New Direction and Middle Men

Alright, I've been neglected this blog for awhile. Instead of making a new one (pretty easy to do), I've decided to take my most popular blog and push it into a completely new direction. Instead of being focused on the legal niche, which those articles will remain, this piece of the internet will review male-oriented movies in a "deep", literary way. This is my pet project; apply literary devices to mainstream movies.

In my initial post of my new project I'll analyze the movie "Middle Men". This movie is based on the true story of Paycom, which specialized in the billing of the fledgling Internet Adult Entertainment industry. The director took a comedic approach to the making of the movie that had a twist of seriousness. In the beginning, Middle Men almost paralleled "Lord of War" in that it showed the beginning of his final conflict that the rest of the movie describes. In Middle Men, his ending problem is the kidnapping of a child that we latter learn is his housekeeper's son, and who the main character Jack Harris (Luke Wilson) is paying the two million dollar ransom for.

Throughout the movie, I was not sure how much of the events were true, or just over-dramatized. The movie had the feel that much of it was overly dramatized, but still the true events most likely had their crazy movements. The viewer may feel the betrayal and idiocracy that many of the characters emulate. Jack Harris, the nice Texan man, is pushed into many situations that turn out good then bad for him. You see the character developed over time from a novice, likable guy to a hardened businessman who seems to not lose his lovable features that could just be reminiscent of the actor's portrayal.

By the end, you get the moral of the movie. The moral comes out to be, in business don't partner with idiots or the Russian mob. A pretty solid message that may be easier said than done.    

Basic Overview of the Job

The legal system affects nearly every aspect of our society, from buying a home to crossing the street. Lawyers form the backbone of this system, linking it to society in numerous ways. They hold positions of great responsibility and are obligated to adhere to a strict code of ethics.

Lawyers, also called attorneys, act as both advocates and advisors in our society. As advocates, they represent one of the parties in criminal and civil trials by presenting evidence and arguing in court to support their client. As advisors, lawyers counsel their clients about their legal rights and obligations and suggest particular courses of action in business and personal matters. Whether acting as an advocate or an advisor, all attorneys research the intent of laws and judicial decisions and apply the law to the specific circumstances faced by their clients.

The more detailed aspects of a lawyer’s job depend upon his or her field of specialization and position. Although all lawyers are licensed to represent parties in court, some appear in court more frequently than others. Trial lawyers spend the majority of their time outside the courtroom, conducting research, interviewing clients and witnesses, and handling other details in preparation for a trial.

Lawyers may specialize in a number of areas, such as bankruptcy, probate, international, elder, or environmental law. Those specializing in, for example, environmental law may represent interest groups, waste disposal companies, or construction firms in their dealings with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other Federal and State agencies. These lawyers help clients prepare and file for licenses and applications for approval before certain activities are permitted to occur. Some lawyers specialize in the growing field of intellectual property, helping to protect clients’ claims to copyrights, artwork under contract, product designs, and computer programs. Other lawyers advise insurance companies about the legality of insurance transactions, guiding the company in writing insurance policies to conform to the law and to protect the companies from unwarranted claims. When claims are filed against insurance companies, these attorneys review the claims and represent the companies in court.

Most lawyers are in private practice, concentrating on criminal or civil law. In criminal law, lawyers represent individuals who have been charged with crimes and argue their cases in courts of law. Attorneys dealing with civil law assist clients with litigation, wills, trusts, contracts, mortgages, titles, and leases. Other lawyers handle only public-interest cases—civil or criminal—concentrating on particular causes and choosing cases that might have an impact on the way law is applied. Lawyers sometimes are employed full time by a single client. If the client is a corporation, the lawyer is known as “house counsel” and usually advises the company concerning legal issues related to its business activities. These issues might involve patents, government regulations, contracts with other companies, property interests, or collective-bargaining agreements with unions.

A significant number of attorneys are employed at the various levels of government. Some work for State attorneys general, prosecutors, and public defenders in criminal courts. At the Federal level, attorneys investigate cases for the U.S. Department of Justice and other agencies. Government lawyers also help develop programs, draft and interpret laws and legislation, establish enforcement procedures, and argue civil and criminal cases on behalf of the government.

Other lawyers work for legal aid societies—private, nonprofit organizations established to serve disadvantaged people. These lawyers generally handle civil, rather than criminal, cases.

Lawyers are increasingly using various forms of technology to perform more efficiently. Although all lawyers continue to use law libraries to prepare cases, most supplement conventional printed sources with computer sources, such as the Internet and legal databases. Software is used to search this legal literature automatically and to identify legal texts relevant to a specific case. In litigation involving many supporting documents, lawyers may use computers to organize and index materials. Lawyers must be geographically mobile and able to reach their clients in a timely matter, so they might use electronic filing, Web and videoconferencing, mobile electronic devices, and voice-recognition technology to share information more effectively.

From bls.gov