Steel Toes

In filmmakers David Gow and Mark Adam's Steel Toes (based on Gow's stage production), David Straithairn—a wonderful actor with a long string of socially conscious films to his credit—plays liberal Jewish attorney Danny Dunkleman, appointed by the court to defend neo-Nazi skinhead Mike Downey (Andrew Walker), on trial for the racially motivated murder of an East Indian immigrant. During the tense period leading up to the trial, the two men spar constantly while coping with their intellectual, emotional, and moral differences. Of course, self-consciously “important” films run the risk of becoming heavy-handed, preachy, and condescending—a fate that occasionally befalls Steel Toes, which bluntly tries to impress upon viewers the virtues of tolerance and compassion. In addition, the film's dramatic structure results in a certain unavoidable staginess, but the dynamic performances—Straithairn's in particular—help dilute the obvious theatricality. A strong optional purchase. (E. Hulse)