L.A. Law - The Movie

Excellent film. Excellent supplier compliance

When the original TV series, L.A. Law that THIS movie is based on, first premiered/aired on TV in 1986, I was I tad too young to see it (I wasn't even a double-digit age yet!). But, even if I HAD been allowed to watch (and given the references to & plot-lines involving violence [which my parents would've probably objected more to, than the sex scenes!] and sexual innuendo/jokes, like the "Venus Butterfly" -- its pretty unlikely!), nevertheless, at that age, I was not yet even interested in this genre (I was more into cartoons, children's shows like Today's Special , and kid-friendly family sitcoms like Punky Brewster , Mr. Belvedere & Webster ). In fact, if I recall correctly, it wasn't until an extended (and for the most part, basically HELLISH!) 5-6 month stay in India during my senior year of high school, that I first saw L.A. Law. I was so homesick that I pretty much lived for the connection of/from American TV, watching pretty much every US show I could find on screen, even stuff I otherwise ABSOLUTELY DESPISE & HATE with a passion like M*A*S*H (even the theme song for that show is so depressing to me!) and only watched during those endless days & weeks in India, and never watched before or since! But I really "got into" and LOVE this show (among others such as Picket Fences ) after watching it with one of my cousins who is herself a lawyer in India. Unfortunately, I was unable to see all the seasons/complete the series during the period in India, and upon return to the US did not have any (to the best of my recollections) access to the show in any form (since it was still the era before YouTube & other online video streaming, DVRs & OnDemand video, and TV-on-DVD) for several years until the airing of THIS reunion L.A. Law movie in 2002 or 2003, if memory serves. However, although I only saw a limited number of episodes during my time in India, and don't think most or ANY of them were from the later seasons (because I don't remember seeing actors/actresses like the late John Spencer and Amanda Donohue, in the episodes I saw), yet when I saw this movie, it was like it picked up right where I'd left off, as if I never missed seeing most or all of the final 5 seasons. From the blurb on the back of the box: L.A. Law: The Movie Based upon the Emmy Award Winning Series LA Law: The Movie, reunites the cast of the award winning television series for a two-hour network film. Nearly the entire original cast returns to the fictional law firm McKenzie-Brackman. Following the series finale, founding Partner Leland McKenzie (Richard A. Dysart) retires thereby leaving Douglas Brackman Jr. (Alan Rachins) as Senior Managing Partner. Another former Partner is summoned in an effort to stop the execution of a past client. However, the prosecution is lead by his old flame Grace Van Owen (Susan Dey). Meanwhile, McKenzie-Brackman divorce attorney Arnie Becker (Corbin Bernsen) deals with his own divorce from his estranged wife. Ina addition to the memorable cast of the series. the reunion also includes new additions to the film. ☆☆☆ POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!! ☆☆☆ L.A. Law - The Movie takes viewers back to the Los Angeles law firm of McKenzie-Brackman -- but with a few changes. In the intervening decade or so since the TV series ended, the firm's founder and senior partner, Leland McKenzie retired and moved to Montecito, California to garden in a greenhouse, appointing Douglas Brackman as Senior Managing Partner. Where this film picks up, a former partner, Michael Kuzak (Harry Hamlin) who had left the firm and stopped practicing law over a decade earlier (a couple of years before the original TV series ended) and has since become a successful restaurant/bar owner, is approached by former colleague and McKenzie-Brackman partner Stuart Markowitz (Michael Tucker) to come out of retirement to defend Albert Hutchinson (Steven Williams), a former client on death row, who's scheduled to be executed within the next couple weeks. The condemned man's desperate daughter, Raylene (Bruklin Harris) had first confronted Markowitz & Brackman, begging them to contact Kuzak and get him to resume his representation of her father. While Brackman, is dismissive, stating that the firm no longer handles criminal law & refuses to help, Raylene's pleading to save her father's life, touches Stuart Markowitz inducing him to seek out Kuzak. While, at first Mike is reluctant to take on the case, eventually he is persuaded by Stuart, and then Raylene & Albert. However, numbers-crunching/profit-obsessed Douglas Brackman remains adamantly opposed to the firm of McKenzie-Brackman being the "support system" backing Mike Kuzak, until a visit from Leland McKenzie results in a change of heart for Brackman as well. But unfortunately, that is not the end to the obstacles Mike faces in trying to save the life of Albert Hutchinson -- the opposing counsel who originally prosecuted the case and is now fighting Mike's motion for a "stay" (to halt the execution) is his old girlfriend, Grace Van Owen, who has since become the DA, primarily based on getting the conviction and death sentence