My Cousin Vinny (1992)
Tom Hanks is the lawyer-turned-client represented by Denzel Washington
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Relevant to this Segment

  1. There is a scene in a hotel room between Vinny and his fiance, Mona Lisa - played by Marisa Tomei (who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for this role). Vinny just comes back from a hunting trip with the prosecutor and is proud to have "bonded" with him so well that he have Vinny his files on the case. Vinny is convinced that his charm saved the day. Mona Lisa, who has been browsing through the Rules of Court in Vinny's absence, sets him straight. "He has to give you his files, you moron. It's called disclosure!" Vinny looks befuddled. Is this just Hollywood, or is it possible that attorneys just out of law school are really that clueless?

    Our thoughts: When you become a paralegal you will hear it all the time: first year attorneys are helpless! (Actually, they say "useless," but we're trying to be kind!) That's because attorneys are not taught how to practice law in law school. As Vinny so accurately states, the just teach theory. Law schools expect lawyers to develop "skills" on-the-job.

    As for paralegals, that has become a problem as well. Most paralegal programs teach a little about a lot of areas of law. Mostly general information and theory. (As one attorney put it, just enough theory to be dangerous.) The program you are now about to finish was designed to give you the skills most paralegals wish they had. You won't fully appreciate it until that moment you are on the job and someone looks at you with an astonished face and says, "You can do that?"

  2. The critical scene occurs when a reluctant Mona Lisa is forced to testify using her general automotive experience. (She used to be a mechanic in her father's garage.) Before Vinny can begin his examination, the prosecutor objects and asks to "voir dire this witness." He then does so. Why is this a mistake, and what could the prosecutor done to avoid it?

    Our thoughts: When the prosecutor asked to voir dire the witness he should have asked for the jury to be excused. By asking the questions in front of the jury, only two things could have happened, both of them bad for the prosecutor. First, he could have proven that the woman was not competent, but in doing so he could have risked the jury hearing some evidence that they shouldn't have. Second, (as it turned out), he could have proven the witness' competency and, in the process, given her even more credibility. He should have asked for the jury to be excused during the voir dire.

  3. Fun Fact: There is actually an error in the storyline. A set a circumstances that don't add up. It has nothing to do with the law. Can you spot it? Hint: it is in the last 10 minutes of the movie.

    Our thoughts: Okay, you may have to go back and look for this. Vinny is sitting in the diner. He has just had another confrontation with the judge, who doesn't think Vinny is a real attorney. He called the New York clerk's office and found out that the attorney "Jerry Gallow" is dead. (That is the name Vinny earlier told the judge he was licensed under.) Vinny now does some quick dancing, telling the judge that he misunderstood. His name is not "Jerry Gallow," but "Jerry Callow." The judge tries to call the court clerk in New York to clear the matter up, but she is at lunch, so Vinny has only a couple of hours to win the case.

    Now Vinny is in the diner. Mona Lisa walks in with some pictures. Eventually Vinny blows up at her and Mona Lisa has had enough, so she storms out. When Vinny goes back into court, he stares at the photos left by Mona Lisa and has an epiphany, but he knows the only person available to him who will be able to identify the same game-changing facts from the photo is Mona Lisa. So he drags her into court and she testifies, eventually saving the day. After the case against his clients is dismissed, Vinny tries to rush out of town only to be approached by the judge right before he can leave. Instead of having him arrested, though, the judge shakes his hand and congratulates him on being a great attorney. As they drive away, Vinny asks Mona Lisa, "What the **** just happened back there?" Mona Lisa replies that she had a friend from the New York court call to verify the very impressing stature of "Jerry Callow."

    Here is the problem. Watch that part of the movie again. There is no way Mona Lisa could have known that Vinny told the judge his name was "Jerry Callow" instead of "Jerry Gallow." After Vinny's confrontation with the judge, the only two brief conversations Vinny and Mona Lisa have is in the diner and when Vinny drags her back into the court room. At no point is there a conversation about the name-change.

    Okay, we've watched this movie one too many times, but it is still great!

Classic Film Recommendation