From Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures comes The Judge Making Its American Debut Friday, October 10th, 2014! Whom You Know Declares A Box Office Winner & Highly Recommends The Judge Starring Two-Time Oscar Nominee Robert Downey Jr. and Oscar Winner Robert Duvall Our Coverage Sponsored by Stribling and Associates
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Also opening early with a scene about death like the recent hit "This is Where I Leave You," The Judge is hard-hitting drama from the start. Packed with an all-star cast including Two-Time Oscar Nominee Robert Downey Jr. and Oscar Winner Robert Duvall leading the way with their respective son/father relationship, The Judge contains zero saccharine and complete reality. As America knows too well, success in law depends on your skills as a lawyer, not your morals as one and courtroom talent doesn't come in quality concentrations higher than what's in the unscrupulous Hank Palmer (Robert Downey Jr.). He graduated at the top of his law school class, not too shabby. If you can afford Hank, you are set at court and his relentless and accurate drive to succeed are a pleasure to watch.
Similarly, Robert Downey Jr. deserves every penny he's paid: his razor-sharp acting in The Judge is simply the best and the best acting we have seen by anyone in 2014. He makes a perfect lawyer calling all the right shots, using ideal language and reading people like a book. We particularly like his jury selection process.
The middle of three sons, Hank returns to his hometown in the midwest- a Charles Kuralt On the Road kind of place- for his mother's funeral. With a tumultuous personal life added to the mix, Hank finds another mountain of conflict at home upon his return, and he is not initially aware of the incredible amount of problems his family is really facing.
The cinematography in The Judge is laudable, and the use of strong visuals is effective. His mother was closest to Hank, and the shot of Hank's hands around hers in the casket is especially powerful.
"No matter how old we are, within five minutes of walking back into our childhood home, we are exactly who we were when we left there," says director and producer of "The Judge" David Dobkin. "We fall back into those routines; we're subject to the same behavior and communication patterns of our youth, the same unspoken misunderstandings and unresolved issues, however great or small, which wind up driving us for the rest of our lives."
As close as he was to his mom, Hank is as far apart from his father Joseph Palmer, played by Duvall, as ever. Commanding respect, Duvall is the local judge, a pillar of the community ruled by his moral compass that is counter to Hank's rules to taking on client cases. Joseph Palmer is the human embodiment of the word tough; he makes Putin appear to be a pansy.
This family is so lost without their mother, the father and oldest and youngest son go out to breakfast and don't even ask Hank. He's the big-city-dweller (Chicago) outsider that probably many in Manhattan can easily relate to. He does find solace in an old flame.
"Stop staring. I know I look good," says Vera Farmiga, who plays restaurant owner Samantha Powell. Samantha's got a daughter, Carla, played by Leighton Meester, who throws an unexpected twist into it all. The waterfall by the restaurant we give two thumbs up to!
Back in, don't pull in the driveway.
Brotherly love is found.
Billy Bob Thornton shines as a worthy adversary.
When push comes to shove, can Hank represent his father in a trial that seems most unlikely?
Will Joseph Palmer even want him as a lawyer? The attorney that is chosen has quite the routine when he enters the courthouse...will the grass or the pavement get lucky?!
We noticed the suit color use-the unskilled lawyer wears khaki to the court while the expert attorney wears a dark suit.
Dale Palmer, played effectively by Jeremy Strong, is at every opportune moment with his antique video camera getting him past his mild mental retardation challenges. His genuine innocence is played perfectly, while big brother Glen Palmer (played by Vincent D'Onofrio) faces a life without a baseball career but with an immediate family to be proud of.
Though life's worst challenges are confronted in The Judge-everything from death to a funeral to a lawsuit to cancer to family conflict galore-what makes The Judge truly enjoyable to see is the lines of comic relief sprinkled in perfect measure throughout the script, and delivered with the proper punch.
We believe in this day and age, entertainment will have a stronger concentration on this aging baby boomer population and the aging parents which are a concern and a major part of the lives of many today.
"This was an opportunity for me to return to the classic acting of my roots, to see if I could still hit that place of deep emotional resonance like you do in the theatre," Downey says. "Hank is under tremendous pressure, and he keeps getting handed more and more weight and becomes less and less confident, which is not a place he's used to being, not a feeling he likes at all. When he is certain he's right, no one will listen; when he's not so sure, everyone is looking to him for answers. Every day he has to jump out of some flaming hoop. I'd never really played a part that had so much to do with salvation and redemption, and that was one of the greatest challenges and joys of playing Hank."
Every dramatic detail is nailed.
Our personal favorite person in the movie is Lauren Palmer, played by Emma Tremblay. She will steal your heart and we can't wait to see what she does next. We love the father/daughter and the grandfather/daughter relationship, and all we've got to say is Knock Knock. Everyone loves ice cream.
Best vacation ever!
Is blood thicker than water?
Will justice be served?
Can relationships be repaired?
Ultimately, will the truth be told and peace be achieved?
Find out when you watch The Judge, starting tomorrow!
The Judge is Highly Recommended by Whom You Know.
From Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures comes “The Judge,” which pairs two-time Oscar nominee Robert Downey Jr. (“Chaplin,” “Tropic Thunder”) and Oscar winner Robert Duvall (“Tender Mercies,” “Crazy Heart”), starring together for the first time on the big screen. The film also stars Oscar nominee Vera Farmiga (“Up in the Air,” “The Conjuring”) and Oscar winner Billy Bob Thornton (“Sling Blade,” “Friday Night Lights”), and is directed by David Dobkin (“Wedding Crashers”).
In “The Judge,” Downey stars as big city lawyer Hank Palmer, who returns to his childhood home where his estranged father, the town’s judge (Duvall), is suspected of murder. He sets out to discover the truth and along the way reconnects with the family he walked away from years before.
The film also features a stellar supporting cast, including Vincent D’Onofrio (TV’s “Law & Order: Criminal Intent”), Jeremy Strong (“Zero Dark Thirty,” “Lincoln”), Dax Shepard (TV’s “Parenthood”), Leighton Meester (TV’s “Gossip Girl”), Ken Howard (“J. Edgar,” “Michael Clayton”), Emma Tremblay (“Elysium”), Balthazar Getty (TV’s “Brothers & Sisters”), David Krumholtz (“This Is the End”), Sarah Lancaster (TV’s “Chuck”), Grace Zabriskie (TV’s “Big Love”) and Denis O’Hare (TV’s “True Blood”).
“The Judge” is being produced by Susan Downey (the “Sherlock Holmes” films), David Dobkin, and David Gambino (“The Brave One”), with Herbert W. Gains, Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Kleeman and Bruce Berman serving as executive producers. The screenplay is by Nick Schenk (“Gran Torino”) and Bill Dubuque, story by Dobkin & Schenk.
Dobkin’s behind the scenes creative team includes Oscar-winning director of photography Janusz Kaminski (“Saving Private Ryan,” “Lincoln”), production designer Mark Ricker (“The Way Way Back,” “The Help”), editor Mark Livolsi (“The Blind Side”) and costume designer Marlene Stewart (“Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters,” “Tropic Thunder”). The music is by 12-time Oscar nominee Thomas Newman (“Saving Mr. Banks”).
A Warner Bros. Pictures presentation, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, a Big Kid Pictures/Team Downey production, a film by David Dobkin, “The Judge” is scheduled for release on October 10, 2014, and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.