in the Hutchinson case, and thus, she has a lot riding on the outcome. Meanwhile, in other storylines, as McKenzie-Brackman divorce lawyer, Arnie Becker (Corbin Bernsen) who's own marriage is on the rocks and is faced down by former McKenzie-Brackman lawyer Abby Perkins (Michele Greene) the attorney for his adulterous, estranged wife, while fighting the terms of his divorce, McKenzie-Brackman secretary Roxanne Merman (Susan Ruttan) is visited by her "direct marketing"/novelties dealer ex-husband Dave Meyer (Dann Florek) who claims to be dying of multiple myeloma, and wants to spend some quality time in his final days with her and her daughter. But in reality, he is actually harboring a much more shameful secret. Also married McKenzie-Brackman partners Ann Kelsey (Jill Eikenberry) and Stuart Markowitz (Michael Tucker) are victimized by Cyril (Gedde Watanabe) a con-man claiming to be a spiritual "guru", who cleans them out, stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from their accounts, leaving them bouncing checks left & right. Basically, L.A. Law - The Movie is a cast reunion show, plain & simple. Nothing more. As another reviewer so aptly mentioned, "The characters have grown. All legal surprises were pulled in the original run. If you watch this for the groundbreaking twists and turns of this show in its heyday, you're going to be sorely disappointed. If you view it as simply a catch up with old friends, I think you'll be entertained." -- and to a large extent, I agree with those sentiments. As I've said before, I don't recall ever seeing the later seasons of this show, and since, as far as I know, they are not available (yet!) either on DVD/Blu-ray OR on online video streaming services like Netflix or Amazon Instant Video (especially Prime Video), this movie is the closest that an L.A. Law fan like me can get to a wrap-up (or at least some answers to the "Where Are They Now" questions) and closure to the series and its characters. However, even in that task, this film unfortunately fell short. Not by that much (hence the 4-star rating) but I really wish the producers had included other main characters from the original series. Other reviewers have mentioned the absence of the now, late John Spencer, and Amanda Donohue, as well as Jimmy Smits (who played Victor Sifuentes) and Blair Underwood (who played Jonathan Rollins). But since I did not see any of the seasons or episodes that John Spencer and Amanda Donohue were in, their absence does not bother me as much as the absence of those I DID see such as Jimmy Smits and Blair Underwood. I mean if including them in the cast was not feasible for whatever reason (scheduling conflicts, budget/monetary issues, etc.) I wish that they had at least made mention/references to them and what happened to their characters. I don't know why they could manage to bring back not only far more minor characters like Benny Stulwicz (Larry Drake) but also NEW characters like Chloe Carpenter (Josie Davis), Max Bettancart (Kevin McNulty), Jason Brackman (Jason Peck) and others, and yet not include major characters like Victor Sifuentes. Victor was one of my favorite characters in the seasons I've seen and it was really disappointing that, not only was he NOT in the movie, but worse, nobody (not even Grace, or Mike who had been the one to recruit him to join McKenzie-Brackman in the first place!) even mentioned him, as if he never even existed at all! With that said, despite the (in my opinion) glaring omissions of several cast members, this is still a relatively good film -- and like the reviewer I mentioned above, stated, if you are seeing this movie with hopes of anything other than a reuniting of the cast and a catch-up with the characters of a beloved 80s/90s TV series, then this is not the film for you. But if you are watching this movie to see what's happened with the characters in the years since the original L.A. Law series went off the air, then you'll probably like (though NOT necessarily LOVE) this film. Because as a fan of LA Law since 1995-96, there's some things in this film that I like(d) or even love, and there are other things that I didn't much care for. For example, I did not really like the outcome of the Roxanne Melman/Dave Meyer storyline. In fact I HATED that part. I'm not going to post any spoilers but even though, as far as I recall, I didn't/haven't seen many (if any!) of the Dave Meyer episodes from the original series, despite his occupation, it didn't seem like he'd be the kind of guy to put Roxanne and especially her young daughter through that. So while on one hand, I totally understand and in some ways, agree with Roxanne's reaction, by the same token, its also very disappointing & disillusioning that he'd stoop so low that Roxanne would be forced/driven to do that!! All in all, this is a pretty great film. Its wonderful seeing all the cast again, and I really wish that Shout Factory, or whoever would release the final 5 seasons of the original series so that those of us who were too young (or in my case, just a tad on the young[er] side) to see it on the first go-around on TV, can see the rest of the series on DVD or Blu-ray!! ★☆★☆ 4 STARS!!!!

