The Trial is a 2010 drama film starring Matthew Modine together with Randy Wayne,Bob Gunton and Robert Forster. It is based on the novel of the same title by Robert Whitlow.The screenplay was written by Mark Freiburger,Gary Wheeler and Robert Whitlow.Also,it was produced and directed by Gary Wheeler.Aging, small town attorney Mac McClain is defending a young man accused of murdering the daughter of an influential local.After his two sons and wife die in a horrific car crash, suicide seems to be the only escape for small town attorney for McClain until he's assigned a capital punishment case involving the murder of the daughter of a powerful business man, in which the victim was drugged. All the odds seem stacked against McClain, and he loses the case. However, McClain manages to save the accused man's life by getting him off death row. At the end of the movie, a private investigator discovers that it was someone else who committed the murder and McClain's client is exonerated.This is a formulaic and predictable movie from beginning to end.But nevertheless,the movie works due to the fact that is combines the best features of courtroom drama, murder mystery and character story.Also,it is a powerful which shows the power of healing and hope.That in itself makes it a 10/10 rating.

This is my first review ever here on IMDb. Probably my last because I am embarrassed I sat thru this entire dish of cold pablum. A few of the reviews above here almost make the movie worth knowing about, like the 20 sermon summary one. {notice I did not say worth watching.....hmm maybe that is an idea, get some the clever user reviews copied onto the "bonus material" on the DVD. Then at least if you rented by mistake or some mean friend sent you as a gift...you'd have something to enjoy}oh heck the IMDb says I must have at least 10 lines in my review...gad how can one say even 10 words in support of this piece of drivel, let alone 10 lines? I really hope you avoid this one..OK OK it may not be that bad...it is just your basic ZERO.. === = = = I have to stop now and go enjoy some cheese whiz for excitement. = = = == =

THE TRIAL, adapted from Robert Whitlow's novel of the same name by director Gary Wheeler and Mark Freiburger, is in many ways a reminder of what movies used to be - movies that centered on trials of innocent victims or trials that, like TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, surfaced other issues to ponder. This film is a quiet little intimate tale about the justice system in all its elegance and flaws, but it is more: there are human stories that interweave giving the film an aura of caring that is so rare in today's CGI-oriented Hollywood. The film is set in the beauty of Georgia countryside, complete with mists and fields and rivers where we first see attorney Mac MacClain (Matthew Modine), pensive after the accidental death of his wife and two children nine years ago. His practice has fallen, his mental sate has fallen below the flatline state, and he is contemplating suicide when a telephone call from the wise old town judge (Rance Howard) summons him to take on a case of the murder of one Angela Hightower, the young and beautiful daughter of the wealthiest man in the little town, the corrupt Hightower family being part of Mac's sad past encounters. The accused is Angela's boyfriend Pete Thomason (an impressive Randy Wayne) who is now in jail claiming he had total amnesia for the event. Mac feels a sense of responsibility to the boy and agrees to take on the case, hiring back his assistant Mindy (Nikki Deloach) and his investigator Ray (Robert Forster). As they uncover facts Mac seeks advice from psychologist Dr. Anna Wilkes (Clare Carey) who in addition to testing Pete finds time to share her Grieving Group Sessions with Mac. The evidence is gathered and the trial begins after a plea bargain is denied by Pete. The Hightower lawyer is the brilliant, eloquent but ruthless Joe Whetstone (a fine performance by Bob Gunton) and the battle of wits and rights is on. The courtroom drama is well written and the turn of events from the trial to the followup findings and second trial are well molded. If the film ends in a too saccharine mode, the quality of acting in the film before that should make the audience tolerate the preachiness. There are some fine cameos -Larry Bagby, Burgess Jenkins, Brett Rice among them - and there is much to learn about contemporary youth habits and small town tenor. This is not a great film, but it is a refreshing memory of the small and intimate films of yesteryear. Grady Harp

You just knew the defendant just had to be innocent: a blond and blue eyed young man looking like the boy next door. I was struck by the contrast between the narrow squinty eyes of Matthew Modine as a world weary attorney and the young actor who played the defendant with eyes startlingly large and blue. He was the epitome of wide-eyed innocence. Surely such casting was not accidental.I also liked the appearance of Robert Forster. He still needs a hair transplant, but he did a credible job as the investigator. I still remember him from the cult classic 'Alligator' which also featured Dean Jagger in one of his last roles. I hope they both knew this movie was a spoof.