Runaway Jury Review:

Shot entirely in New Orleans, Louisiana, Runaway Jury is the latest on-screen adaptation of a John Grisham novel. The story follows a trial in on the controversial issue of gun control. After the tragic murder of her husband, a grieving woman is suing a big gun corporation, whose products are what take her husband’s life in the film’s opening sequence. In her defense is the ethical attorney Wendall Rohr (Dustin Hoffman). The gun corporation enlists a cut-throat jury consultant named Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman) to help secure a jury that will decide in their favor. Fitch is a man who never loses; he sets up an abandoned warehouse full of high tech equipment along with a team to cover surveillance on potential jurors. After the jury is selected, juror Nick Easter (John Cusack) becomes the wild card of the jury pool. With the outside help of his partner Marlee (Rachel Weisz), the price of the jury is up for negotiation and Easter can sway it either way. The film then turns into an intense thriller, which has its own share of surprises.

Gary Fleder knows how to push audience’s buttons as a director of thrillers, he did so previously with Kiss the Girls and does it again with Runaway Jury. Though his direction is balance, it seems that he and his writers still needed to do their research about the details of security issues or sequestering of a jury during a high profile case. Though all of the jury members are a part of this huge-risky trial, there is only one security guard watching over them. They can walk out of the courthouse as they please, which Cusack’s Nick Easter does a couple of times. Even after watching the film a second time, it seems that these lack-luster choices could have been handled differently or just plain left out of the film.

The one main reason to see this film is the outstanding scene between Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman in the courthouse’s bathroom. It is just so much fun to watch these two legends bounce off of one another in the scene. Both are terrific in each of their respected roles, with Cusack and Weisz also delivering the goods.

Though many things from Grisham’s novel were altered or expanded on in this film, Runaway Jury is still one of the better Grisham films to be put on the screen.

Picture & Audio

The transfer of the film to disc was done well, with some moments that could have been too dark, such as the voodoo shop scene, are clear in definition and detail. New Orleans is beautifully shown throughout the entire film.

The sound of the disc is presented in 5.1 Dolby Surround and is nearly pitch perfect. There are many scenes in the film that rely on sound, such as the few that Fleder points out in the commentary. The dialogue is also clearly heard along with the abundant noises of the French Quarter in New Orleans.

Extras

Audio Commentary by Director Gary Fleder
Fleder gives a very solid commentary going into detail on all areas of the film. He even talks about some of the film’s hidden clues, as well as giving his own two cents on certain scenes. An example is the film’s opening gun-shooting scene, in which he said that of all the reviews of the film he read, not one mentioned that the opening sequence has no blood and hardly any violence as it relies totally on sound design. Fleder also gives insight as to the differences in the film version to Grisham’s novel.

Scene-Specific Commentary by Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman
Through the magic of split screen, Hackman gives commentary about Fitch’s final scene in the film and Hoffman gives commentary about the bathroom scene between the two legends. Hackman talks mostly about how the scene was shot and what he wanted to reflect to the audience of his character’s defeat. Hoffman talks about the rehearsal time and the way the scene was shot, but the specific feature about the scene gives more detail involved with the scene.

Deleted Scenes
There are two deleted scenes on the disc that have optional commentary by Fleder. One scene involves Cusack’s Nick making a call to Weisz’s Marlee, and the other has one of the other jury members becoming suspicious that the jury has been bought. Both scenes could have been left in, but either way it does hurt the film. When the film first came out in New Orleans, some articles that were printed with an interview with Fleder had the director saying that his original cut of the film was around three hours, so there has to be more cut scenes. Perhaps, the additional scenes will be unveiled down the road on a different edition DVD.

Exploring the Scene and Off the Cuff: Hackman and Hoffman Together
As the film did theatrically and does now more so on DVD, Hackman and Hoffman’s first ever on screen scene is the highlight of the DVD features. ‘In Exploring the Scene,” Hackman and Hoffman are both spoken with exclusively about the scene. Rehearsal footage is shown as well as the many flub of lines among other things by the actors. Though best friends for over forty years, Hackman and Hoffman both talk about the pressure that was built up around the bathroom scene. Hoffman actually downplays it and admits everyone compared it to something like DeNiro and Pacino’s coffee shop scene in Heat. The feature takes you through nearly every step involved in the filming of this classic scene.

In “Off the Cuff,” Hackman and Hoffman are both side-by-side talking about their past and current relationship. The two were actually both young students at Pasadena Playhouse when they met in 1956, and then became roommates in New York. Both complement each other and talk about their various past roles in films. The two also joke around a lot and reveal their past embarrassing stories. Both also agree that each are the same person that they were back in they late 50’s when they met.

Five Featurettes: “Making of Runaway Jury,” Acting, Cinematography, Production Design, and Editing
The “Making of” is your everyday behind the scenes feature that is included on most DVDs nowadays. But the others are behind the scenes features focused on each element of the production. All are terrific in giving insight to the cast and crew, especially the production design segment. There are also numerous interviews with the cast and crew about the film, the adaptation and New Orleans. In which, John Cusack talks about the food in the city and how one can gain 35 pounds quickly due to the food, he also called the city Temptation Bayou.

Trailers
• Man on Fire

Overall

Runaway Jury is not a great, but a good thriller that is pretty fun. Even though there are some annoying choices by Fleder, the film entertains, especially from an acting standpoint. Though a disappointment at the box office last October in the United States, I believe this film will find a home on DVD. The special features are amusing as well, especially the two features about Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman.

The Film: B-
Video Quality: B+
Audio Quality : B+
Extra Features: B+

DVD as a whole: B

Joseph C. Tucker

Site Contents Copyright© The Z Review, unless used with permission.This site has no intention to infringe on the rights of the film owners of Runaway Jury and intellectual copyright holders of the movies mentioned herein & hold copyright over the movie, characters, merchandise & storyline.