mark.waltz No matter how reliable the sources seem, reporting on possible crime elements involving private citizens requires more facts than just a supposed reliable source. So finds out ambitious Miami reporter Sally Field, so determined to be a part of the big boy's club that she takes on more than she's qualified to handle at this junction in her career and ends up paying the price. The victim of her scoop is an alleged crime figure (Paul Newman) who runs a waterfront liquor manufacturing corporation and is accused of being involved in the disappearance of a pivotal union boss. He claims that he was nowhere near Miami when the missing man disappeared but won't give an alibi. Field keeps digging and finds a key witness to Newman's whereabouts, but for the troubled Melinda Dillon, revealing where they were could destroy her life, and she begs Field to not reveal her name. But ambitious journalism knows no boundaries, and this leads to a horrific twist that threatens to come between Newman and Field's growing friendship and reveals some not so surprising developments in Miami's legal prosecution department.To tell the truth, you must interview many witnesses and determine which facts are key, which conflict with other information and the credibility of all sources. Field quickly spills a cup of coffee all over her desk when Newman unexpectedly pops by after her first story appears to demand to know where she got her information. This shows her greenness in the field of journalism, evident by her being kept out of a key video showing of the funeral of Newman's father where he was seen with key mob figures and got arrested for assaulting a police officer. As Field and Newman become closer and intimately involved, it becomes very apparent that something is going on in the legal world in the department of justice and that Newman is the intended fall guy for a crime that probably could never be solved. This culminates in a showdown with justice department head Wilford Brimley who must clean up all the messes yet help the department save face in the wake of a growing scandal.While the age difference between Field and Newman is very apparent, it's also to see why a young woman could fall for the still striking older Newman, fit and trim nearly 30 years into a still hot career. She's established to be ambitious but ethical, and this mistake early in her career might cost her a good job (although that is only hinted at), but it is obvious that she will learn from her mistakes and how not to be used in political wars between government and alleged crime figures. She's more of a quiet reactor to Newman's plea for justice, and coming off of her Oscar winning performance in "Norma Rae" adds another role to throw away the "Gidget" image. Her character identifies as a "Women's libber", but unlike many of today's modern feminists, she's aware that she's far from perfect and needs the mentorship of the men she works with, particularly her fair minded boss, typically nicknamed "Mac" (an amusing cliché in films about journalism.)As for Newman, he commands every scene he's in, and with "The Verdict" around the corner, proved that an aging actor with white hair could still be hot in an era where youth was taking over pretty much everywhere. His scenes with both Field and Dillon show the many layers he invests in this character, and his reaction to Field after a tragic event might raise eyebrows as an attempted rape, but something in the way the story is developed makes his actions understandable, and even Field's character seems to be aware that she has pushed him to his outburst. Dillon is as far from the lovable mother in "A Christmas Story" as she can be, closer to her role as Nick Nolte's sister in "Prince of Tides", and along with Newman, justifiably received an Oscar nomination. A superb script and excellent direction by Sydney Pollack make this a modern classic, although I feel it dates itself a bit in some aspects. Still, with those powerhouse performances and a story that is relevant even today, I find "Absence of Malice" to be quite timely and important. Every character is given layers to make them believably human, even the minor ones who have a few moments to make their participation in this film stand out. The film ends on a note of hope, although with the passing of time, it seems that journalism has not learned from past mistakes, and as long as a headline sells newspapers, stories like the one given for Newman will continue to pop up on the front page even if they don't reveal the entire truth.

jmillerdp Paul Newman's hit piece on the press is pretty see-through in its intent. All because Newman had issues about people printing stories about him. So, what follows is a one-sided story about an incompetent reporter (Sally Field) and the press apparatus recklessly tearing into an innocent man (Paul Newman).Since the movie is as one-sided as it is, you would hope for some style from the script, but it's instead just plodding and without any style whatsoever. Field, who's shown herself as highly competent in films like "Norma Rae" inexplicably plays a complete ditz here. Newman just plays his stock Newman character.The way the story unfolds is clunky and unfocused. Throwing in a lot of mafia dealings, lots of unnecessary melodrama, and a kinda-sorta romance between the mismatched Newman and Field makes the movie thoroughly unwieldy.I've never been a fan of Dave Grusin's film scores, so his over-the-top music here again proves to be too much. Owen Roizman is a very good cinematographer, but his work can't help the movie with its issues.Sydney Pollack was always a director who was certainly the lesser of his contemporaries. Easily proving this is how much better a job Sidney Lumet did with Newman the next year with "The Verdict." And, it didn't hurt that Lumet had the great David Mamet writing the script.* (1 Out of 10 Stars)

Ross622 Sydney Pollack's Absence of Malice is a romantic thriller with with good casting choices and great performances from Paul Newman, Sally Field, Wilford Brimley, and Bob Balaban. The thing i truly didn't get about the movie is that it was found out that Michael Gallagher (played by Newman) didn't kidnap Diaz, and Bob Balaban's character still believed that Gallagher still kidnapped him.Another thing i didn't get about the film was during the inquiry when Wilford Brimley's character asks Sally Field's character some questions Field's lawyer still objects to his questions when they are not even in a courtroom. But i still enjoyed the movie but those were the 2 huge mistakes that i found while watching it. Director Sydney Pollack can brilliantly execute a thriller movie just like he did with The Firm starring Tom Cruise. The film has great performances throughout especially from Paul Newman who is excellent here as he always is in his other movies. This a great thriller film with excellent writing to it as well.

mbat19 Absence of Malice had the potential to be a good pic about the morality of the media and being mindful of how the news is reported and who is the ones giving the information to those who report it. The movie has a great cast: Paul Newman as the son of a reputed mobster who may or may not be involved in nefarious doings. Sally Field as the gullible reporter who is unaware of the puppet strings on her back. Melinda Dillion as the friend of Paul Newman's character that ends up dead. The cast however cant do much with the material given to it. Overall the story is OK but it just does not get moving or hold any interest in the characters.