Very good
Who will tell introspective, moral character studies as well as Clint Eastwood once he’s gone? It’s a question that’s becoming all the more prevalent as every film he directs from here on out begins to feel like his last. One hopes “Juror #2” isn’ the last we see of him but if it is, its not a bad way to go out. This is one rich film- equal parts suspense thriller and family drama, slickly directed and pulling consistantly compelling character work from terrific actors.
It stars Nicholas Hoult, in what I believe is a starmaking turn, as Justin Kemp. He’s a dedicated family man and soon to be dad called to be on the jury of a murder trial involving an abusive, drunken boyfriend (Gabe Basso) and his girlfriend, who wound up dead in a ditch. The rub here is that Justin, a recovering alcoholic, has more than a second hand knowledge of the case as he was there in the bar that night as the couple were fighting and, depressed and sullen over his own problems, he took his eyes off the road for a second only to hit what he believed to be a deer. Eastwood often flashes back to the time in question- one of those dark and stormy nights where the weather feels as tumultuous as the feelings being displayed by the characters. Now the cold light of day has arrived and Justin is told by a lawyer pal (Keifer Sutherland) that he could face up to 30 years to life, even though he wasn’t even intoxicated that night.
Eastwood and his screenwriter Jonathan Abrams ask the main question early, not just of Justin but of the man on trial. Even though both men have tried to go straight and have built productive lives since, atonement must still be paid, shouldn’t it? Its in the jury room where Justin will have to save the man, but also himself, and from here you can see the nifty twist on “12 Angry Men” forming. It gives Hoult one of his most complex, and meaty roles yet and that he manages to make Justin such a humble, genuine fellow is the key here. We can see the internal struggle with him- his regret but also his fight for his wife and his unborn child so rather than wanting to see Justin get caught, we instead are forced to deal with the unfairness of needing to pay the price and the people that will hurt.
The jury room is also teeming with strong supporting character work that causes yet more obstacles. J.K. Simmons plays a Detective and juror who begins to conduct his own investigation into the murder, possibly to the detriment of Justin. And Cedric Yarborough is terrific as that one, stubborn, angry juror who believes Justin is bullshitting everyone.
But Eastwood also takes us outside the jury room, where Toni Collette has another plum role as a prosecutor confronted by whether she got all this right, or if she was blinded by her ambition to be the States New District Attorney. Her words in the beginning of the trial cut deep into Justin’s guilt like a knife, but in true fashion of nearly every character in the film, she too is made to search her own soul.
It’s very rare to find dramatic thrillers that are this smart, that rely on characters who do have moral ambiguity and that make you wonder what they’re going to do next. Another plus is that it avoids insane contrivances and implausibilities and keeps that psychological focus all the way through. This movie would actually pair great with a movie I saw the day before called “Conclave”, another which proves that adult entertainment isn’t braindead or dead in general. Why Warner Brothers is only giving this one a limited release I have no idea and I wish I was able to tell you when and where it would be coming out wider but for some reason we don’t even know that. But it’s absolutely worth adding on to your list and seeking it out. The mid-budget adult thriller seems to be back in all its glory. May it continue to live on, and may Eastwood continue to show the younger generation how its done.