Based on real events, scripted and directed by Aaron Sorkin and with an extraordinary cast of great stars, Netflix is premiering its battle car with which it aspires to receive recognition when the nominations for next year's awards begin.
What is the plot?
During the 1968 Democratic National Convention, several groups of leftist activists planned a protest in front of the Chicago Hilton, the site of the party's convention. They were all against the Vietnam War, where the number of U.S. soldiers killed was rising, and the government was increasing the recruitment quota to send young people into that absurd war. Some of these activist movement leaders did not even know each other. The student group for a democratic society, the leaders of the international youth party, the president of the committee for peace in Vietnam, and a member of the Black Panthers. The result of the protests was four days and nights of intense violence, where brutal police acts were committed, but the government decided to go against this group of activists, taking them to court with the intention of condemning them, using all its power and the abuse of its control of the law.
Netflix adds great possibilities for the next awards season with this film. We can't deny it, The Trial of The Chicago 7 is a movie made to win awards, it applies the perfect formula for that purpose: Based on real facts, it covers several themes and problems, still in force in the American society, it is written by one of the best scriptwriters of today and has a cast of actors that do an extraordinary job.
With the lack of more film releases due to Covid's pandemic, this film is a good example and has the great advantage of receiving many Oscar nominations. Will it make it? Will it win any statuettes? I think it will be presented at several award ceremonies.
Many people love Aaron Sorkin, the writer and director of this film. This is the second time he has sat in the director's chair. He previously directed the film Molly's Game, about the life of Molly Bloome, a former sportswoman who became an agile poker game organizer, starring Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba.
Sorkin became known for being the creator of The West Wing , the acclaimed series that launched him to fame, although he had already written excellent scripts, such as the remembered A Few Good Men with Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson. But it was after that series, that he got more recognition.
He adapted the script of the film about Steve Jobs, was a co-writer of Moneyball and wrote what many consider one of the best scripts of recent times, the film The Social Network, about the origins of Facebook.
There are things that bother me about Sorkin's scripts, and it's his determination that all dialogues be very fast, with characters talking about any subject, even anticipating what the counterpart will respond to, that causes me a sense of overly intelligent and even a little bit pretentious characters. That bothered me a lot in the series The Newsroom, where even the cleaning lady could recite a dialogue about nuclear physics.
Fortunately, that mania for her characters to be super-intelligent, to know about any subject, is not so noticeable in this movie. He seems to have listened to the advice and this time he is more restrained. This does the whole movie a favor, although the fast pace of the dialogues, this time if they are appropriate for the story he tells us.
The real case of the Chicago Trial of the Seven.
When the trial against the seven defendants began, there were actually eight of them but one was a member of the Black Panthers and his lawyer could not be present for health reasons. The trial looks like a show and although it may surprise many, a large part of what was shown in the film actually happened that way.
As you can read in information about that time, the defendants Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin were the most provocative, attending the trial dressed in robes or with a police uniform underneath. And as referred to in one of the scenes in the film.
Verbal conflicts between Black Panther activist Bobby Seale and the judge were also common. This led the judge to order the defendant to be bound and gagged. Although hard to believe, this actually happened.
Judge Julius Hoffman's attitude, according to what has been written about the events, was as reflected in the film. The judge was a total fool. It is incredible how this crazy man, with so many racial prejudices and authoritarian thinking, occupied the judge's chair.
But it is a problem that is in force in our society, in all countries, where there is still democracy, the same citizens elect madmen as presidents or judges and in countries where dictatorships rule, justice is dispensed pro madmen as that judge Hoffman.
If you are interested in knowing more about the real event, I recommend you to read this article from wikipedia, where all the facts are explained and how the trial ended: Link
The cast is extensive, with great actors playing characters that existed in real life. The fact that there are many characters has an influence on the fact that some are not deepened, but the work of all must be praised. Sorkin has a talent for directing actors.
Frank Langella , the eighty-two year old actor, plays Judge Julius Hoffman, the madman who wanted to convict the defendants, no matter what he had to do, even influencing and inducing the jury. The veteran actor gives a great performance, he is the perfect villain for this movie where the force of law is the representation of evil.
Actors Sacha Baron Cohen and Jeremy Strong make a perfect duo, playing Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin, the funniest characters in history. The founders of the International Youth Party. Baron Cohen is best known to the world for his iconic peronage Borat, of which he will premiere a second part soon, and Jeremy Strong is one of the stars of the series Succession, recently winner of the Emmy for best actor.
Mark Rylance plays defense attorney William Kunstler, I was bothered by his look, with the wig he wore for the movie. Joseph Gordon -Levitt plays the prosecutor Richard Schultz, a character I feel has been softened, because according to what I have investigated, the real life one was shitty and more daring than the one shown in the film. John Carroll Lynch plays David Dellinger and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays Bobby Seale.
To see all the actors and others involved in the production of the film, visit their profile on IMDB: Link
The film is a little over two hours long, but all that time passes quickly, it never gets heavy, Sorkin's script and direction keep an excellent pace of the film. It is a very entertaining judicial drama that explores problems of the America of the sixties, but that some are still a problem in that nation.
It is my recommendation for you to enjoy today, it is available on Netflix.
My Ranking: 3.9/5
Trailer
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