Product Description

From master storyteller John Grisham and the director of Don't Say A Word comes a taut suspense-thriller that "grabs hold of you and never lets go" (Philadelphia Metro). In their first film together, screen legends Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman face off in this electrifying nail-biter about a ruthless jury consultant who'll do anything to win. With lives and millions of dollars at stake, the fixer plays a deadly cat-and-mouse game with a jury member (John Cusack) and a mysterious woman (Rachel Weisz) who offer to "deliver" the verdict to the highest bidder. Packed with danger, intrigue and pulse-pounding twists and turns, Runaway Jury rules!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7822 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-08-31
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Dolby, Dubbed, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English, French, Spanish
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 127 minutes

From Amazon.com
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 comparison to 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 favorable 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

Review
Runaway Jury is a reasonably entertaining film if you don't think about it too much. It offers relatively tight pacing, an impressive cast, and a plot that combines courtroom drama, fights, chases, and assorted cat-and-mouse games. However, you may be disappointed if you're looking for an airtight plot that doesn't strain credulity or leave any loose ends hanging, a serious exploration of the complex issues that are raised in the story, in-depth character development, or any degree of subtlety. This is a heavy-handed potboiler that demonizes the gun industry and offers only limited opportunity for its talented supporting cast to stretch their acting muscles. You do get a chance to see Gene Hackman (in his third John Grisham film adaptation) and Dustin Hoffman in their first film together, John Cusack is a good fit for the lead role, and the story is generally engaging if you don't mind the plot contrivances. But there's a lot of wasted potential in this movie. ~ Todd Kristel, All Movie Guide

On the DVD
ccFull-length audio commentary by director Gary Fleder
Scene-specific commentary by Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman
Deleted scenes with commentary
Five featurettes covering the acting, cinematography, production design, editing, and making of the film

Customer Reviews

The strong performance of Rachel Weisz is the only plus here
Derivative thriller that not only does not stay close to the book but also lacks the insight to give a better show. The script has too many problems and the pacing starts and stalls at will in the most starling of moments. The acting is fine with Rachel Weisz stealing the show and doing better than she should have consitering the script is flat and Gene Hackman doing his best work in years. The whole espionage aspect to the film just does not work, and in reality, the case would have been throng out of a real court. The acting is the only plus in this film and that is a miracle because the rest of the film just does not work.

Thanks to Rachel Weisz and Gene Hackman, the movie is just ok but if it had a decent script, it could have been better.

Weisz, Hackman and Hoffman are great but the film is not.
Lackluster adaptation to the John Grisham novel has only the acting to save it for total disaster with great performances by Rachel Weisz, Gene Hackman, and Dustin Hoffman but they are working from a half baked script that in essence does not know what it wants to be and direction that is marginal at best. The tobacco story is gutted for a pure and simple look at gun violence, and the setting of New Orleans is not the original setting of the book.

If you want to see this movie, the acting more than makes up for the problems it has, but not by much.

Other reviewers watched a different movie?
Not sure what movie the other reviewers watched, but both my SO and I enjoyed this movie immenensely. Well acted, well directed, and well executed.

The fact it goes "morally conscious" at the end of the movie, didn't detract from the experience at all, no matter what I think about gun control. It wasn't ABOUT that, it was about the story, which was great to watch unfold.