Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

**SPOILERS THROUGHOUT THE REVIEW** High powered attorney Jennifer Haines (Rebecca DeMorany) is seduced by handsome, smooth (and obviously sociopathic) David Greenhill (Don Johnson) into defending him over a charge that he killed his wife. As she gets to know him she discovers that he DID kill his wife and is slowly destroying her life. She gets old friend Moe (Jack Warden is wasted) to help her but David isn't above killing to get his way.It starts off good with great acting by DeMornay and Johnson but the story gets sillier as the movie goes on. Some VERY questionable legal technicalities are bought up and DeMorany goes to truly ridiculous lengths to get Johnson convicted WHILE she's defending him! Also there are huge loopholes in the script and DeMornay overreacts (and overacts) when she realizes what's going on. Seriously, wouldn't an intelligent attorney like her see that Greenhill is a raging sociopath AND extremely dangerous? Still all the acting is good and it leads up to a bloody and satisfying conclusion. I give this a 6 but (unless you're a fan of any of the stars) you're not missing anything. I originally saw it back in 1993 in a theatre and I wasn't thrilled with it then either.

Don Johnson is...guilty of sin. Some people have already been offended by my critique of "Guilty as Sin"(1993) and a few others might disagree, with my take on big daddy Don as an over privileged man(murderer). But millions will agree, due to the lack of big ticket sales. The funny part is, that I really have enjoyed many of his performances. This is not as if I'm just looking to sort of stall out on a movie he did because I don't like him. Stephen Lang, is in the cast as well and he really is one heck of a versatile character actor, Sydney (the Director) should have switched the two actors roles....Johnson's David Greenhill, was a smart-Alec twerp of a womanizer. Sitting at that bar telling that woman she could pay for his drink and that "Women take care of me." was one of the most ridiculously delivered lines I have heard. He, for me didn't come off as a suave lady killer, he came across as a man that you would like to take out to an alleyway and beat the socks off of em'. It was quite a spectacle the way that David dressed in black and a stocking cap and met the lawyer in the parking garage and beat him and his car phone to bits! That was a solid action / drama piece in the story that segue-way-ed nicely into the next place...Don has been in quite a few really 'great' roles, in which he was the only one that you could see there. It would be a crime to put in a different actor, they never would have filled his shoes. But, not here. On the out, the ending in this was 'pure' Hollywood in bad scripted form. Falling off the ledge on top of him, as she makes it out, alive and he dies. Sure. That's just one of the reasons (of many) why I gave this a 5/10 .

Jennifer Haines is a top-notch defence lawyer who takes on the case of David Greenhill, a lothario accused of murdering his rich wife. Greenhill used his attorney-client privilege to smugly confess not only to this murder, but to those of other wealthy women. Haines decides to risk her career by planting false evidence to prove Greenhill's guilt ...Courtroom thrillers are a dime a dozen, and it's very unusual to find one as original as this - it supplants lots of clichés, focuses on the bare minimum of characters and comes up with lots of great ideas, which is why it entertains so much. It's styled much more like an old Hitchcock picture, with an intelligent yet vulnerable female lead and a suave but psychotic male. DeMornay is terrific and Johnson was made for this part, and they have tremendous intensity together on-screen, even though Haines has only fear and revulsion for Greenhill. The movie's prime asset is Larry Cohen's excellent script, with lots of snappy dialogue ("You know what the problem with committing perfect murders is - you can't tell anybody."), and oodles of interesting plot twists - Greenhill picks out his defender before perpetrating his crime, Haines deliberately tries to lose her case (what American lawyer would ever do that), Greenhill produces evidence both for and against himself and connecting him to Haines - his ingenuity is boundless. There is a great simple score by Howard Shore, and Andrzej Bartkowiak's photography is crisp and polished, with lots of elegant simple two-shots of the leads, often with one in profile whispering in the other's ear. A fine thriller, well directed by old pro Lumet, which does what any good crime story should do - grab your attention and keep you guessing.

There's a big laugh in the middle of this contrived psychological thriller. I won't give it away, because it's easily the best moment in the film. It's the scene in a bar with Don Johnson, and it sketches in his character more brilliantly than anything before or after. You'll know it when you see it.Well, if you see it. If the script had displayed that kind of wit throughout, this movie would be a must-see. As it is, there is too little that makes it memorable and too much that makes it hard to suspend disbelief.Rebecca De Mornay plays a flashy criminal defense attorney who does her job with spectacular cunning – even for the most unsavory defendants. But her newest client (Don Johnson) is not just unsavory. He could be dangerous enough to kill her.The first thing you'll notice is Howard Shore's excellent score during the title sequence. It's silky and sinister and immediately draws you in (despite the tacky-looking computer graphic that accompanies it). Next, the film looks really good. Sidney Lumet – who also gave us "Twelve Angry Men," "The Verdict" and many other terrific movies – knows how to direct a good courtroom thriller. And what a courtroom. The photographer, Andrzej Bartkowiak, makes the most of this spacious green-marble set.An early scene is promising. Don Johnson glides into De Mornay's office and asks her to take his case, brazenly confessing that he's a womanizer and a gigolo – yet innocent of throwing his wife out of a skyscraper window. She refuses at first, but Johnson's boyish egotism is too hypnotically fascinating.But later, both actors falter. De Mornay makes several bad choices in her performance, playing too many scenes like a frightened rabbit. Johnson has a scene in his apartment, where he makes a sandwich with a long kitchen knife that he winds up waving in De Mornay's face. His character loses control, but so does the actor. Johnson looks and sounds ridiculous.But the main problem is the script from schlock-horror director Larry Cohen. First, there's Jack Warden's character, a father figure to De Mornay, who comes off as purely functional. He's there to do things De Mornay's character cannot, and we don't give a damn about him, not even when he winds up in danger.Second, De Mornay ends up framing her own client, an enormously risky endeavor that could easily destroy her career and even send her to prison. Why? Presumably to protect herself and other women from Johnson. But the movie fails to convince us she has no saner options.Third, there's the woman who becomes a last-minute witness for the defense. I won't give away too much, but her motivation for doing what she does is totally inscrutable.Lastly, there's the gruesome climax. It plays ludicrously, though De Mornay is allowed one last, good moment. Her hysteria at the peak of her ordeal is touchingly real. Otherwise, the whole thing feels forced and phony.So does the movie.