MOVIE That I Just Saw: “The Burial.”

-

“The Burial” (2023, Amazon Prime) legal drama. Loosely based on the true story of lawyer Willie E. Gary and his client Jeremiah Joseph O'Keefe's lawsuit against the Loewen funeral company, as documented in the 1999 New Yorker article of the same name by Jonathan Harr. Courtroom jousts are best in TV series firmament, beyond David E. Kelley, Michelle King and Robert King even. But “The Burial” offers fine performers, so why not? 



       Jamie Foxx is Willie E. Gary and Tommy Lee Jones is Jeremiah O'Keefe. Although Jamie is all swagger and Tommy is all restraint, “The Burial,” as in other true to life cinema, offers me a compelling story to dig further. 

       In 1995, financially troubled funeral home owner Mr O'Keefe was forced to sell parts of his business to meet financial demands by the Mississippi State Insurance Commission. He makes a contract with Raymond Loewen of the Loewen Group, who never follows through on their oral agreement. His young lawyer Hal Dockins suggests that Loewen is intentionally trying to run O‘Keefe into bankruptcy to snatch up his entire business. 

       Mr Gary is also an interesting individual, probably more interesting than Jamie Foxx in real life. With an estimated net worth of around $100 million, Atty Gary is listed as one of the richest lawyers in the world. He used to own two personal jets named "Wings of Justice I & II," that flew him to his clients and back. Meanwhile, the real story behind Willie E. Gary is his success in handling high-profile cases. In 2000, he won a $240 million verdict against Disney for stealing the concept of the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. And in 2019, he won a $23 billion case against R.J. Reynolds, the tobacco company. 

       “The Burial” though is simply a chunk off his life as a lawyer. Not as exciting as Willie’s resume. 🎥💻📽


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“Mayor of Kingstown." Season 3.

-
Image
“Mayor of Kingstown” (Paramount+) Season 3, crime thriller . Kingstown, Michigan , is a fictional company town where the business is incarceration. The McLusky family kept the peace (sort of) in Kingstown for decades, acting as the mediators between the street gangs, prisoners, guards, and cops.         Intrigue: Does a “mayor” of this vein actually exist? A power broker and gangland negotiator or “shot caller” who could be more powerful than a non-fiction Mayor? Maybe.         But never mind. This is TVland. Just enjoy but don't be too queasy with the “macho maddafucqa” language. These guys are hardened inmates, battle-weary cops, hellbound gangsters and narcos monsters, exasperated DAs, and the likes.         Jeremy Renner is Mike McLusky, caught between no way out evil and vulnerability in the crossroads. His spunk and grit are an unfailing gladiator armor but his soul is rotting in the crossfire (or that's how he feels). Ensemble acting competes with the group performance
Read more

“Tulsa King.” “The Outsider.”

-
Image
“Tulsa King.” (Paramount+ via Amazon) c rime drama or comedy drama or dramedy action, whatsoever suits you. I am not really a huge fan of Sylvester Stallone , regardless of “Rocky I,” but hey that was 47 years ago! Yet I need to admit that I am on Taylor Sheridan fix and I thought the writer isn’t going to lose (at least for me). Add co-creator Terence Winter of “The Sopranos” and “Boardwalk Empire” fame, plus his remarkable screenplay of Martin Scorsese 's “ The Wolf of Wall Street .”         But this Tulsa whatever is a disappointment.         Mr Stallone is Dwight "The General" Manfredi, a New York Mafia capo who has just finished serving a 25-year prison sentence. Upon release, his boss sends him to Tulsa, Oklahoma to establish criminal operations there. Not knowing anyone in the area, the General seeks a new crew to help establish his empire. Sure, y’all gangster cinema fans like me, have lumbered into the same Mafiosi drill before. That’s okay, as long as we get
Read more

TV Series Notebook: The Mosquito Coast.

-
Image
"The Mosquito Coast" (Apple TV+), political action/drama, based on the 1981 novel of the same name by Paul Theroux. The book coaxed me to watch the 1986 film, which starred Harrison Ford. The much-better made 1988 movie "Running on Empty" by directed by Sidney Lumet, treads a similar story. Those two movies could be accompanying watch later. THE TV series, starring Justin Theroux and Melissa George as the fugitive Fox couple Allie and Margot, is on Second Season.        I first read the book in the 1990s but although my memory sometimes fails me, I am sure the "...based on" kicker took so much liberty that the series doesn't seem like what/how it was. Understandably, cellphones were not a thing then so in a significant sequence I didn't get that Allie was working on floppy discs for a cartel dude. And, of course, absence computer technology in the novel and presence of it in the series totally subverts plotpoints.        Anyhow, acting by the main
Read more