Runaway Jury

One thing you have to know about Runaway Jury is that it's not a courtroom drama. Only a small amount of the action takes place in the courtroom, and what does is largely uninteresting. Certainly this is its largest failing, but this movie is not 12 Angry Men, and it doesn't try to be. Instead, Runaway Jury is a relatively intelligent, largely entertaining thriller.

The underlying idea of Runaway Jury, that juries can be bought and sold to the highest bidder, is interesting, if somewhat unoriginal. It wouldn't surprise me if some people complain about the way Runaway Jury portrays our legal system, but the corruption displayed is perhaps not too disconnected from the truth. The fact that this kind of thing could happen in the real world makes Runaway Jury more intriguing than many other mainstream thrillers.

It's the largest, most important court case New Orleans has ever seen, and both sides are determined to win. A large gun manufacturing company is being sued by the widow of a murdered stock broker (Dylan McDermott), and the case looks to be the first that a gun company could ever lose. The widow has hired Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman), an adamant anti-gun crusader who wants to change the law. The gun company has Durwood Cable (Bruce Davison), a flashy, high-priced attorney. They have also hired Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman), a jury consultant who has promised to tilt the jury toward the defendant.

But neither Rohr nor Fitch could predict that one juror, Juror 9, Nick Easter (John Cusack), has plans of his own for the jury. Along with his girlfriend, Marlee (Rachel Weisz), Nick offers each side the chance at a verdict for $10 million. Fitch and Rohr respond differently. Fitch, who has never lost and never wants to, decides to fight back; he tries to find out as much as he can about both Nick and Marlee, in order to get what he wants without having to pay. Rohr at first refuses, but as the case goes downhill, his desire to do what he feels is right (punish the gun company) makes him consider accepting. Rohr's conflict between his desire for change and his conscience make for a fascinating degree of three-dimensionality.

Both the characters of Nick and Marlee are interesting because, up until the final fifteen minutes of the film, their motives for the offer are somewhat ambiguous. Are they only interested in the money, or do they have some other purpose in mind? These two are the heores, and the fact that we don't know if they're somewhat questionable morals makes us question our instincts about them. This adds an interesting extra layer to the movie.

The denouement of Runaway Jury is somewhat weak, because it seems everything ties up just a little too neatly. The twist isn't terribly surprising, either. However, the concluding scenes are well-structured, fast-paced, and involving, especially the final scenes in the jury room, so any shortcomings are easily forgiven.

Runaway Jury's ensemble cast is impressive and extremely watchable. Together on the big screen for the first time, both Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman are exemplary. Rankin Fitch, an amoral man who only cares about winning, is the kind of role Hackman loves, and he relishes every oppurtunity he gets to play evil. Hoffman fills his role with an understated sense of anger and passion, just boiling beneath the surface. The scene in which Rorh confronts Fitch in the court's bathroom is the best scene in the movie, hands down, and this is largely because of the way these two fantastic actors work together.

Once again, John Cusack plays off his greatest strength, which is his ability to play the everyman. And, just like in this year's Identity, he manages to flaunt expectations somewhat. This performance is not that different from some of his others (I still wish that this immensely talented actor could find a role with which to get noticed - I am sure that with the right material, he could get an Oscar nod), but his character's questionable motives make it just different enough. Rachel Weisz isn't one of the best female actresses working, but she's still appealing, and certainly easy to look at.

I'm sure some more finicky critics will attack Runaway Jury for its occasional plot holes or the aforementioned conclusion troubles. However, in a time full of thrillers that all seem the same, I don't see how anyone could not be at least moderately entertained.

© 2003 Matt Noller