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Runaway Jury [2004]


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Editorial
Amazon.co.uk Review

Based on the bestseller by John Grisham, Runaway Jury is a slick thriller that's exciting enough to overcome the gaps in its plot. The ultimate target has been changed: Grisham's legal assault on the tobacco industry was switched to the hot-button issue of gun control (no doubt to avoid comparisons with The Insider) in a riveting exposé of jury-tampering. Gene Hackman plays the ultra-cynical, utterly unscrupulous pawn of the gun-makers, using an expert staff and advanced electronics to hand-pick a New Orleans jury that will return a favourable verdict; Dustin Hoffman (making his first screen appearance with real-life former roommate Hackman) defends the grieving widow of a gun-shooting victim with idealistic zeal, while maverick juror John Cusack and accomplice Rachel Weisz play both ends against the middle in a personal quest to hold gun-makers accountable. It's riveting stuff, even when it's obvious that Grisham and director Gary Fleder have glossed over any details that would unravel the plot's intricate design. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com


Runaway Performances!
Review date: 2008-09-22 Rating: 10 out of 10

I have no idea whether juries in the real world can be corrupted as this jury in the reel world is, but "Runaway Jury" is a riveting thriller that ought to capture the interest of the viewer from beginning to end, whether one buys into all the plot points or not.

Its success as a genre-film derives from the superlative cast, which is headed by Dustin Hoffman in the role of the honest but savvily down-to-earth attorney (with shabby suit and a carefully planted mustard dab on his tie) who is suing the big gun companies on behalf of the wife of a victim of a mass murder; and Gene Hackman as the ruthless (and expensively dressed) jury consultant, who does not give a fig for the victims, but merely wants to win big on behalf of his even bigger clients, no matter how low he has to stoop to do it. Hoffman and Hackman are supported ably by John Cusack and Rachel Weisz, both of whose characters have hidden agendas.

Although the film is worth watching for its suspense-factor alone, the performances of Hoffman and Hackman, who confront each other in the old-fashioned wood-paneled men's washroom of the court, lift "Runaway Jury" from the level of a conventional court-room thriller. This scene, which lasts several minutes, allows these two cinematic masters to pull out all the stops, as it were, of their craft. It is so rare nowadays to get a full-blown scene--more reminiscent of one in a stage play--between two actors of their calibre.

The settings of pre-Katrina New Orleans--the French Quarter and the Garden District--also contribute to the film's ambience.

Every once and a while, I sit down and watch the DVD of a film that I missed in the theatre the first time around. Many, I pass on to my friends; "Runaway Jury," I did not.

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Reviews


can juries be corrupted like this - whatever the answer really is the film is enjoyable to watch
Review date: 2008-09-20 Rating: 6 out of 10

Can juries be corrupted in the united states in the way that this film suggests? I doubt it but this doesn't stop Runaway Jury from being intriguing enough to watch and well enough written and directed to make the experience enjoyable.But with actors like these: dustin hoffman and gene hackman what else would we expect.This movie however is nowhere near as good as the other john grisham adaptation The Client (susan sarandon,tommy lee jones) and it is about the same standard as The Pelican Brief (julia roberts,denzel washington)which was weaker than the client too.

Changed
Review date: 2008-03-22 Rating: 8 out of 10

Why was the case changed from cigarettes to guns for the film? Suing for cancer makes far more sense than suing over use of a gun. Hackman was very good but as is usual with Grisham, the book is better.

Tobacco for Guns Trade Off
Review date: 2007-06-24 Rating: 6 out of 10

John Grisham should be livid over the way they butchered his book for an advertisement for gun safety. The original story of the tobacco industry is thrown right out in favor for a democratic approach to gun control that is bias to say the least. The only plus here is the performances, and I really do mean plus because if the performances were as bad as the film, I would have definitely walk out of the theater. Gene Hackman is very good as a man trying to secure a verdict for the gun manufactures, and Rachel Weisz is also very good as a woman trying to secure the verdict for her own gain. John Cusack is good as a juror with a motive, and Dustin Hoffman is fine as a layer with a passion for the truth. With a better director and a better screenplay, the movie would have been Oscar worthy, too bad it's not.

Top pedigree, middling result.
Review date: 2007-06-09 Rating: 8 out of 10

Another John Grisham thriller is churned out as a star studded movie. It seems the books with the most thrills have been taken, as this is somewhat pedestrian, although still entertaining.
So what's it about? A big trial against the gun manufacturers is in progress, and both sides are anxious to have the jury on their side. The gun manufacturers hire Gene Hackman, representing the dark corporate side of jury manipulation. However, the apple-cart is upturned when it turns out that the jury is already being manipulated and may be for sale, engineered by someone on the jury and an accomplice (Weisz).
The collection of stars is fantastic - Hackman, Hoffman, Cusack, Weisz. In fact, as the interesting extras point out, Hackman and Hoffman have never shared screen time before. Seeing them in their one big screen moment together is the highlight of the movie. Hackman does not quite bring the same complexity to the role as he did to his other Grisham movie, `The Firm', but he lends real gravitas to his unscrupulous jury consultant. Hoffman is unusually restrained for the most part to play a convincing attorney, but it's Cusack once again who shows himself as a truly natural talent, morphing into just about any role he is given with ease. Here, the entertainment is in watching him manipulate the jury with some applied psychology, while his own motivation remains obscured until a time of his choosing.
Most of the movie is a bidding war and cat and mouse game, until the final denouement unveils the true motivation in a reasonably satisfying way. Along the way, the thriller elements seem shoehorned in, with the real joy in watching the process of choosing and manipulating the jury - the indictment of the system the movie is aiming at.
It's a solid enough story, and well told - but somehow you get the feeling the source material was never as cinematic as Grisham's previous movie adaptations. The cast and acting, especially by Hackman and Cusack, make this worthwhile. For legal thriller buffs, it won't disappoint, but it's not the real classic it might have been.
The extras where Hackman and Hoffman chat about their on screen scene together and their long friendship, is probably the most interesting thing on the disc.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Rachel Weisz
John Cusack
Gene Hackman
Dustin Hoffman
Bruce Davison

Creators:
John Cusack (Primary Contributor)
Gene Hackman (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
EAN: 5039036016698
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL, Widescreen,
Release date: 2004-06-14
Number of discs: 1
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 122 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2003-10-17
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: French (Original Language)
Language: Italian (Original Language)

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