Film

The Devil's Advocate

Name: The Devil's Advocate
Genre: Horror, Drama, Mystery
Released: 1997
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Al Pacino, Charlize Theron, Jeffrey Jones, Judith Ivey

A slick, overheated legal thriller in which a hotshot Florida defense attorney takes a dream job at a Manhattan firm run by a boss who turns out to be Satan himself. Keanu Reeves plays wide-eyed ambition; Al Pacino chews the scenery with unrepentant glee. It's a two-and-a-half-hour morality tale dressed up as pulp horror — for anyone who likes their sins delivered with a monologue and a wink.

TMDb rating

3.7

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy slick, morally sweaty legal thrillers where a handsome young professional's ambition slowly curdles, and you don't mind a sermon dressed up as a stylish, overheated horror.

Skip it if you find the swaggering, overlong run of a 144-minute film wearing, or you want horror that stays quiet and subtle rather than one that shouts its ideas.

What it asks of you: Expect a long evening of fast talk, lavish sets and mounting excess, with the pace built for sustained attention rather than quick scares.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Rosemary's Baby1968

Polanski's chilling vision of a Satanic conspiracy hiding in plain sight, tense with paranoia and quiet dread. It's the gold standard for devil-next-door horror, elegant where Advocate is loud and operatic.

But It's slow-burn and restrained — if you want fireworks and Pacino-style bombast, this patient dread might test you.

The Firm1993

Same machinery — a corrupt law firm swallows an idealistic young lawyer whole — minus the literal devil. Tom Cruise learns his glossy new job comes soaked in blackmail and blood money.

But It trades supernatural menace for procedural grind; the thrills are slower and far more legalistic.

Wall Street1987

Gordon Gekko is Milton without the horns — a magnetic, corrupting mentor who turns hungry ambition into moral rot. Same Faustian shape, just traded law for finance.

But It's a period piece now, and its greed-is-good satire feels almost quaint next to today's grimmer excess.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Devil's Advocate

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

All That Money Can Buy1941

This did the lawyer-versus-the-devil courtroom bargain fifty-six years before Advocate, right down to a charismatic Satan who prefers persuasion to fire and brimstone.

A New England farmer sells his soul to a courtly, folksy Satan named Mr. Scratch, and only a silver-tongued lawyer can argue him free in a literal trial for his soul.

But It's a black-and-white studio picture with old-fashioned pacing and folklore charm rather than modern horror dread.

Angel Heart1987

Mickey Rourke's private eye stumbles into a supernatural conspiracy overseen by a courteous, immaculately dressed Robert De Niro who may not be who you think. Same slow reveal of evil in a nice suit.

But It's murkier and more art-house noir than horror thriller, and the twist demands real patience.

Se7en1995

A different flavor of moral corrosion — a serial killer's sermon on sin, delivered through a rain-soaked, nihilistic detective story. Same fascination with evil as argument, not just act.

But It's bleaker and crueler with no charismatic devil to enjoy, just despair and an ending that lingers unpleasantly.

The Ninth Gate1999

Johnny Depp chases a rare book that may unlock literal Satanic power, in a slow-burn occult mystery from Polanski trading legal drama for antiquarian menace.

But Its ending divides people, and the pacing is deliberately languid — more puzzle box than horror ride.

Primal Fear1996

A courtroom thriller with a genuinely startling twist about guilt, performance and evil hiding behind an innocent face — different engine, same pleasure in being outsmarted.

But Once you know the twist it loses its charge, and the courtroom mechanics feel a little dated now.

Constantine2005

Reeves returns to devil-adjacent territory, this time as an exorcist working the seam between Heaven and Hell in glossy comic-book noir. Fun to watch him play the other side of the fight.

But It leans hard into style over substance, and fans of the original comic will find plenty to grumble about.

Match Point2005

Woody Allen's cool, controlled tale of ambition, desire and moral collapse among London's monied class — a quieter, more elegant descent that ends up in the same place.

But It's understated where Advocate is operatic; if you want an actual devil, there isn't one, just human weakness.

Bedazzled2000

Same devil-grants-your-desires bargain that powers Milton's schemes, played for laughs instead of damnation — the trashy, comic mirror image of Advocate's self-seriousness.

Brendan Fraser gets seven wishes from Elizabeth Hurley's flirtatious, deal-cutting devil, each one a comic monkey's-paw disaster. Pure, gleeful, low-stakes fun with the same premise.

But It's broad studio comedy with sight gags and zero menace — if you wanted dread, this absolutely isn't it.

The Corporation2003

Advocate's law firm is basically Hell's HR department; this documentary makes the literal case that corporations already behave like soulless entities, no devil required.

A sharp, funny, genuinely alarming documentary that diagnoses the modern corporation as a legal psychopath — no empathy, no conscience, built only to grow. Real-world evidence for Milton's law firm.

But It's talking-heads and analysis rather than drama — you're watching an argument, not a thriller, and some examples feel dated now.