|
|
| We
have a love/hate relationship with the law. We are fascinated by its
machinations. The practice of law rarely makes sense, yet we are slaves
to it. This show perfectly illustrates the idea of how our legal system
circumvents the spirit of the law by sticking to, and finding loopholes
through interpretations in, the word of the law. |
(2004) Film Review by Maurice
Broaddus |
| This
page was created on October 10, 2004
This page was last updated on
June 5, 2005
—Review by Maurice Broaddus
—Photos
—About this Series
—Spiritual Connections
—Blog
Maurice here |
| CREDITS |
| Created
and written by David E. Kelley
Cast
- in credits order
James Spader ... Alan Shore
William Shatner ... Denny Crane
Rhona Mitra ... Tara Wilson
Lake Bell ... Sally Heep
Mark Valley ... Brad Chase
Other credited cast listed alphabetically
Monica Potter ... Lori Colson
Producers
Bill D'Elia ... executive producer
David E. Kelley ... executive producer
Production
Designers
Peter Politanoff
Art
Department
Isabelle Trichard ... art department coordinator
Miscellaneous
Crew
Lloyd Barcroft ... key grip
Cale Finot ... assistant camera
Tiffany Hauck ... assistant editor
Myron Hyman ... chief lighting technician
Michael Kennedy ... electrician
Noah Pontell ... assistant editor
Production
Companies
20th Century Fox Television (in association with)
20th Century Fox
Distributors
American Broadcasting Company (ABC) |
| POSTER |
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| AVAILABILITY
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| SYNOPSIS
|
Alan
Shore and Denny Crane lead a brigade of high-priced civil litigators
in an upscale Boston law firm in a series focusing on the professional
and personal lives of brilliant but often emotionally challenged attorneys.
Joining Shore and Crane is Brad Chase, a consumate guy's guy, who
recently headed up the Washington, DC office and has been recruited
to Boston to keep an eye on loose cannon senior partner Denny Crane.
He also finds himself in an unending test of wills with fellow attorney
Alan Shore. Fast-paced and darkly comedic, the series will confront
social and moral issues, and the pursuit of happiness and money, with
varying degrees of priority
Episode Example
"Head Cases"
Air Date: 10/03/2004
When esteemed partner Edwin Poole makes a shocking entrance at the
morning meeting, Brad Chase, up from the Washington, DC office, is
forced to stay in Boston longer than planned, finding himself instantly
at odds with Alan Shore, both professionally and personally. Meanwhile,
on a dare, Shore takes the case of an African American girl who is
denied the lead role in the national tour of Annie, and Denny Crane
gets caught having an affair with the wife of the firm's biggest client.
|
 Review
by MAURICE BROADDUS
Website:
www.MauriceBroaddus.com
Email: maurice@mauricebroaddus.com
Holds a Bachelor's of Science degree in Biology (with an undeclared
major in English) from Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis.
He works as an environmental toxicologist by day and is a horror
writer by night. Obviously his areas of interests includes religious
studies, folklore, and myths. He is a notorious egotist who, in
anticipation of a successful writing career, is practicing speaking
of himself in the third person. Oh yeah, he's married to the lovely
Sally Jo and has two boys: Maurice Gerald Broaddus II (thus, retroactively
declaring himself "Maurice the Great") and Malcolm Xavier Broaddus.
|
 "I've
always prided myself on being nuts, but in this firm, I find myself
falling into the sane category." Such is Alan Shore's (Emmy award
winning James Spader) dilemma now that he's joined the new show,
Boston Legal. To play catch up, the last season of the show The
Practice saw most of its cast fired and the show centering
on James Spader's character. Capitalizing on the momentum generated
by Spader, ABC moved to cancel The Practice
and spin it off as Boston Legal.
David E. Kelley created The Practice,
Ally McBeal, Boston Public, (among others) and now, Boston Legal.
