2 out of 4 Stars
In the bleak late-winter of 3D animated movies and revamped
fairy tales on the big screen, the television is the only refuge to see
worthwhile films. However, there are hits and misses like David Mamet’s made
for television movie on the murder trial of Phil Spector. A fictional account
of the 2003 killing of Lana Clarkson, Phil Spector examines the eccentricity of
one of the most notorious and celebrated music producers and his relationship
with his lawyer, Linda Kenney Baden. Mamet has gone on record over the past
year believing that Phil Spector was convicted based on his infamy and that
Clarkson committed suicide in his home and it is evident in his script that
resembles another generic prime-time courtroom drama. What seemed like a great cast and script falls
short to a long episode of Law and Order.
There
are shades of interest in Al Pacino’s performance as Phil Spector, not just for
the different hairdos that he dons on screen. Pacino emulates Spector based on
the documentary, The Agony and the Ecstasy, by rambling on about fame and being
prosecuted based on his contribution to rock music. The only time we see shades
of Phil Spector’s past is when he talks about Freud in a recording studio and wields
a gun at his musicians. Besides that,
Pacino’s performance is more worthy on stage rather than on film. Helen
Mirren is no stranger to acting in crime-based television programs, such as
Prime Suspect. Her performance as Baden is no Jane Tennison or Queen Elizabeth;
it is more of an objective bystander caught between a rock and a legally
ethical hard place. However, it is
fascinating to see her and Pacino interact onscreen despite working with a
flimsy script. David Mamet has crafted some of the most edgy and unapologetic
stories about hubris and con artists, such as Glengarry Glen Ross and House of
Games, yet he falls short of meeting the expectations of his previous canon of
films and plays with Phil Spector.
