From The Hip

The late director Bob Clark had one of the most interesting filmographies out there. He helmed classics like the holiday themed A Christmas Story to the sex themed Porky's and Porky's II. He did horror classics like the original Black Christmas and Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things. There were Oscar nominated films like Tribute along with some of the worst films ever made, like Baby Geniuses and it's sequel Superbabies. With a playlist like that, it's easy for some of his movies to get lost in the shuffle. So, for the next few posts, I'm going to take a look back at some of those. First up is 1987's From The Hip.

Judd Nelson stars as Robin "Stormy" Weathers, a fresh out of law school attorney whose itching to try his first case. Unfortunately he is stuck in the research department until he can prove that he has what it takes. But he has an angle. He decides to withhold some info on a case until the day of, knowing that the lawyer, Darren McGavin, would be ill prepared and he would have to step in since he has all the facts. His plan works, but his client wants the case, which is pretty open and shut, to stretch out over three days so the other party will have to pay some heavy court costs. With lots of grandstanding and show boating, Robin is able to do just that, which in turn makes him a media sensation. This catches the eye of Douglas Benoit, John Hurt, a university professor who is about to go to trial for the murder of a prostitute. His law firm and girlfriend, Elizabeth Perkins, think he is in over his head, and when Robin gets the feeling that Benoit might actually be murderer, he too feels a little ill suited for the case.

Nelson is a perfect pick to play the cocky Robin, but it's Hurt who steals the show with his creepy performance. Both actors are over the top, but it really works in their favor. Clark brought in some of his former players to fill out the supporting cast. McGavin was from A Christmas Story, and Dan Monahan, who plays a law firm buddy of Robin's, was Pee Wee in Porky's.

This was written by David E. Kelley, who created such classic tv lawyer shows like L.A. Law, Alley McBeal, The Practice, and Boston Legal. Supposedly producer Steven Bochco was so impressed with this movie that he hired Kelley almost immediately to write L.A. Law.

This is by no means a perfect film, but watching Nelson's antics and Hurt's sinister performance make it a fun view.

It's available on dvd.