He is a gifted writer when 1) he's focused (meaning that he has
only one, maybe two, shows on the air at a time), and 2) he has
characters or actors that he enjoys writing for. Boston Legal has
the same precarious balance, and the same inherent dangers, of Ally
McBeal. It has wildly eccentric characters and situations at its
core, so we're left wondering how long can he keep this up. The
show borders on being without focus. As much as I love James Spader's
performance and clever dialogue, David E. Kelley has a tendency
to have his characters saying outrageous things for the sake of
outrageousness, leaving other characters little to do other than
stare blankly in bewilderment.
No one plays smug, supercilious, charming pervs like James Spader,
and a sprawling cast revolves around him. Brad Chase (Mark Valley
of the too-soon-canceled show Keene Eddie) sets himself up as Shore's
principal rival, both ethically and in pursuing the affections of
their female colleagues. Tara Wilson (Rhona Mitra, the only other
holdover from The Practice) serves as
Shore's erstwhile moral compass. Sally Heep (Lake Bell) plays his
presumed love interest. And most importantly, Denny Crane (Emmy
award winning William Shatner) is his mentor. There isn't enough
scene to chew when the two of them are together. No one plays pompous,
egotists who love to hear themselves speak like William Shatner.
"We're all desperate to be relevant." Denny Crane.
Alan Shore is a complex anti-hero who wears his weaknesses on his
sleeve. His disarming honesty also doubles as another emotional
wall. He longs for intimacy even as he does as much as he can to
destroy any chance of it. He plays coy games with Tara, both wanting
her and keeping her at bay, then abruptly switches (probably due
to David E. Kelley finding someone new to write for) to pursuing
Sally. Sexual politics rears its head repeatedly throughout the
show -- women using their sexuality to handle clients, co-workers,
or judges or men doing their best to sleep with their co-workers.
The office politics of attraction, sexual tension, and relationships.
In the real world, this law firm is a sexual harassment powder keg
waiting to blow. But it is this pursuit of relationships, this longing
to for intimacy, that the cast uses to fill the void in their lives.
" 'What's the point?' . . . Questions like that'll kill you. You
don't ask. That's the point." Denny Crane.
We have a love/hate relationship with the law. We are fascinated
by its machinations. The practice of law rarely makes sense, yet
we are slaves to it. This show perfectly illustrates the idea of
how our legal system circumvents the spirit of the law by sticking
to, and finding loopholes through interpretations in, the word of
the law.
"We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as
a slave to sin." (Romans 7:14). The cast of The Practice
agonized over their win-at- any-cost mentality, and the toll it
took on their souls. At the heart of The Practice
was the torment of staying true to the law, even if it meant freeing
rapists, murderers, and drug dealers on technicalities in its name.
Alan Shore exposes the hypocrisy of the law as practiced. His amorality
is the spirit of the law taken to extremes. He's not one to easily
abide authority, or as he sarcastically puts it, he's "a slut for
authority."
"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do,
but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15) This was Alan Shore's lament
during the last season of The Practice.
Tara served to help him understand his "proclivity for exotic women
and illicit behavior." As written, Alan Shore is supposed to be
75% quintessential cad and 25% striving for good, or at least making
the law work even if it means breaking the law. For example, once
his firm realizes that it is about to lose a custody battle in which
a no-account father wishes solely to be a jerk to his wife and kids,
Shore blackmails him to acquiescence. Such is the moral quagmire
in which he often finds himself. Shore is at once endearing, compelling,
and appalling, which is supposed to be good, though not quite --
but it makes for interesting television.
"And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good."
(Romans 7:16) Trapped in a spiral of legal angst, even Alan Shore
realizes, at some base level, that he can't keep flouting the law
then turning to it for guidance. He hates rules, ironic since somewhere
in his soul he loves the ideal of the law. He also hates himself.
Most times he demonstrates an ambivalence toward the ethical side
of the law. But he also realizes that there are eventual consequences
to the path that he has chosen. He realizes the kind of man that
he is, and more critically, the kind of man he isn't, and part of
the drama is seeing whether or not he keeps treading water where
he is or if he decides to grow.
Boston Legal doesn't have the inherent gravitas of The
Practice, but neither does it have the over-the-top
antics of Ally McBeal. Along with Lost and Desperate Housewives,
Boston Legal just may help ABC reestablish itself as a network after
faltering for several seasons.
—Blog
Maurice here
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