Phil Spector (film)

Phil Spector
Promotional poster
Genre
Written byDavid Mamet
Directed byDavid Mamet
Starring
ComposerMarcelo Zarvos
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
ProducerMichael Hausman
CinematographyJuan Ruiz Anchía
EditorBarbara Tulliver
Running time92 minutes
Production companyHBO Films
Original release
NetworkHBO
ReleaseMarch 24, 2013 (2013-03-24)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Phil Spector is a 2013 American biographical drama television film written and directed by David Mamet. The film is based on the murder trials of record producer, songwriter and musician Phil Spector and premiered on HBO on March 24, 2013.[1] It stars Al Pacino as Phil Spector, Helen Mirren as defense attorney Linda Kenney Baden, and Jeffrey Tambor as defense attorney Bruce Cutler. It focuses primarily on the relationship between Spector and Linda Kenney Baden, his defense attorney in 2007 during the first of his two murder trials for the 2003 death of Lana Clarkson in his California mansion, and is billed as "an exploration of the client–attorney relationship" between Spector and Kenney Baden.[2]

The film was controversial for fictionalizing aspects of the case and for neglecting significant evidence presented by the real life prosecution, leading to accusations that the movie was created as an advocacy piece in Spector's favor. Spector was not involved with the film and disputed its historical accuracy. Although it is based on real people and an actual event, it opens with an unusually worded disclaimer that states, "This is a work of fiction. It's not "based on a true story." It is a drama inspired by actual persons on a trial, but it is neither an attempt to depict the actual persons, nor to comment upon the trial or its outcome."

  1. ^ Elan, Priya (February 5, 2013). "Al Pacino's Phil Spector moment: HBO's film still deconstructed". The Guardian. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  2. ^ Brown, Mick (June 29, 2013). "David Mamet on Phil Spector: 'I don't give a damn about the facts'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on June 25, 2018. Retrieved June 24, 2018.