Eddie Dodd is a burnt out former civil rights lawyer who now specializes in defending drug dealers. Roger Baron, newly graduated from law school, has followed Eddie's great cases and now wants to learn at his feet. With Roger's idealistic prodding, Eddie reluctantly takes on a case of a young Korean man who, according to his mother, has been in jail for eight years for a murder he didn't commit.
Acting
Woods's twitchy intensity and RDJ's puppy-dog earnestness clash perfectly.
Writing
Crackling dialogue that actually sounds like lawyers thinking on their feet.
Direction
Ruben keeps the procedural tension tight without drowning in procedure.
Director
Joseph Ruben
James Woods
Eddie Dodd
Robert Downey Jr.
Roger Baron
Margaret Colin
Kitty Greer
Yuji Okumoto
Shu Kai Kim
Kurtwood Smith
Robert Reynard
Tom Bower
Cecil Skell
Luis Guzmán
Ortega
Graham Beckel
Sklaroff
Sully Diaz
Maraquilla Esparza
Woody Harrelson
Man in Dodd's office
Miguel Fernandes
Art Esparza
Charles Hallahan
Vincent Dennehy
John Snyder
Chuckie Loeder
Joel Polis
Dean Rabin
Deborah Offner
Laura Gayley
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was one of Robert Downey Jr.'s first major dramatic roles post-Brat Pack, and he reportedly studied Woods's mannerisms to match his energy.
The film fictionalizes the real 'Chol Soo Lee' case, a landmark 1970s Korean-American wrongful conviction that sparked national activism—though the movie strips most of the community organizing to focus on the white savior dynamic. Oof.
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