Review: No Moviegoer Should Miss Juror #2

At 94, Clint Eastwood knows that every new movie he makes could be his last. This puts “Juror #2” in a difficult position. While this indictment of a broken justice system may be his last film adaptation, it’s hardly his best, as Jonathan Abrams’ original screenplay is riddled with holes that grow exponentially with each scene.

Still, Eastwood’s and an outstanding cast of undeniably fine material create a tense, gripping legal thriller that’s a sly provocation that’s definitely worth your time and attention as it fervently explores the ethical quicksand that entangles many of its characters.

In the role of Dirty Harry and in the operas “Man with no name”, Eastwood killed without breaking a sweat. But after the 1994 western Unforgiven, which won him his first Oscars for director and best picture, Eastwood developed a conscience that prompted him to question morals.

The same goes for Juror #2, Eastwood’s 40th film as a director. The reliably awesome Nicholas Gault (Mad Max: Fury Road, The Menu) stars as Justin Kemp, a magazine writer who finds himself on a jury report, even though he’d rather be at home supporting his very pregnant wife Ellie (Zoe Deutch). , in vain), who suffered a miscarriage during the last attempt to become parents.

Still, patriotic duty compels Justin to serve in a Georgia courtroom in Savannah, where most potential jurors are eager to put an end to this cursed case. As a recovering alcoholic, Justin feels a connection to defendant James Site (Gabriel Basso), a fiery drug addict on trial for the murder of his girlfriend Kendall (Francesca Eastwood, Clint’s real-life daughter).

In the memoir, Eastwood describes scenes of Kendall fighting in a bar with a violent James and rushing home alone in the pouring rain, and the next morning her body is found covered in blood in a ravine. All evidence points to James in the mind of DA Faith Killebrew (a great Toni Collette), who believes that removing James will help her campaign for district attorney.

Complications continue to pile up as public defender Eric Resnick (Chris Resnick) realizes he’s facing a losing battle. That when Justin, in one of the plot twists the film keeps tripping over, realizes he was at the same bar on the same rainy night, and even though he hadn’t been drinking, he remembers that his car hit what he thought was a deer .

Could James have accidentally hit and killed Kendall? Wanting to confess, his lawyer and AA sponsor Larry Lasker (Kiefer Sutherland) tells him that no jury will ever believe he was sober that night, and he faces life in prison without parole.

Next, Justin, impersonating 12 Angry Men, starts confronting his fellow jurors who want James convicted — only Harold (the always excellent JK Simmons), an ex-cop on the jury, joins Justin. about voting innocent. But the case seems against them.

Trust Eastwood to never shy away from a tough fight, preferring the complex gray area between heroism and villainy to challenge himself and his audience.

At this level, Juror #2 works like gangbangs. No movie buff should miss this. So credit to Warner Bros., Eastwood’s studio has helped keep Eastwood alive for decades by reducing the number of theaters where his latest is available. The legend deserves better. Watch Juror #2 and make his day.