Truly Dreadful Film

SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Alexandra DeMonaco (Elizabeth Lackey) was a regular mom who got imprisoned for her husband's medical insurance scam. He was able to walk away with $5 million and their daughter Mia. While in prison, she studied law and earned her degree. After 5 years, she's out on parole. She's back in San Francisco, fighting to clear her name and most of all, search for her missing daughter. Desperately in need of a job, she works Attorney Hamilton Whitney (Richard Thomas) as a paralegal. This is a crime procedural which each episode she uses her smarts to solve a case, and hunt for her husband. Both lead actors are great. They are very compelling in these roles and have great chemistry together. Sadly stuck on PAX, this never had a chance to get an audience and only lasted for a year.

It was nice to see Richard Thomas in this television series. I finally found a role that I didn't always, think he was "John Boy", which he seemed to get type casted. It was disappointing when it went off the air. I have no idea why and can't seem to find anything in this database. Richard does appear stiff, but after a while I liked the character. I enjoyed Sunday night on Pax with DOC, Sue Thomas FBI, and Just Cause only to be disappointed when Just Cause was dropped. Since Just Cause, I saw him in "Beyond the prairie", but again, I can only think of him as John Boy. I hope to see Richard Thomas in another series. It would be nice if they could bring back "Just Cause", but it's probably highly unlikely.

Just Cause is a great drama and certainly one of the better well written shows on the television today. Ex-con Alex DeMonacco was sent to prison for five years for being set up by her ex-husband on insurance fraud charges. While in prison, she earns a Law degree. Once released from prison, she goes to visit Hamilton Whitney (Richard Thomas), a corporate attorney to hire him to appeal her conviction to the governor of California to be granted a pardon.In the interim, she bullies Whitney into giving her a job as a paralegal until her pardon is granted and she can practice law.Elizabeth Lackey does a wonderful job as Alex, and Richard Thomas gives an outstanding performance as Hamilton Whitney.

Beautiful young ex-con (unjustly imprisoned, of course) goes to work in the office of a stiff-necked lawyer, uncovering weekly cases involving injustice perpetrated on the helpless and downtrodden. As you can tell, this is an obvious attempt to coopt the energy of "Erin Brockovich; Elizabeth Lackey is nice-looking and an OK actress, but lacks the pivotal charm of Julia Roberts (but then, virtually everyone on earth lacks it). Richard Thomas is a problem, however--without the nostalgic naivete that shaped his character in "The Waltons," he comes off as a complete stiff. He might do well to stick to period pieces. I also hope the "moral crusade" tone that pervades this is eased in the future; it can get really insufferable in too heavy a dose.