Jury trials are real-life stories about the human drama. Lessons for trial lawyers are everywhere as a result. One rich source for trial lawyer tips is at the cinema — including from films without trials or lawyers.
With the Oscars around the corner, three films up for best picture this year — "Sinners," "Marty Supreme" and "F1" — provide useful trial advocacy tips.
Fair warning — spoilers ahead. So please silence your cell phones, locate the nearest exit and enjoy the article!
"Sinners"
Set in Jim Crow-era Mississippi, "Sinners" follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack as they endeavor to open a juke joint featuring music, dance and companionship. They enlist their cousin,
Sammie — the son of a preacher — in these efforts, who wrestles with the freedom of blues music versus the constraints of his church background. But good times turn hostile when a roaming tribe of vampires target the juke joint.
Known for its fresh take on an old genre, as well as its rich thematic metaphors, "Sinners" is the most-nominated film in Academy Awards history, with 16 Oscar nominations. The film also provides terrific lessons for trial lawyers, beyond Smoke and Stack's debonair suits.
Open dramatically, although not necessarily chronologically.
The opening scene in "Sinners" is dramatic and captivating. On an early Sunday morning, Sammie stumbles into a bright church in blood-stained clothes, an open gash on his neck and clutching a broken guitar. Sammie then approaches and embraces his father — the preacher — during an ongoing service, while several eerie flashbacks from the previous night are revealed. The film then resumes 24 hours earlier.
In just two minutes, the audience is hooked, wanting to know what happened just one day earlier.
In the same way, every opening statement should capture the jury's attention in the first two minutes. This is true for every type of trial, whether you're representing the plaintiff or the defendant. And each trial is a blank canvas to do something original.
The classic introductory line identifying "what this case is about" may hook the jury. Or it could be a straightforward list of undisputed and key facts, much like Kevin Bacon's opening in "A Few Good Men." Or, borrowing from "Sinners," the opening could start at the end to grab the jury's attention, making jurors want to learn about the rest of the story.
The key is to engage the jury from the start.
Keep the door shut.
In many ways, "Sinners" resurrects the tired genre of vampire films, yet some old tropes survive. A core example is that vampires cannot enter a dwelling unless they are invited in. And so, perhaps as expected, the film includes tense scenes involving questionable decisions about whom to let into the juke joint, ending with a thrilling battle to the death between the human and vampire factions.
Fortunately, your trials likely do not involve fights with supernatural creatures or death battles of any kind. But you should be fanatical about always keeping the door to your war room shut.
Courthouses are confined spaces, meaning that jurors, opposing trial team members, and judicial clerks and staff are always within earshot. So when your trial teams meet in your war room at court, always keep the door shut, and immediately stop talking — regardless of subject — before anyone opens the door to let a team member in.
In sum, always be aware of your surrounding trial, keep the door to your war room shut and, for good measure, don't let any vampires enter the room.
Use vivid visuals.
While "Sinners" is memorable for many reasons, one scene stands out from all others. Sammie takes the stage to perform for the first time. In an electric scene, he sings "I lied to you." But it is neither the lyrics nor the vocal performance that is most memorable.
Instead, it is the choreography that is paired with the song, a vibrant dance scene that intermixes the past and future, African dancers and geishas, DJs and electric guitarists, breakdancers and ballet dancers, among others — all in a hallucinatory setting with the main characters. The scene is visually stunning and unforgettable.
Peer-reviewed neuroscience literature teaches that what we see may be more important than what we hear.1 Every stage of trial — opening statement, the presentation of evidence and closing arguments — demands powerful visuals. For instance, in Social Media Cases — the ongoing bellwether trial over social media addiction in Los Angeles County Superior Court — Mark Lanier, the lead plaintiff's attorney, dramatically unveiled a 40-foot banner revealing hundreds of posts from the plaintiff's Instagram account.
The point here is not to try to duplicate the "Sinners" dance scene or copy Lanier's banner. Instead, brainstorm and use vivid, evocative and — most importantly — unforgettable visuals at every stage in trial.
A witness showing how he changes a prosthetic has a much bigger impact than simply telling the jury about it. A closing argument counting five out of 100 pennies conveys a 5% royalty with more persuasive force than any numerical equation ever could.
The opportunities are endless. Just be original, like "Sinners."
"Marty Supreme"
This film is a wild ride. It takes viewers on Marty Mauser's chaotic — some may say unhinged — quest for international ping-pong acclaim. With frenetic energy and absurdist touches, the story combines ambition, personal turmoil and sports drama into a spirited character study of grit and self-belief — two characteristics every trial lawyer needs.
But Marty's journey to table tennis notoriety is no road map to success for a trial attorney — quite the opposite. Were Marty a member of the bar, his career would likely have been short-lived due to violations of the American Bar Association's Model Rules of Professional Conduct, including Rule 1.2 on assisting criminal or fraudulent conduct; Rule 4.1 on knowingly making false statements; and Rule 8.4, which covers a variety of misconduct.
Still, trial lawyers would be wise to study the storytelling that earned the film nine Oscar nominations.
Obsession is a requirement.
Marty is consumed by becoming the best table tennis player in the world. He analyzes every aspect of the game. That exploration even leads him to the idea for an orange ping-pong ball to give himself a competitive advantage.
Midway through the film, Marty reaches a breaking point. His relationships are strained and his finances are unstable, but he remains obsessed with his sport. With equal parts defiance and desperation, Marty explains his drive toward his singular goal: "It means I have an obligation to see a very specific thing through, and with that obligation comes sacrifice."
Trial lawyers should not embrace Marty's chaos, but they can embrace his attitude of obsession with their craft. Excellence in trial work requires a disciplined form of obsession — mastery of the facts, command of both sides' weaknesses and relentless preparation.
