Murder in the First

Alphabetical Listing of Movie Reviews

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z


  • Murder in the First -- Gritty, loosely fact-based prison-courtroom drama set in 1941 in which a novice lawyer (Christian Slater) defends his timid Alcatraz client (Kevin Bacon) of murdering a fellow convict by arguing that years of inhumane solitary confinement and brutal beatings by the associate warden (Gary Oldman) transformed his previously non-violent client into a murderer. Director Marc Rocco's powerful tale of institutional abuse of power is strengthened by superior performances, although its high moral tone regarding prisoner's human rights comes across somewhat heavy-handededly. Several scenes of vicious beatings with shadowy nudity and a gory stabbing, a fleeting suggestion of masturbation and an attempted sexual encounter and recurring rough language. (A-III) (R) ( 1995 )




    These movies have been evaluated for artistic merit and moral suitability by the media reviewing division of Catholic News Service. The reviews include the CNS rating, the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief synopsis of the movie.

    The classifications are as follows:

    A-I -- general patronage;
    A-II -- adults and adolescents;
    A-III -- adults;
    L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
    O -- morally offensive.

    Note: Some movies previously were designated A-IV. Older films with this classification should be regarded as classified L.

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