Guilty as Sin (1993)

A female lawyer takes an accused wife-murderer as a client, but finds herself morally compelled to betray him one way or another.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writer:

Larry Cohen

Stars:

Rebecca De Mornay, Don Johnson, Stephen Lang

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rebecca De Mornay	...	Jennifer Haines
Don Johnson	...	David Edgar Greenhill
Stephen Lang	...	Phil Garson
Jack Warden	...	Moe
Dana Ivey	...	Judge D. Tompkins
Ron White	...	Prosecutor DiAngelo
Norma Dell'Agnese	...	Emily, Jennifer's Assistant
Sean McCann	...	Nolan, Greenhill's Doorman
Luis Guzmán	...	Lt. Martinez
Robert Kennedy	...	Caniff
James Blendick	...	McMartin
Tom Butler	...	D.A. Heath
Christina Grace	...	Miriam Langford (as Christina Baren)
Lynne Cormack	...	Esther Rothman
Barbara Eve Harris	...	Kathleen Bigelow

Storyline

A man accused of murdering his wife approaches a hotshot female criminal attorney to take his case. The man is a self-professed womaniser, and his alleged motive would be the large sum of money his wife left him. The attorney begins to have second thoughts about representing him when he starts making it look like they're having an affair and tells her things she can't reveal because of lawyer/client privilege, so she starts her own investigation of him, which threatens her career and the safety of her friends and herself.

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Plot Keywords:

investigation | female lawyer | lawyer | pantyhose | womanizer | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and some sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 June 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

L'avocat du diable

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$22,886,222 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hollywood Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although it is set in the United States (presumably Chicago), filming was done exclusively in Canada.

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Goofs

Before the climatic fall from the upper level, there is an obvious addition of footrests that have been added to the side of the balcony to serve as support for the stunt woman before she falls to the ground.

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Quotes

David Greenhill: See, people like us Miriam, we're - we're warm. But she's a - she's an attorney.

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Connections

References Dial M for Murder (1954)

User Reviews

Original and slickly done, but the pieces just don't fall into place as they should

If it could be called anything, 'Guilty as Sin' is a missed opportunity, and that's putting it lightly. It could have been a great thriller, but something went wrong in the process, and the result is a mess, a failed vision abandoned halfway through. All of the blame lies in the obvious lack of interest on the part of the filmmakers. Sidney Lumet has directed THE best film of the 80s in 'Running on Empty', and one of the better 70s pics in 'Dog Day Afternoon', so the problem isn't a lack of talent. It's just that the makers of this movie were lazy, making it because they needed money, a job to be done as quick and painlessly as possible.

Because of this everything falls apart. Adding complications, DeMornay is seriously miscast. Though no one is doubting her ample acting skills, she looks misplaced here and just isn't all that good. Don Johnson on the other hand, is perfect for his role, though he may not be as good of an actor as DeMornay is.

'Guilty as Sin' is nothing more than a tedious, connect-the-dots thriller that wastes the talents of everyone involved. It isn't impossible to watch, it's just that it's not very good.

4/10