Runaway Jury
April 2004 Reviewed by: Josh Barber Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

You get the feeling, watching a movie based on a John Grisham story, that he does not like lawyers very much. Sure, there's always the one "good" lawyer with shining morals and unshakable principles, but every other barrister in the story is a detestable scumbag, one step removed from shoving baby carriages in front of speeding trucks for giggles.

Maybe it is his insider's perspective. Before becoming an author, Grisham was a lawyer. His latest novel to be turned into a movie is Runaway Jury, a look at the lengths to which both sides in a case will go in order to make sure they win.

As the film begins, an infuriated day-trader has returned to the firm where he used to work, bringing a gun with him. He kills several of his former co-workers before turning the gun on himself, and now the widow of one of the victims is suing the gun manufacturer. Facing a financially stunting settlement, the manufacturer calls upon jury consultant Rankin Fitch, a high-paid specialist who helps stack the deck in favor of corporate defendants. It's Fitch's job to help the defense team choose which potential jurors they will accept and which they will dismiss. He thinks he has the perfect jury, until he realizes that one of the jurors is swaying the case from the inside.

Runaway Jury marks the first time that Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman have appeared together in a film, despite their long careers. Hackman is at his cocky, bad-tempered best as Rankin Fitch, not above plumbing a juror's medical history to find some evidence to use against him. Hoffman plays prosecuting attorney Wendell Rohr, a civilized Southern gentleman who wants to win his case the old-fashioned way.

Despite Hackman’s and Hoffman’s considerable talent, Runaway Jury relies just as much upon John Cusack and Rachel Weisz. Cusack plays Nicholas Easter, the inside man who is playing both sides against each other. He gets to be coolly understated as he slowly manipulates his fellow jurors to show Fitch what he is capable of. Weisz makes Easter's girlfriend Marlee determined and incredibly capable; she keeps the show running even when Fitch's thugs begin to get rough.

As viewers, we are meant to sympathize with the plaintiff in the case. After all, a gun-wielding maniac killed her husband. But stop to think for a moment, and the premise seems faulty: Is it the gun manufacturer's fault that a man killed her husband? Was it even the gun's fault? Considering how often Hollywood gets blamed for people's actions (think Columbine High School and The Matrix, for instance), the stance that the progenitor is ultimately responsible for all of its creation's consequences seems out of place at best and self-destructive at worst.

That's not to say that the film is not entertaining or that it does not do a good job of wrapping you up in its message. Indeed, the complex maneuvering between Fitch and Easter is great to watch, and you do get the feeling that Rohr is trying to do something good. It is only after a few days, when you can take the time to analyze the film, that these issues become apparent.

Image quality on the DVD is fine -- strong colors, solid whites and blacks, no weird encoding errors -- but the backgrounds sometime get a bit fuzzy in busy scenes. The sound is good, with the voices coming through clearly even in hectic locations such as a large, hollow courtroom or a busy lunchtime restaurant. The only low point is the opening office rampage, which fails to use surround speakers in any significant way.

Director Gary Fleder sits down for a solo commentary that shows how much thought he put into the film. He discusses the choices he made, the changes made from the book, and even the actors' performances. Hoffman and Hackman provide commentary for two featurettes that focus on them, "The Washroom: Dustin Hoffman" and "The Bar: Gene Hackman."

"Exploring the Scene: Hackman & Hoffman Together" is a 15-minute look at the pair's friendship. They have known each other for 35 years -- ever since their time together at the Pasadena Playhouse -- yet had never worked together on a movie before. Two deleted scenes would have added little of value to the movie, but still warrant their inclusion on this disc.

"The Making of Runaway Jury" is your typical spoiler-filled offering; in 13 minutes, it gives away the whole plot. "The Ensemble: Acting" turns its focus on Cusack, Weisz, and the minor players for a meeting of the mutual appreciation society, with lots of congratulations all around.

Finally, we have three five-minute production featurettes. The first is "Shadow and Light: Cinematography" with cinematographer Robert Elswit. "A Vision of New Orleans: Production Design" features a fun and informative tour of the set by production-designer Nelson Coates. The third, "Rhythm: The Craft of Editing," is with editor William Steinkamp, who did a great job with this film.

Runaway Jury is a taut, intriguing piece if you don't pay attention to its politics. The courtroom drama is good and the actors, from main cast to smallest supporter, all do an admirable job.

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