Devil's Advocate, The

By:
In-House Review - May 11 2004

Pure pulp fiction here, with Pacino in rabid, scene-chewing mode as Lucifer himself. In what amounts to a theological The Firm, a young hotshot lawyer (Reeves) is seduced by the money and allure of a high-powered New York law firm and discovers that the price for selling out is his soul. This crackerjack thriller is given a boost not only from Pacino's deliciously over-the-top histrionics, but from Hackford's clever direction, a slick production design, some eye-popping special effects, and an effectively creepy musical score. It also helps that just beneath the high-gloss surface, nobody - not the actors or the filmmakers - is taking this preposterous fluff too seriously. The one thing that can't be argued though: Reeves looks delicious in his power suits, and we get a long glimpse of his buck-nekkid and still-firm glutes during an extended hallucinatory lovemaking scene (with Theron, not Pacino). Campy, erotic, gruesome...and Manhattan looks fabulous.

By:
In-House Review - May 11 2004

Pure pulp fiction here, with Pacino in rabid, scene-chewing mode as Lucifer himself. In what amounts to a theological The Firm, a young hotshot lawyer (Reeves) is seduced by the money and allure of a high-powered New York law firm and discovers that the price for selling out is his soul. This crackerjack thriller is given a boost not only from Pacino's deliciously over-the-top histrionics, but from Hackford's clever direction, a slick production design, some eye-popping special effects, and an effectively creepy musical score. It also helps that just beneath the high-gloss surface, nobody - not the actors or the filmmakers - is taking this preposterous fluff too seriously. The one thing that can't be argued though: Reeves looks delicious in his power suits, and we get a long glimpse of his buck-nekkid and still-firm glutes during an extended hallucinatory lovemaking scene (with Theron, not Pacino). Campy, erotic, gruesome...and Manhattan looks fabulous.