Trial is a multifaceted, high-stakes endeavor that demands hyperfocus. Be obsessed. But please avoid leaving a wake of collateral damage in your pursuit of excellence, as Marty did.
Narrative wins cases.
To put it mildly, Marty is a complicated character. He is abrasive, toxic and ego-driven. And yet the film subtly invites us to cheer for him. Viewers are left asking themselves: Am I supposed to like Marty? Do I want him to win?
Perhaps they cheer him on because he is the underdog who has faced tribulations and sacrificed everything in pursuit of his dream. Or they may see Marty as irredeemable because of the indifference he displays for how his actions affect others, including his loved ones. Ultimately, moviegoers weigh not only Marty's actions, but also his motives, credibility and the consequences of his actions in deciding whether they will cheer for him in a fight or a table tennis match.
Like moviegoers, jurors do not pass judgment based on facts in isolation. Humans are wired for storytelling. We interpret a collection of facts through narrative frameworks that help us answer deeper questions: Why did this happen? Who is responsible? What does this say about the people involved?
Framing character and motivation influences verdicts. From the start, a trial lawyer must present a cohesive narrative that inspires jurors to want to find for your side. Two sides may present very similar core facts. But the side whose narrative feels coherent, authentic and truthful — whose story makes emotional and moral sense — will often prevail.
Plan to pivot.
"Everything in my life is falling apart, but I'm gonna figure it out." This was Marty's attitude in the face of sequential disasters. He faces formidable opponents and unexpected obstacles. Yet he always has a new plan and proceeds.
Trial is no different. Every trial presents surprise setbacks — the witness who doesn't show up, the technology that fails, the undisclosed impeachment exhibit, the trial team's food poisoning from the hotel caterer. You name it, it has happened in a trial somewhere.
Yet Marty does not linger in self-pity or outrage. He recalibrates and continues toward his goal of getting to the World Championship. Trial attorneys must do the same to maintain their credibility and the jury's attention, and because the show must go on.
You need to have a Plan A, B and C. And when the unforeseeable happens, a poker face is a must. Or perhaps a small misstep is an opportunity to get a laugh. But be strategic in how you react, or don't react. Indeed, jurors are watching how you respond just as closely as they are listening to what you say.
And above all else, keep going forward.
"F1"
Adrenaline. Competition. Twists and turns. This heart-pumping racing film pairs Sonny Hayes, a has-been driver called to make a comeback, with Joshua Pearce, a hot-shot rookie, on a high-octane exploration of Formula One racing, ego and mentorship.
The film says a lot about trial lawyers, too. Consider this exchange between Sonny and the team manager about Joshua early in the film:
Sonny: Listen. He's cocky, he's arrogant. He's got a lot to learn.
Ruben: You were cocky. You were arrogant. And you had a lot to learn.
Any trial lawyers come to mind?
Putting aside idiosyncratic traits shared between race-car drivers and trial lawyers, the film serves as a rich source for lessons on trial advocacy. Sonny's adage to "drive with purpose, or don't drive at all" is equally sage advice for trial lawyers.
Here are three more tips for trial lawyers to consider from "F1."
Lull your opponent.
An important aspect in F1 racing is having warm — and thus fast — tires. So, in Sonny's first F1 race in years, he awkwardly starts and stops his car in the formation lap, much to the mockery and laughter of those observing. But, as the race is about to start, the commentators discover Sonny's unconventional strategy, recognizing that he gained an advantage on the field by warming up his tires while everyone else thought he didn't know what he was doing.
Trial lawyers need a strategic objective for everything they do in the courtroom. And those objectives can never be colored or evaluated based on how anyone else thinks about them in the moment.
Consider the lawyer who methodically and subtly lays the evidentiary foundation throughout trial, only to save the aha moment for the jury in closing arguments. Opposing counsel might high-five in the hallways after each trial day, oblivious to what is really going on.
Every trial lawyer needs to place their strategic objective over their ego and what anyone else may think.
Be aggressive without being reckless.
Just as Sonny and Joshua begin to work together, tragedy strikes. Late in a race, Sonny helps guide Joshua as he remains in close contention to win. Sonny sees the risk ahead and warns Joshua to hold back for the upcoming tight turn. Joshua presses ahead anyway in a brazen effort to take the lead. This reckless tactic causes Joshua to lose control and the car catapults off track before exploding into flames.
Trial is not for the risk-averse. But taking risks is not the same as disregarding risks. Consider the infamous glove demonstration in the 1995 OJ Simpson criminal trial, California v. Simpson in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Even putting aside that no trial lawyer should give control of a demonstration to an adverse witness, the inherent uncertainty surrounding a dried, shrunken glove fitting over a latex intermediary was objectively reckless. And the demonstration, of course, notoriously failed.
Ultimately the risk you take at trial needs to be commensurate with the strength or weakness of your case. But trial lawyers can never be reckless.
Trial is a team sport.
To the uninitiated, Formula One racing is a sport of one: the driver. "F1" looks under the hood to expose this misimpression. As the team's technical director emphasized to Sonny, "When you look in a mirror, you see this rough-and-tumble old school cowboy..... Well, I have news for you. Formula One is a team sport."
This is also true of trials. Even with a first-chair lawyer who has Sonny's ego, verdicts are won with a deep bench of talent and collaboration. Mock witness examinations, jury instructions, late-night motions and exhibit binders are just several examples among many that require a team of attorneys and business professionals.
The End
Enjoy the Oscars. Appreciate and celebrate the original human creativity underlying all the films in contention. And appreciate that originality and creativity are no less important when it comes to trial work.
1 See, e.g., McGurk H., MacDonald J. (1976). Hearing lips and seeing voices. Nature 264, 746–748.
Related Attorneys
Partner
Partner
