Law & Order: Criminal Intent (TV Series) False-Hearted Judges (2005) User Reviews

There Goes The Judge!

[ccthemovieman-1 · 7/10 · 13 July 2008]

This episode doesn't have anything to do with race, despite some of the promos, but is about custody of children and the abuse of judge's power in this country, as seen in the eyes of many people. While that argument has caused a lot of discussion in the news - you've heard of some of the wacky decisions judges are making - the answer is not to react in the extreme, as what happens here. The people in this story are pictured as loose cannon types.

A few notes: Goren is a little too quick to figure things out in this story. As intelligent as he is, linking murders in New York with two out west came way too fast here. No way anyone would be able to figure that out that fast.....For those know what to get a few tips on how to get instant energy with some healthy unheard-of food, watch this episode....The writers get a cheap shot against a politician, too, something it does once in a while but not too often. l won't dignify it by saying who they slam, but it's uncalled for.

This turns out to be a father-son story but not the normal parental lineage. I'm not surprised Criminal Intent would have some sort of weird twist to it. They like to do that sort of thing, but it adds to the story.

Goren does what he does best at the end: set one suspect up against the other and let one of them blow the whistle on the other.

Reminder of real-life "DC-Sniper attacks" case in 2002

[rbkjr · 8/10 · 18 September 2017]

Only reason I was interested in watching was to see David Andrews, who was a former customer at a small restaurant/dessert shop my family ran in the L.A. area for many years & is now out-of-business. So, we got to know David and always liked to see him do well, with all the struggling actors in Hollywood...even though he was in much higher demand because of his name recognition & excellent skills as an actor. It was slightly disappointing that his part was minimal in this episode, given his stature in the Industry...but I guess they all can't be winners! This episode was not a favorite of mine, but no matter...it's always great to see someone you know personally in a part, especially when it brings out the "character actor" in them, as opposed to the real-life person you know, in the flesh. That's when you see how good their talent really is, because you barely recognize them anymore while the episode is running...and you forget it's the same guy you know!

A world of justice without mercy, that's no place to live

[Mrpalli77 · 7/10 · 16 September 2017]

Lloyd is seeking revenge. He despises the law, he thinks judges are evil because they restrict people's freedom; but he can't reach the target without somebody else's help. At the beginning the murders seemed related to racial issue (Aryan brotherhood), but soon Eames and Goren find out a different path to follow. A well-trained white trash, divorced from his wife, tried by all means to stay in touch with his only son but he couldn't due to custodial issue dictated by a judge; eventually he found out another guy who share his feelings to follow his lead, so the hunting began.

This episode, the last of the fourth season, has a slow pace at first, but then becomes enjoyable thanks to the good acting of David Andrews (he feels comfortable to play in a military officer way, I recall his performance in Word War Z and Terminator 3)

False power

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 5 November 2020]

There were some truly fine episodes in Season 4 of 'Law and Order: Criminal Intent'. A few disappointed, such as "Eosphoros", "In the Dark" and "Sex Club" (with some major issues too had with "A View from Up Here" and "Collective"). Other episodes however were superb, such as "Semi-Detached", "Want", "Magnificat", "Stress Position" and "Shibboleth". So overall Season 4 was a solid if inconsistent season of 'Criminal Intent' so there were high hopes for its finale "False-Hearted Judges".

"False-Hearted Judges" was impressive on the whole, though for a season finale and considering that Season 4 started off so brilliantly with "Semi-Detached" part of me was somewhat disappointed as well. As far as the fourth season goes, this is towards being one of the lesser episodes, with many great things as well as a few short-comings. It was not though down to being dull or too predictable (far from it), or down to it being uncomfortably strange (it's not).

It's namely down to the pacing being erratic. It is a slow starter for a brief period, but then it too often feels rushed and could have had more time to breathe in order for the viewer to digest. Goren does agreed jump to the truth and conclusions and figures too much of the case too quickly, and too easily at times here, too.

One connection comes so suddenly that it was a stretch for even such an intelligent person to figure it out so quickly without much warning.

However, there is a lot to like about "False-Hearted Judges". The hunting terminology is interesting. The undercover spiel is heavy-handed but wonderfully and amusingly so. The ending does give the chills. Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe are typically terrific, as is David Andrews. Goren is still a great character, tough as nails, amusing and at times compassionate and Eames' sass never gets old. As always, it's a slickly made episode, the editing especially having come on quite a bit from when the show first started (never was it a problem but it got more fluid with each episode up to this stage). The music is sparingly used and never seemed melodramatic, the theme tune easy to remember as usual. The direction is sympathetic enough without being too low key on the whole.

Writing is tight enough and thoughtful, being never less than intriguing. Also did like, despite the problematic pacing, that the story was never obvious while not being over-complicated either. Did like that one thinks that the case centres around one thing and then by when everything is revealed it's not what it seemed at first. Some may find the truth on the odd side but unlike a couple of other Season 4 episodes it doesn't feel too much of that.

Concluding, good finale to a solid if inconsistent season but misses out on being great. 7/10