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

1 win.

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:

murder | prison interview | evil | evil man | harvard | 

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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:

Action | 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

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,607,932, 19 February 1995, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$36,853,222

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

Will Smith was considered for the role of Bobby Earl Ferguson.

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Goofs

We hear a dial tone on Paul Armstrong's cellular phone.

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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

Referenced in Seven (1996)

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Soundtracks

Crying in the Chapel
Written by Artie Glenn
Performed by The Orioles
Played on the radio in Blair's parents' house

User Reviews

Interesting film with good performances, then it nose dives

I've seen my fair share of badly thought-out endings and final twists to films, but I don't recall any film that committed outright suicide like this one did.

The film makers were clearly hoping that the great twist would 'surprise' us all.... and it did, but perhaps not in the way the directors had hoped. I was left feeling surprised that Connery, Harris, Fishburn and Capshaw had anything to do with this turkey, individually or collectively.

The film up until the final thirty minutes was rather engaging and I like the way the story was unfolding and the nature of the film overall. But once the twist was revealed, the plot holes and inconsistencies were remarkable, the underlying motive for revenge was ill-conceived and the ways things so neatly worked out for Bobby Earl was ridiculously far-fetched. What's worse is that, once the twist was revealed, the remainder of the film became excruciatingly predictable.

Harris gave a terrific performance and Connery is like Morgan Freeman in that he never gives a bad performance, even if the movie ain't that great! So all in all, it starts well and the unfolding keeps the viewer interested. The last 30 minutes is one of the most memorable nose dives in the history of cinema.