The People vs. Larry Flynt

Our first thoughts about this picture may be, "Why the hell would a respectable filmmaker like Milos Forman make a movie about the life story of a scumbag like Flynt?" The answer may lie in the question itself.

Milos Forman tells the life story of Larry Flynt, the owner of Hustler magazine, from Flynt's first newsletter, which inspired Hustler, to his court fight against Rev. Jerry Falwell.

Even dealing with a controversial subject like pornography, Forman's film is never of bad taste and hits right on the spot with its subjects, creating a fascinating movie. "Right" is probably the best word to define this movie.

Woody Harrelson delivers a wonderful performance as Larry Flynt. The same can be said of Courtney Love as Althea, Flynt's life-long love and Edward Norton, who plays Flynt's lawyer, Alan Isaacman. Norton is actually a condensation of Flynt's several lawyers, receiving the name of the lawyer who represents him in the Supreme Court.

As Flynt's magazine takes off and flies higher and higher, he also starts to gather more and more antagonists, passing through several tests and lawsuits, always defended by his faithful lawyer, Isaacman. "I'm your dream client, I'm fun, I'm rich and I'm always in trouble," says Flynt to him at one point.

The real Larry Flynt also makes a cameo as the judge who first convicts Harrelson to twenty years of jail time.

Even if you don't like Larry Flynt, you'll definitely enjoy this picture. Flynt's last lawsuit filed by Rev. Falwell went all the way to the Supreme Court, becoming a matter of right of free speech.

The whole situation began with a parody of an ad published in Hustler magazine, describing the "first time" of Rev. Falwell with his mother...a piece of terrible bad taste, and the Rev. Falwell was absolutely right about getting offended.

The Supreme Court ruling raised outrageous comments at the time, but if Rev. Falwell had succeeded, the decision would have reflected not only over Hustler magazine, but over all publications.

Journals and magazines' editorials would be forced to control their comments and cartoonists would have to censure themselves in order to not offend someone. Even that sentence on the first paragraph probably wouldn't be permitted because Flynt may have been offended by being called "scumbag."

As Flynt himself proclaims to a judge in the courtroom, "Well, Your Honor, opinions are like a**holes, everybody's got one." We can't confuse a matter of taste with a matter of rights.