THE LINCOLN LAWYER

Directed with confidence by Brad Furman, The Lincoln Lawyer stars Matthew McConaughey as Mickey Haller, a street-smart defence lawyer whose unorthodox methods endear him to the criminal scum of downtown Los Angeles. When Haller accepts a job defending a Beverley Hills playboy accused of brutally beating a hooker, he soon begins to question whether he’s spent his career working for or against justice. As Haller, McConaughey is a revelation ˗ the handsome Texan is perhaps best known for playing shirtless sleazebags in numerous hackneyed rom-coms, but his performance here is a potent combination of intuition, intensity and charm. Co-stars include Ryan Phillippe, Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy, Bryan Cranston, Michael Peña and a boxy 1980s Lincoln Town Car. Meanwhile, Shea Whigham and Eric Etebari have memorable cameos as a ditsy jailhouse snitch and a smarmy, yet wonderfully facetious nightclub junkie respectively. Familiar premise aside, the screen adaptation of Michael Connelly’s best-selling novel is a riveting old-school legal thriller that will seduce viewers with its slick production values, snappy dialogue, delicious wit, vivid characters and McConaughey’s versatile, career-best performance. (JH) ****