Wick's Review

Summary - Very Good 3.5

Halfway through this crowd-pleasing movie, a senior citizen in the row behind us blurted out “This is a very good movie.” He’s right, albeit his exclamation is more telling than intended, as it conveys The Judge’s appeal to middle-agers of Robert Downey Jr’s generation and especially to those of his parent’s generation, represented on screen by the great Robert Duvall. That appeal is largely in the stars.

Indeed, the acting’s the thing in The Judge, or more precisely, the moviestars are the thing. Downey, as the estranged son of Duvall, is simply delicious big screen entertainment. Never mind that the film is rather formulaic. It has several surprises up its sleeve and is so engagingly and humorously presented that its paint-by-numbers plotting is easily forgiven.

Various family relationships are grist for the mill in The Judge, not just father-son, but also brothers, estranged spouses, and even former girlfriends. Of these, the three brothers who count Duvall’s Judge as their father are the most interesting, even if not all their issues get explored. Kudos to the filmmakers for making one brother a cognitively-challenged autistic, tenderly portrayed by Jeremy Strong.

The Judge is the first production of TeamDowney, the new production company of its star and his wife. Wise of them to make great use of the unique verbal gifts of Robert, the moviestar half of TeamDowney. Keep doing that and we’ll keep buying tickets.

Acting - Very Good 3.5

Robert Downey Jr. as a fast-talking, big-city shyster is almost type casting. So of course it works, as the erstwhile superhero is in his golden age of movie stardom. The filmmakers underscore this by having an old flame state that his verbal dexterity and simultaneous bullying/underdog persona is desperately attractive, yet made her feel invisible next to him. Join the club.

Robert Duvall as a tough Judge and Father is almost type casting as well. So of course it works, as this icon of deeply American masculinity is a past master at playing men of too much rectitude. Kudos to Duvall for also playing a cancer victim going through bodily hell in the wake of chemotherapy. It’s a tonic for all to see, since none of us is untouched by the Big C.

Vincent D’Onofrio & Jeremy Strong deserve special notice as Downey’s older and younger brothers. D’Onofrio looks like he’s gone to seed and doesn’t get as many great lines as he deserves, yet deftly conveys the slights and duties that weigh on a middle-aged family-man. Strong dazzles as the mentally challenged youngest brother in a performance that is both touching and enlightening.

Others

• Vera Farmiga is less affecting than usual as a townie grown older and wiser.
• Leighton Meester is sweetly fetching as her collegiate daughter.
• Billy Bob Thornton is classically cagey as a super-sharp prosecutor.
• Dax Shepard is nicely dim as a small town lawyer.
• Ken Howard is suitably officious as an out-of-town Judge.
• Emma Tremblay is precocious as Downey’s little daughter.
• Balthazar Getty is rather distinctive as a Deputy Sheriff.
• David Krumholtz is very distinctive as an overmatched prosecutor.
• Grace Zabriskie jumps off screen, as she always does, as a white trash mother.
• Sarah Lancaster glows as Downey’s MILFy wife.

Film - Good 3.0

There are no shortage of plot elements stuffed into this almost 2½ hour film, though they mesh well and it never drags, a credit to director David Dobkin. Writer Nick Schenk gives us the return of a prodigal son, fraternal dynamics, including with a mentally-challenged brother, marriage problems, and, oh yeah, a murder trial involving one of the main characters. That last is rather prosaic, really just a big hook on which to hang an examination of the prodigal son’s relationship with his austere father.

Yet it is all more than a little charming, often funny, even occasionally touching.

Edge - Risqué 1.7

Lots of swearing in the Judge’s family.

Reality - Glib 1.3

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