The People Against O'Hara

Courtroom drama with a flawed Perry Mason type played by Spencer Tracy. It's a watchable yet predictable redemption story.

In some ways a routine courtroom drama, but it goes beyond that. Tracy is terrific, doing his usual crusty cynic. The role has some depth to it, as the character is a struggling alcoholic who makes a mistake in a moment of weakness. The plot takes some interesting turns and goes into true noir territory in the third act. Alton's brilliant patches of light amidst deep, deep shadows look fantastic as always. Courtroom movies don't generally excite me, but this one is a cut above the usual fare.

A decent but not great legal noir with a typically excellent performance by Tracy as an alcoholic defense attorney, one of those mythical defense attorneys who only have innocent clients that only appear in movies. There were some aspects that were a little tough to swallow, like the ultra ambitious DA who is nonetheless more than willing to go out of his way to try to prove he convicted the wrong man. Solid stuff, though I felt it could have been better.

The People Against O'Hara (1951) was a heavyweight movie starring Spencer Tracy. They just didn't shift it into high enough gear for me to adore it.