clients commits another murder after his acquittal. After a violent breakdown at the courthouse, wherein he ends up throwing plates at people, Jay is taken to a hospital.
Before leaving in the ambulance, Arthur asks Warren Fresnell, another partner, to handle Ralph Agee’s court hearing in his absence. Arthur gives Warren a corrected version of Ralph’s probation report and stresses that it must be shown to the judge so that Ralph will get probation rather than jail time.
…And Justice for All. (1979)
Directed by: Norman Jewison
Starring: Al Pacino, Jack Warden, John Forsythe, Lee Strasberg, Sam Kirkland, Jeffrey Tambor, Christine Lahti, Sam Levene, Robert Christian, Larry Bryggman, Craig T. Nelson
Screenplay by: Valerie Curtin, Barry Levinson
Production Design by: Richard Macdonald
Cinematography by: Victor J. Kemper
Film Editing by: John F. Burnett
Costume Design by: Ruth Myers
Set Decoration by: Thomas L. Roysden
Art Direction by: Peter Samish
Music by: Dave Grusin
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: September 15, 1979 (Toronto), October 19, 1979 (United States)
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