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The latest courtroom thriller adapted from a John Grisham novel is among the best this subgenre has to offer, being graced with a superior script, taut direction, and, above all, a sensational cast. Near-legendary tort lawyer Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman) is using a shooting death to sue the gun manufacturer, in a test case with wide-ranging implications. The defendant hires jury consultant Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman) to make sure that the jurors selected will be sympathetic to the gun lobby. Fitch's shadowy campaign to influence the jury pool is upset by Nick Easter (John Cusack), a "wild card" deliberator with an agenda all his own. Brian Koppelman's screenplay is crowded with colorful characters and incidents; you need a scorecard to keep up with everybody, and you dare not take your eye off the screen for a second, for fear of missing something that plays an important role in subsequent events. Under the direction of Gary Fleder, Runaway Jury crackles with tension, and this emotional urgency is forcefully conveyed by the actors -- especially Hackman and Hoffman, whose confrontation in a courthouse men's room is the movie's undisputed highlight. Cusack has already displayed facility with morally ambiguous characters, and his performance as the secretly scheming juror is one of his finest. Also rating kudos are Rachel Weisz (playing Cusack's girlfriend and accomplice), Bruce McGill (a stern judge), Bruce Davison (a weak defense attorney), Jeremy Piven, Nick Searcy, Jennifer Beals, and Joanna Going. This is a fairly conventional but commendably slick piece of mainstream moviemaking, and as popcorn thrillers go, it's way above average. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Three people attempt to bend justice for their own purposes in this drama based on the best-selling novel by John Grisham. After a man dies in a shooting incident, his wife files a lawsuit against the company that manufactured the gun, with her lawyer, Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman), arguing that the firm in question knew the shop which sold the weapon was not following federal regulations pertaining to the sale of firearms. As the case goes to trial, the firearm manufacturer is taking no chances on the outcome of a potentially devastating case, and they hire as part of their legal team Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman), a "jury consultant" who makes it his business to see that he knows enough about the jurors to be able to guarantee the result of the trial. Fitch and his team have learned incriminating secrets about nearly everyone hearing the evidence, but Fitch discovers two factors he wasn't counting upon -- Nick Easter (John Cusack), the jury member who appears to have an agenda all his own, and Marlee (Rachel Weisz), a mysterious woman who has her own plans regarding bending the jury to her will. Bruce Davison, Jeremy Piven, and Bruce McGill round out the supporting cast. Incidentally, in John Grisham's original book, the case was filed against a cigarette manufacturer, but the producers opted to adjust the story after several real-life trials against tobacco companies. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 024543100812
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby Digital
• Editions: Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 2:07:00

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Courtroom Pack
• Legal Legends Box Set
• Runaway Jury / Class Action
• High Crimes / Runaway Jury

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