If you love the TV shows of the 1980's you'll love watching LA Law the movie. Great casting over all.

The folks at the popular law firm of the 80s McKenzie Brackman are back with what amounts to a mild 2 hour story. Nice to see Harry Hamlin back as Michael Kuzak who despite the script has not been with the firm since 1991 (in case anyone forgot) and to see Susan Dey back as Grace Van Owen (who is back in the D.A.'s office with no explanation considering she spent part of seasons 5 and 6 with the firm and then moved out of town with Jimmy Smits' Victor Sifuentes who left after season 5 but then came back for 2 episodes in Season 6) as the lawyers in the movie's key case getting someone off death row (variation on a previously used storyline in the series). Dann Florek's Dave Meyer (who married and divorced Susan Ruttan's Roxanne Melman) is back and as nutty as ever despite resurfacing in Season 8 "reformed". In many ways this is just a revamping of a few of memorable storylines only with the names of the clients changed. But for those of us who "went to England" (Amazon UK) to buy the series, it does complete it, despite NBC's original promise it would tie up the loose ends left at the end of Season 8 (it does not, there are still several pieces of unfinished business in the Season 8 finale which NBC promised to fix when announced and didn't). Being the disc is now 13 or 14 years old, and some Marketplace Sellers are selling it for borscht, buy it if nothing else for your "likeable turkeys" collection.

We binge-watched Season 1 and Season 2 during our Summer Vacation. What a great show!

The movie is ok not exciting as the t.v show.It was nice to see how the characters have aged.

How can this DVD be discontinued BEFORE it's released?? Why isn't this series on DVD yet? What's taking so long?

As other reviewers have previously stated, this wasn't anything special. Like them I really want to see the series released on DVD in a one-time buy package. The issue with this movie is that while it was nice to see Grace and Michael duke it out (which was pretty lame now that I think about it), this movie lacks several cast omissions, especially Jimmy Smits and the entire ommission of Michelle Greene (Abby Perkins), who was always a personal favorite of mine. Reunion specials are fine, but do it for the actual fans of the show who watched it, not to lure new viewers who MAY get they chance to see back episodes and piece it all together. Bochco needs to come off this series as well as Hill Street Blues and let us buy it once and for all.

BRILLIANT AND AS DESCRIBED

As a long time fan of LA Law, I jumped on this DVD hoping it would fulfil my thirst for the series. Sadly it is a let down on many fronts. The story is ambiguous at best, more like a single episode than a special story just for dvd, and not a very good one at that. The characters are there, but some of them have radically changed over the years, and not just by ageing - Stuart and Anne seem to have gone hippie, whilst Arnie seems to have lost the plot totally. There are cameos from many of the cast, but it has the feeling of something hastily cobbled together. If you look on this as a dvd of how the characters age and move on, then it's good enough, but don't expect too much from it else you will be disappointed.

I waited for a special time to view this DVD and when I did the last 20 minutes were issing. Too late to return but not too late to complain. From a very disappointed customer