The motion picture Philadelphia

The motion picture Philadelphia is a film that seems prescient given that a case much like the one depicted in the story was featured for several weeks on Court TV after the film had been released, and indeed the plaintiff in that case was accused of having gotten the idea for his lawsuit from seeing the film. In fact, there have been other similar cases before this, and they are the result of the growth of the AIDS problem and the response of many corporations acting out of fear and ignorance. Law firms are not immune from either of these emotions. The film makes strong use of dramatic elements to bolster its case in favor of the plaintiff and to make the law firm he fights seem all the more heartless, and indeed, all the more shortsighted.

Andrew Beckett is a lawyer on the fast track in his Philadelphia law firm in spite of the fact that he is gay, something he does not bandy about. He is the darling of the head of the firm and is given all the toughest cases until it is discovered that he has AIDS, and at that point he is terminated with several feeble excuses. It appears that the firm is afraid of the ramifications of his disease and of how that disease might make the law firm look to future clients. Beckett is devastated, but over time he develops evidence and sets out to sue the firm for wrongful termination, gaining the support of a black lawyer named Joe Miller, the only lawyer he can find who will represent him. Miller at first turns him down, for he is also

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way from casual contact. Some members of the law firm have this view, and they would get rid of nearly everything Beckett had touched to protect themselves. They also believe that clients would be afraid of a lawyer who had AIDS, and while they might be correct about this, that fact does not give them the right to terminate the employee. Indeed, they are in effect punishing Beckett for the ignorance of others. They are also failing to give support to a loyal and valued employee, and they have had to lie to do it by claiming that he is a bad lawyer. They are thus poisoning the well so that he will not be able to get a job anywhere else not because of his AIDS but because of the claim that he is a bad lawyer. The film makes a case for Beckett from the beginning. It is clear that the leaders of the law firm are lying to him when they let him go. The filmmakers have little sympathy for the law firm and a great deal of sympathy for Beckett. He has hidden his condition from fellow workers out of fear, and clearly that fear is justified. The reaction of Joe Miller is typical. Miller is a decent man who might normally be sympathetic to the underdog. He does not see Beckett as an underdog because of the tony law firm for which

Category: Film - T