Most Rewatchable Scene
The final opening statement and out-of-order eruption
In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:44:14Read transcript
- The opening follows Aggie before unexpectedly revealing Arthur in jail, establishing the institution’s indignities.
- Arthur’s visits with his grandfather divide opinion: the Godfather II reunion appeals, but one visit might suffice; the dementia and missed visits underline another personal failure caused by lack of time.
- Arthur and Lahti’s character moving from an argument into flirting and a Chinese-food date is nominated.
- The bathroom announcement of Fleming’s rape charge is praised for the difficult, sustained hysterical laughter and the choice of setting.
- The helicopter ride is a fun but tonally separate sequence, and the unexpected actual crash into the water is especially effective.
- Tambor’s plate-throwing breakdown is admired for its apparently practical staging and the transformation from joking lawyer to morally overwhelmed man.
- Arthur attacking the car after Aggie’s death is the defining explosive Pacino showcase, with genuine grief and a demand that lawyers care about their clients’ humanity.
- The incriminating photographs supplied by Chianese’s character are nominated for Fleming’s brazen posing and the strange glimpse of the sexual gathering.
- Fleming’s admission of guilt exposes casual entitlement and his certainty of impunity; pointing out the complainant in court pushes Arthur toward breaking.
- The final opening statement and Arthur’s out-of-order eruption are the unanimous scene choice, including his final insistence that he has completed the statement.
- The final performance carries distinct stakes for the jury, the client, the complainant, the judge and the earlier victims of the system.
- Tambor tipping his wig is belatedly recalled as one of the film’s most famous images.