After The Lincoln Lawyer, PJ Thinks McConaughey May Have Staying Power

So PJ just saw The Lincoln Lawyer, and if you had been listening, you might have heard him expounding on his theory of longevity with regard to the acting profession.

Careers of male stars, he was saying, often span five decades, and, in some cases, even longer.

Females, sadly, are not so fortunate. Leading ladies have about a single decade and then do not return to the screen until we spot them as grandmotherly types.

Why this pattern? Well, it may be explained by what PJ refers to as the photograph phenomenon: Show a guy a picture taken of him years ago and he thinks he looks goofy.

Show a woman a picture from her yesteryear, and she gets all misty and nostalgic.

And why is this? Simply because men almost always look better now, while women, well, almost always, looked better then.

And so it is with actors and actresses. And their careers.

Take your Clint Eastwoods, your Sean Connerys, your Paul Newmans and your Robert Redfords. MAN! (See, it’s even built into the language. Does the exclamation WOMAN exist? Nope.) These guys had staying power. They always seemed to look good. Plus they had that something special: Guys thought they were cool, and women thought they were sexy.

Actresses, on the other hand, let’s face it, are objectified merely as glamorous love interests of aging men. And then, sadly, they and their youthful glamour often fade from the screen.

So, you may be asking, where is PJ going with this.

OK, back to The Lincoln Lawyer.

He loved the movie. And, for the first time that he can recall, he thought Matthew McConaughey was terrific.

You see, when Matthew first sauntered onto the scene in the 90’s, PJ thought that he was going to be one of these ageless guys. That he had that something special. Women seemed to love him. Guys thought he was cool. But frankly, it never translated to the screen. Matthew’s suit, let’s face it, was somewhat empty. PJ remembers loving the book A Time to Kill. He couldn’t wait for the movie. But, Mr. McConaughey disappointed. And then there were all those silly frilly movies.

But, male leads have staying power. And Matthew has been persistent.

Had he been a woman, his career would never have survived even that first decade. His window would have slammed shut.

But, son of a gun, he finally got one right. Matthew McConaughey, it seems, has  “grown” into an actor with substance. Males, remember, are provided this extra time for growth. Plus, yeah, he’s still looking good too!

He plays a defense attorney. A manipulative, smarmy, scheming, conniving, oily defense attorney. Yet, for some reason, we like him. He’s cool, charming, and yes, sexy.

PJ loved that Marisa Tomei played his opposite. Good casting. Marisa actually kind of muddies the waters of PJ’s theory because she, unlike most female leads, is also cool, charming, and sexy. PJ is thinking that she’s got some of that male lead stuff in her, and is an exception to the rule. Even though her pan flashed “a ways” back, she seems to have “grown” as well displaying a dimension of maturity and knowing wisdom.

Anyway, the movie had PJ at the edge of his seat. Literally. It is smart with plenty of plot twists. And, man (oops, there he goes again) don’t we all love those dramatic courtroom scenes?

The supporting cast is solid. William H. Macy is fun. Michael Pena is always believable. He, PJ believes, performed the single greatest vignette ever seen in a movie. Who could ever forget the moment when he placed the invisible protective cape on his little girl while hiding under her bed in Crash? What a scene.

And now that Matthew McConaughey has finally arrived, who knows, maybe he’s got another two or three decades left in him. Time is forgiving to male actors. It has been kind to him.

And who knows, we may even see this character revisited.

PJ would not mind seeing a Lincoln Lawyer sequel or two.

This one was that much fun.