Academy Award for Best Actor and Legal Issues Essay

At the end of these instructions is a list of just a few of the hundreds of law-related movies that are available on the market. You are free to use any law-related movie you like (with TWO EXCEPTIONS – Double Jeopardy is NOT acceptable, because Hollywood got the legal issue completely wrong; and A Few Good Men is limited to military law, so not really helpful for the general population). (up to 50 points) PRINT YOUR NAME: _________________________ NAME OF MOVIE: _________________________ YEAR OF RELEASE: _________________________ DIRECTOR: _________________________ MAIN ACTORS/ACTRESSES: _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ A. Describe in a page the FACTS of the case the movie is about. ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ B Describe two significant legal ISSUES that this movie brought up. (Remember that FACTS are not the same as legal ISSUES. For example, in the movie THE ACCUSED, the character played by Jodie Foster is raped in a tavern. That is one of the FACTS of the case. One of the legal ISSUES was the use of PLEA BARGAIN – the prosecutor was willing to let the rapists â€Å"plea bargain† to lesser crimes.) ISSUE #1________________________________________________________ ISSUE #2________________________________________________________ C. Take either ISSUE #1 or ISSUE #2, and look up in a book in the NSCC library (or any other library or law library), or a legal web-site, as a reference that gives you greater understanding of this issue, so that you can describe the general rule of law about this issue, and any significant exceptions. Title of Book used for reference:______________________________________ or Website citation: ___________________________________ Author of Book:___________________________________________________ Copyright year:_____________(be sure to use as current a source as possible!) D. Describe in your own words what you think the general rule of law is about this particular ISSUE (and significant exceptions), and why you think the general rule makes sense (or doesn’t!). ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ (on the following pages I have put a short list of some of the many law-related movies that you may want to look at – but you do not have to stick to this list!) Some suggestions for LAW-RELATED MOVIES TO WATCH & REVIEW Some of the newer films may be available through Blockbuster or one of the other major video rental outlets. For the older classics, you may have to look at one of the â€Å"specialty† rental shops like Video Isle (top of Queen Anne Hill or on Fremont just South of 45th) or Scarecrow Video (5030 Roosevelt Way NE in the U District). 1. ORIGINAL INTENT (1991); with Kris Kristofferson, Candy Clark, Jay Richardson, Martin Sheen. Eviction of a homeless shelter. Landlord/Tenant issues. 2. THE ACCUSED (1988); with Jodie Foster & Kelly McGillis. True story of a Massachusetts gang-rape case and follow-up case. Issues regarding admission of evidence, criminal prosecutions, victim’s rights. 3. THE VERDICT (1982); with Paul Newman, James Mason and Charlotte Rampling. Alcoholic lawyer takes on a malpractice case. Possible unethical actions by attorneys on both sides of the case! 4. ADAM’S RIB (1949); with Spencer Tracy & Katherine Hepburn. Husband and wife lawyers, on opposing sides of the same case. Classic comedy with good discussions of several legal issues. 5. INHERIT THE WIND (1960); with Spencer Tracy & Fredric Marsh. Based on the famous Scopes â€Å"monkey trial,† with a biology teacher on trial for daring to teach the theory of evolution. A classic trial!! 6. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (1962); with Gregory Peck and Mary Badham. Small town Southern lawyer defends a black man accused of rape in pre-Civil Rights era. Attorney-client obligations, criminal trial issues. Somewhat outdated, but a classic nonetheless. 7. YOUNG MR. LINCOLN (1939); with Henry Fonda (haven’t seen this one yet). 8. TWELVE ANGRY MEN (1957); with Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, E.G. Marshall & Jack Klugman. CLASSIC jury film; intense jury dispute; how a jury evaluates a case. This is the Original! There is a recent (1998 I think) version also with Keanu Reeves, but I don’t know how it compares. 9. THE TRIAL (1963); with Orson Welles, Anthony Perkins, Jeanne Moreau and Romy Schneider. Man arrested for an unexplained crime he is never told about! 10. STATE’S ATTORNEY (1932); with John Barrymore (haven’t seen this one yet). 11. SERGEANT RYKER (1968); with Lee Marvin, Vera Miles & Peter Graves. Court Martial of soldier accused of treason. 12. PERFECT WITNESS (1989); with Brian Dennehy, Aidan Quinn, Stockard Channing & Lara Harrington. Witness to mob murder put in jail for perjury – social responsibility issues. 13. THE PAPER CHASE (1973); with Timothy Bottoms, John Houseman and Lindsay Wagner. Law student’s first year at Harvard Law School (mainly in contracts class). 14. L.A. LAW (1987); with Harry Hamlin, Susan Dey, Corbin Bernsen. Introduced the TV series of the same name. 15. KRAMER VS. KRAMER (1979); with Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep. Divorce and child custody issues. 16. JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG (1961); with Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Maximilian Schell, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich and Judy Garland! Nazi war crimes trial. 17. SHOOT FROM THE HIP (haven’t seen yet – can’t comment). 18. MY COUSIN VINNY; fairly recent comedy with a newly-licensed attorney representing a family member wrongly accused of murder. It touches on a few serious legal issues regarding preparation for trial, even with the comedy. 19. ABSENCE OF MALICE (1981); with Paul Newman and Sally Field. Freedom of the press and defamation of character. 20. SUSPECT (1987); with Cher and Dennis Quaid. Jury tampering, collusion, bribery of a government official. 21. LOSING ISAIAH (1995); with Jessica Lange, Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson. Interracial adoption, child custody rights of biological parents. 22. MURDER IN THE FIRST (1995); with Kevin Bacon, Gary Oldham, Christian Slater. Cruel and unusual punishment in the Alcatraz prison; jury â€Å"nullification,† federal jurisdiction. 23. JUST CAUSE (1995); with Sean Connery, Blair Underwood, Laurence Fishburne; Kate Capshaw, Ed Harris. Coercion of a confession; murder, venue, Pro Bono Publico representation, conflict of interest. These are just a few of the hundreds of law-related movies out there. If you find other good â€Å"law-related† movies not listed above you think would be appropriate, let me know and we’ll add it to this list!!