The Verdict: Grilled Lobster Tail Recipe 🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁
/Year ReleasedL 1982
Director: Sidney Lumet
Screenwriter: David Mamet
Starring: Paul Newman, James Mason, Jack Warden, Charlotte Rampling
(R, 122 min.)
Genre: Drama
“Today you are the law. You are the law. Not some book... not the lawyers... not the, a marble statue... or the trappings of the court. See those are just symbols of our desire to be just. They are... they are, in fact, a prayer: a fervent and a frightened prayer.” –Frank Galvin giving his summation to the jury
Sometimes you see a film you remember as great and it disappoints the second time around. But 1982’s The Verdict is even better than I remembered. Sidney Lumet directing Paul Newman in his prime, James Mason superb playing the eloquent villain, with a taut and unpredictable script as only David Mamet can pen. About as perfect as it gets.
And this film certainly belies any notions that Paul Newman (one of Different Drummer’s early heartthrobs) is merely a good-looking but unexceptional actor. Those piercing blue eyes are not so piercing here. They are more likely to be bloodshot, as he plays a once brilliant lawyer now reduced to the sleazy world of ambulance chasing to pay his bar bills.
And he is not very successful at even that, finally kicked out permanently from the funeral home where he usually preys upon grieving widows.
Here we have the reverse of the classic tragedy, which presents a hero at his height so we can appreciate his fall. Instead, we see Newman at his nadir, drunk and groveling – actually for quite a while – all the more to appreciate his tortuous climb back to decency.
Just when he is at his lowest, Frank Galvin (Paul Newman) is offered a case. His friend and former law teacher, Mickey Morrissey (Jack Warden), guarantees it is a real moneymaker. It is a medical malpractice case which will yield a high out of court settlement so as not to taint the name of the Catholic Hospital where it occurred, nor the two prominent doctors who were in charge.
Which is fine with Frank until he actually goes to see the victim, who is in a coma and on a respirator. It is the turning point for the film and for Frank as well:
Frank Galvin: [after the church has offered a check for $210,000 to settle the case] How did you settle on the amount?
Bishop Brophy: We thought it was just.
Frank Galvin: You thought it was just?
Bishop Brophy: Yes.
Frank Galvin: Because it struck me, um, how neatly 'three' went into this figure: 210,000. That means I would keep seventy.
Bishop Brophy: That was our insurance company's recommendation.
Frank Galvin: Yes, that would be.
Bishop Brophy: Nothing we can do can make that woman well.
Frank Galvin: And no one will know the truth.
Bishop Brophy: What is the truth?
Frank Galvin: That that poor girl put her trust into the... into the hands of two men who took her life. She's in a coma. Her life is gone. She has no home, no family. She's tied to a machine. She has no friends. And the people who should care for her - her doctors... and you and me - have been bought off to look the other way. We've been paid to look the other way. I came here to take your money. I brought snapshots to show you so I could get your money. I can't do it; I can't take it. 'Cause if I take the money I'm lost. I'll just be a... rich ambulance chaser. I can't do it. I can't take it.
As you can see from the dialogue above what makes this film stand apart from so many other courtroom dramas is the skill of the writing.
Once Frank decides to take on the case and try it, everything that could go wrong does. It’s not just that he is up against a skilled attorney for the Archdiocese, Ed Concannon. James Mason plays the soft-spoken scoundrel, as smooth in his moneyed corruption as they come. He is “The Prince of … Darkness,” as Mickey cautions, the expletive deleted by Different Drummer, although in this case, the F word actually makes the line better.
Reminders here of Spotlight with an all powerful Catholic Church and its team of lawyers crushing any hint of scandal under their well shod boots. Not only does Concannon have all these young attorneys at his beck and call, but he has journalists and television personalities to write the stories he chooses to fit his narrative.
Add to that the money to quiet any medical personnel speaking out against him. Except for one, maybe
But Frank is also up against himself and his old habits. And that is the more formidable foe. He makes rash decisions; he has certainly not done his homework, and to top it all off, he is falling for a beauty he (too easily?) picks up in his favorite bar, the exquisitely young and beautiful Charlotte Rampling, so magnificent in 2015’s 45 Years, even in her advanced age with her youth faded.
Part of the skilled writing is the ending. Despite its title, it is not the courtroom verdict that remains with us. It is the following scene. Frank, alone at his office with a ringing phone. The ringing goes on for a long time. Frank almost answers it. His hand involuntarily goes to pick it up. But he does not.
That final note of dissonance is the difference between a good and a great film. This is certainly the latter and a must see or must see again. You won’t be disappointed.
–Kathy Borich
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Trailer
Film-Loving Foodie
Our case takes place in Boston. Too bad Paul Newman spends most of his time at the local bar or downing endless cups of coffee to keep him awake for the all nighters he has to pull to bring his case together.
The city actually has some great dishes he could have been sampling.
Ours is for delicious Grilled Lobster. Perfect for a very classy holiday party.
Not to mention these other Boston Classics, including two different recipes for Boston Cream Pie:
Manchester by the Sea: Best Ever Boston Baked Beans
Edge of Darkness: Boston Cream Pie
Grilled Lobster Tails
Ingredients
2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 cup olive oil 2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons paprika 1/4 teaspoon white pepper1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 4 (10 ounce) rock lobster tails
Directions
Preheat grill for high heat.
Squeeze lemon juice into a small bowl, and slowly whisk in olive oil. Whisk in salt, paprika, white pepper, and garlic powder. Split lobster tails lengthwise with a large knife, and brush flesh side of tail with marinade.
Lightly oil grill grate. Place tails, flesh side down, on preheated grill. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, turning once, and basting frequently with marinade. Discard any remaining marinade. Lobster is done when opaque and firm to the touch.
