A drama centered on the relationship between Phil Spector and defense attorney Linda Kenney Baden while the music business legend was on trial for the murder of Lana Clarkson.
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Title: Phil Spector (TV Movie 2013)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Al Pacino | ... | Phil Spector | |
| Helen Mirren | ... | Linda Kenney Baden | |
| Jeffrey Tambor | ... | Bruce Cutler | |
| Chiwetel Ejiofor | ... | Mock Prosecutor | |
| Rebecca Pidgeon | ... | Dr. Fallon | |
| John Pirruccello | ... | Nick Stavros | |
| James Tolkan | ... | Judge Fidler | |
| David Aaron Baker | ... | DDA Alan Jackson | |
| Matt Malloy | ... | Dr. Spitz | |
| Jack Wallace | ... | Music Store Owner | |
| Dominic Hoffman | ... | Mr. Brown | |
| Philip Martin | ... | James | |
| Grim Reaper Q. | ... | Bodyguard | |
| Vernon Campbell | ... | Bodyguard (as Vernon W. Campbell) | |
| Adalgiza Chermont | ... | Focus Group Woman (as Adalgiza Chemountd) | |
Record Producer Phil Spector (Al Pacino) hires Bruce Cutler (Jeffrey Tambor) to defend him when he's accused of murder. Cutler persuades Linda Kenney Baden (Dame Helen Mirren) to advise him. While the prosecution's story is contradicted by facts in the case, there is convincing circumstantial evidence against Spector, not the least of which is his appearance. As Baden gradually takes over the defense, even as she is ill with pneumonia, she must find a way to introduce ballistic evidence in a dramatic enough fashion to plant doubt in the jury's mind. Calling Specter to testify may be the only way to stage the evidence. She coaches him and rehearses him: can he (and she) pull it off? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>
Based on actual events that took place, PHIL SPECTOR dramatizes the court-case in which the eponymous hero (Al Pacino) is accused of murder and defended by hotshot lawyer Linda (Helen Mirren). With David Mamet as writer/director, viewers can expect nothing less than a penetrating character-study with the emphasis on great dialog and changing reactions. PHIL SPECTOR does not disappoint in this respect; a study of a once-great music producer fallen on hard times who (like Norma Desmond in SUNSET BOULEVARD) lives in fantasy-worlds of his own creation. The ever-increasingly grotesque choice of wigs Spector uses is proof of this. Sometimes it's difficult to separate truth from fiction, while listening to his lengthy speeches - which makes the lawyer's task of defending him that much more difficult. In the end Spector's pretensions are unmasked as he is literally brow-beaten into making an appearance in court: Mamet's camera focuses unrelentingly on his hands that shake uncontrollably as he listens to the evidence presented against him.
As the lawyer, Mirren acts as a workmanlike foil to Pacino's central performance. Although firmly convinced of her client's innocence, she finds it increasingly difficult to present a convincing case; the judge and the prosecution seem hell-bent on frustrating her, as well as her client. Nonetheless she shows admirable stoicism in pursuing her case.
In the end, however, PHIL SPECTOR is not really a courtroom drama, even though much of the action is set in and around the court-house. Rather it concentrates on the double-edged nature of celebrity; when you're riding high, no one can touch you, but when you're down on your luck, everyone wants to kick you. This helps to explain Spector's retreat into a fantasy-world - at least no one can touch him there.