The trials in The Judge don’t all take place in front of a jury, and the on-screen guilt is both of the legal and personal variety. You can see where this is going.
There are plenty of arguments both inside and outside the courtroom in this drama about redemption and reconciliation that plays more like an ill-conceived vehicle to grab awards for its intergenerational star duo. It follows Hank (Robert Downey Jr.), an ethically challenged Chicago defense attorney who returns to his small Indiana hometown for his mother’s funeral. He re-connects with an old flame (Vera Farmiga) and continues to spar with his estranged father (Robert Duvall), the town’s longtime municipal judge.
Not long afterward, things get worse for the family when the judge is accused of murder following a car accident involving an old nemesis. So Hank reluctantly becomes his lawyer, trying to discover the truth and prove his father’s innocence while the stubborn judge is more concerned with preserving his legacy. Meanwhile, as his health deteriorates, father and son learn that mending the fractured family might be more important than winning the case. Downey displays the type of smooth-talking charisma that has characterized his rise to stardom, yet he also balances that with a more vulnerable side here. Duvall, meanwhile, runs the emotional gamut as a stubborn man trying to maintain his dignity amid his declining health.
Both stars are capably cast and have plenty of showcase moments, but they can’t elevate a meandering screenplay by Nick Schenk (Gran Torino) and newcomer Bill Dubuque that’s woefully short on subtlety and surprise. It’s a film that aspires to be profound in its examination of family bonds and confronting your past, yet seems content to tread familiar territory as it airs the dirty laundry. Many of the supporting characters are thinly sketched, from the slick prosecutor (Billy Bob Thornton) whose past relationship with Hank remains vague, to a mentally challenged younger brother (Jeremy Strong) who is too often used for cheap comic relief.
The Judge might be an attempt by director David Dobkin (Wedding Crashers) to showcase his versatility, but it doesn’t have much of a personal stamp other than to safely tug at the heartstrings. There’s plenty of evidence to render a verdict.
