For a dying man, to fight for his rights requires a lot of
courage. And there could be no one better than Tom Hanks to portray this. He is
undoubtedly the best actor in today’s age.
Denzel Washington’s first reaction when he learns about Tom’s
disease and cautiously scrutinizes every item touched by Tom, exposes the
prejudices of literate, educated people, mainly due to their own ignorance.
Unfortunately, even today these prejudices exist. And the helpless, distraught
look on Tom’s face after being let down for the tenth time by another
prejudiced lawyer is heart wrenching.
The court room scenes are the highlight of the movie. The cruel,
cold-hearted treatment Tom Hanks is subjected to is a lesson for all of us on
the need to be sensitive to others state of mind. But even today, even
when we all know who is guilty and who is innocent, we still need to
prove it in the court of law. Having a supportive family is good, but we live
in a society and we also need them to accept us for our distinct nature and
individualism. Slowly, Denzel realizes that he is not just fighting for a law
that has been broken, a lot more than the law has been broken and that is what
he is fighting for.
The songs at the beginning and ending of the movie are aptly
worded and sung to perfection.
All in all a beautiful, sensitive movie and a path breaking one
too.
