TRUE BELIEVER
US, 1989, 105 minutes, Colour.
James Woods, Robert Downey Jr, Margaret Colin.
Directed by Joseph Ruben.
True Believer is a first-rate legal thriller. Written tightly by Wesley Strick, it was directed very effectively by Joseph Ruben. Ruben made an impact with his political fantasy thriller Dreamscape and then with his critique of the conservative American way of life and its inherent violence, The Stepfather. Here he has a murder mystery, a police corruption thriller as well as a legal film. All the ingredients work particularly well. The strength of the film is in the central performance by James Woods. Woods has a manic energy which he usually gives to a range of villains or obsessed men: journalists as in Salvador, police as in Cop. Here he is on the side of the law, an eccentric lawyer, an idealist from the '60s who believes in civil rights and the Constitution but who has been defending drug criminals. A new assistant in the form of Robert Downey Jnr, excellently naive, gives him a chance to move oncep?again to defend those who are victims of society.
The murder mystery is quite effective, the expose of the villain quite dramatics. There is a, blend of the serious with some offhand humour.
1. An interesting and effective police story? Murder mystery? Drama of social corruption? A piece of Americana?
2. The prologue and the flashbacks in black and white, the dramatising of the killing, the evidence and the buildup to what really happened and the audience trying to see the truth of what happened.
3. The title and its reference to Eddie, his past, his career, the jolt to his principles, his commitment, the law, humanity?
4. A blend of the serious and the deadly serious as well as humour? Excitement? The range of genres and the conventions combining wealth? The strong acting?
5. Roger, his arrival, gawky, his looking for Ed, mistaking him for the drug dealer, following him in the street, naive and admiring talk, the shock of Ed's behaviour, style, clients? Helping in the research? Asking Ed questions about his stances? His interest, the dangerous visits with Ed, alert, finding Loader's address, following the wife from the court? Sharing in the victory? Learning? His future? A foil for Ed?
6. James Woods as Ed? His initial appearance, his way of talking, behaving? His dealing with drug runners and pushers, and their constitutional rights? Taking their money cash and helping the pot dealers for nothing? The newspaper clips of his past and his idealism, involvement with issues, personalities? His legal mind, skills, the dramatics in court? A driven personality? Why his ten years of fall from idealism during the'80s?
7. The audience and the prologue, the victim, the murder, the focus on the Korean, the situation visualised? The transition to prison, the chapel, the singing of 'Amazing Grace', the Nazi sign, the buildup to the fight and the killing? Introducing the themes at various levels?
8. The Korean's mother coming to the office, her plea for U to take the case? His soft-heartedness and decision to accept a detective friend and getting her involved? Skill in investigation? Roger as assistant? The finding of the witnesses? Going to the institution and the discussion with Cecil, his evidence about the killer, the humour of the discussion about Kennedy's murderer? His visiting the Korean in prison, his decision to take up the case? His theories? The call from the D.A., going to the fashionable hotel, the confrontation, the interview with the journalist and his team reviewing his exaggerations? His decision to persuade the Korean against any plea bargaining?
9. The recapping of the crime, the visit to Chinatown, going over the streets? Going through the files, ballistics? The nature of the case? The confrontation in the street and Loader bashing him? Ed's ability to identify him but conceal it from the police? The Nazi disguise and tears? in the factory, the tough reaction? and her help, finding Art? The meeting with his wife? Finding Loader, the dramatic chase in the factory? Finding Loader dead? Going to the morgue, Art identifying him?
10. The decision to take the case, the D.A's reaction? The court and the interviews? Cecil and his evidence and his right answer about Lee Harvey Oswald? Cross-examining the police and their hostility? The policeman in the wheelchair elicity compassion?. The eyewitness and her story? The nature of the evidence? The D.A. interviewing the Cuban and the secret society in private? The Korean's boasts? Anger, Ed not cross-examining? His visiting the Korean and expressing his anger?
11. Roger following the wife, their searching for Art in the files, dlieovering the cover?ups, the photoaadd the identification with the Khotan? The one and a half hours to the morguyer visiting the policeman, his sister, the telling of the truth? The policeman and Art confronting Ed? The bashing? Their desperation, killing Art, the policeman telling the story ? and the flashbacks? Ed's fear?
12. The court case, his calling the D.A., the dramatic uncovering of the trade-off? The policeman's arrival? The D.A. declaring the truth but asserting he would do it again?
13. The sense of freedom, the Korean and his family, a future?
14. The intensity of Ed's character, integrity, rights, realistic, orthodox or not? Courage and fear? Relationships? Achievement? The skill of his detective friend and her contribution?
15. Themes of justice and the law?
