Just Cause (1995)

A Harvard professor is lured back into the courtroom after 25 years to take the case of a young black man condemned to death for the horrific murder of a child.

Director:

Arne Glimcher

Writers:

John Katzenbach (novel), Jeb Stuart (screenplay),

Stars:

Sean Connery, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Capshaw

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Connery	...	Paul Armstrong
Laurence Fishburne	...	Sheriff Tanny Brown
Kate Capshaw	...	Laurie Prentiss Armstrong
Blair Underwood	...	Bobby Earl
Ed Harris	...	Blair Sullivan
Christopher Murray	...	Detective T.J. Wilcox
Ruby Dee	...	Evangeline
Scarlett Johansson	...	Katie Armstrong
Daniel J. Travanti	...	Warden
Ned Beatty	...	McNair
Liz Torres	...	Delores Rodriguez
Lynne Thigpen	...	Ida Conklin
Taral Hicks	...	Lena Brown
Victor Slezak	...	Sgt. Rogers
Kevin McCarthy	...	Phil Prentiss

Storyline

Bobby Earl is facing the electric chair for the murder of a young girl. Eight years after the crime he calls in Paul Armstrong, a professor of law, to help prove his innocence. Armstrong quickly uncovers some overlooked evidence to present to the local police, but they aren't interested - Bobby was their killer.

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Plot Keywords:

harvard | murder | florida | daughter | electric chair | 

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Taglines:

Buried deep in the Florida Everglades is a secret that can save an innocent man or let a killer kill again.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and strong language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 February 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Causa justa

Filming Locations:

Collier County, Florida, USA

Box Office

Gross:

£1,123,499 (UK) (14 April 1995)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Fountainbridge Films, Lee Rich Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Norman Jewison was originally attached to direct.

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Goofs

When Paul Armstrong goes to Tanny Brown's house and learns that the murdered girl was actually a friend of Brown's daughter, Tanny Brown comes home and angrily says, "I ought to have you locked up." However, his mouth is not moving at all when we hear the words.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Bobby Earl: Hey, you want my money, you best start throwing some elbow into that, boy. A dollar fifty, that's two bits shy of a car wash.
Kid Washing Car #1: A dollar fifty *each*.
Bobby Earl: Oh man, now you must got me confused with some other idiot.

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Connections

References Cape Fear (1991)

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Soundtracks

"Bringing in the Sheaves"
Traditional
Hummed by Blair

User Reviews

A Conservative Is A Liberal Who's Been Mugged

Just Cause takes some of the best parts of three films, Cape Fear, A Touch of Evil and Silence of the Lambs and mixes it together to come up with a good thriller of a film.

Sean Connery is a liberal law professor, married to a former Assistant District Attorney, Kate Capshaw and he's a crusader against capital punishment. Blair Underwood's grandmother Ruby Dee buttonholes Connery at a conference and persuades him to handle her grandson's appeal. He's sitting on death row for the murder of a young girl.

When Connery arrives in this rural Florida county he's up against a tough sheriff played by Laurence Fishburne who's about as ruthless in his crime solving as Orson Welles was in Touch of Evil.

Later on after Connery gets the verdict set aside with evidence he's uncovered, he's feeling pretty good about himself. At that point the film takes a decided turn from Touch of Evil to Cape Fear.

To say that all is not what it seems is to put it mildly. The cast uniformly turns in some good performances. Special mention must be made of Ed Harris who plays a Hannibal Lecter like serial killer on death row with Underwood. He will make your skin crawl and he starts making Connery rethink some of those comfortable liberal premises he's been basing his convictions on. Many a confirmed liberal I've known has come out thinking quite differently once they've become a crime victim.

Of course the reverse is equally true. Many a law and order conservative if they ever get involved on the wrong end of the criminal justice system wants to make real sure all his rights are indeed guaranteed.

Criminal justice is not an end, but a process and a never ending one at that for all society. I guess if Just Cause has a moral that would probably be it.