Gene Hackman and Elizabeth Mastantonio are good actors and the story itself is credible.A worthy piece of entertainment.

Class Action is directed by Michael Apted, is written by Carolyn Shelby, Christopher Ames and Samantha Shad, has music by James Horner and stars Gene Hackman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Laurence Fishburne and Donald Moffatt.Jebediah Tucker Ward(Gene Hackman)is a brilliant lawyer who takes on a client who is suing the makers of his car due to major faults in the vehicle which it's believed led to an accident. Ward must deal with the fact that the defence lawyer for the automobile company is his estranged daughter Maggie Ward(Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio).Ward and Maggie have had a difficult relationship since Maggie discovered he was cheating on her mum. When her mum dies Maggie and Ward spend some time together after her funeral and tentatively try and reconnect. They find there's still too much bad feeling between them though and after a bitter argument don't speak. They find themselves thrown back together again when the case goes to court and they discover they will be facing each other in the courtroom.Although the film is classed as a courtroom drama there's more focus on the relationship between Ward and Maggie. The film works better as a story about an estranged father and daughter and Hackman and Mastrantonio have amazing chemistry.Anyone who has a less than perfect relationship with a parent will be able to relate to this film and to the awkwardness both Ward and Maggie feel when they are with each other. Hackman in particular is excellent in scenes where Ward is with his daughter and he doesn't know how to act around her,you can see that he wants to reach out to her but doesn't know how to and is perhaps too stubborn to even try.

Jed Ward (Gene Hackman) is a lawyer who fights to protect people against corporations. His daughter Maggie (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) works for a big legal firm. A case comes up which pitches them against each other. To make matters worse she resents her father for cheating on his wife (her mother) in the past. When they start butting heads over the case all hell breaks loose.Great legal drama with Hackman and Mastrantonio giving incredible performances in the leads. Either being politely legal to each other in the courtroom or tearing into each other in private they're great. I'm no lawyer but the film seems to follow legal procedures and rules pretty accurately (unlike some legal dramas that completely ignore most of the them). Even better it doesn't dumb down the dialogue and treat the audience like a bunch of idiots. It's well-written, thought-provoking and brings up some very good legal and ethical questions. Sometimes it's a little too slow and occasionally people seem to be giving speeches rather than talking but it still works all around. Also Colin Friels, Larry (Laurence) Fishburne, Donald Moffat and Jan Rubes give strong performances in supporting roles. This came and went pretty quickly in 1991 (probably because it had the most boring posters I've ever seen advertising it) but it's a good legal thriller that's worth catching. I give it an 8.

Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastroantonio are involved in a "Class Action" in this 1991 film that also stars Laurence Fishburne, Donald Moffatt, Joanna Merlin and Fred Thompson. Hackman and MEM, father and daughter, are both attorneys. "I raised you," Jed (Hackman) yells at Maggie (MEM) during one scene. "Mom raised me," she screams back. "You had a date." Maggie's resentment over her father's infidelity erupts after the death of her mother (Merlin) in a powerful scene. Although Maggie has tried to reconcile with him, she finds there is too much in the way. Maggie is in an ethical quandary when the law firm she works for wants to suppress evidence about an automobile manufacturer's malfeasance; complicating things is that her father heads the team the other side of the case.This is a very good movie that emotionally rings true, thanks to a good script and fine performances by Hackman and Mary Elizabeth. I had the pleasure of working with Mary Elizabeth when she was a Broadway actress - a lovely woman with a great talent, shown here to excellent advantage. Grieving for her mother and unable to accept her father's love, she is blindsided by her boyfriend/boss' ethics violation and has nowhere to turn. The viewer can really feel her pain. Hackman is wonderful as a shark attorney who loved his wife deeply but made some unfortunate choices and alienated his only child. He finds himself now vulnerable and confused; Hackman expresses these emotions beautifully. There is able support from the top-notch cast.Compelling and at times powerful.