Best (movie) Attorney

OK, you're on trial. You have your pick of movie lawyers to hire. Whom do you hire?

Here are some of the top picks:

Category 1 -- Excellent attorneys who lost their most famous movie cases:

1) Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck). He's clever, honorable and charming. Too bad he lost the only case we know about.

2) Clarence Darrow (Spencer Tracy) in "Inherit the Wind". It's true that he demolished William Jennings Bryan on the witness stand, but do we really want to hire another loser? Donald Trump says, "No!"

Category 2 -- Very good, but not quite believable.

1) Tom Cruise (A Few Good Men). His cross examination of Colonel Jessup is legendary, but can we believe the good Colonel would wilt under the glare of Tiny Tom's megawatt smile?

Category 3 -- Winner, winner, chicken dinner.

1) Paul Newman in "The Verdict". He's an alcoholic; James Mason out thinks him in terms of the law; but he wins his case with his blue eyes and great summation ("You are the law.")

2) James Stewart in "Anatomy of a Murder". You have to respect his homespun legal skills, especially since he gets his guilty client acquitted.

3) MY TOP CHOICE -- Henry Fonda in "Young Mr. Lincoln". Funny, charming, witty, and yet a bear in cross examination. It doesn't hurt his rep that he went on to free the slaves, either. No jury could (I think) convict an Abe Lincoln client. It just wouldn't happen.

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Best (movie) Attorney