Now that April has arrived, Hulu has welcomed new movies into its library, including the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy, The Fifth Element, and a modern classic, The Big Lebowski. Even superhero fans are well-served this month with X2: X-Men United, Hellboy, Wonder Woman, and both of the Shazam! movies. But as a Hulu subscriber of several years, my pick for the one movie that you need to stream on Hulu this month is Runaway Jury.
Runaway Jury is a legal thriller with a stellar cast including Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, John Cusack, Rachel Weisz, and even some very familiar faces among the jury like Jennifer Beals, Luis Guzmán, and Nora Dunn. The film also celebrated its 20th anniversary last year with little fanfare, but it’s still enjoyable over two decades since its 2003 release. And if you’re on the fence about picking this flick for your next movie night, then we’ve got five reasons you should watch Runaway Jury on Hulu in April.
It’s the last great John Grisham movie
During the ’90s, lawyer-turned-novelist John Grisham was undefeated with legal thrillers that made the leap to the big screen. The Firm, The Pelican Brief, The Client, and A Time to Kill were among the adaptations that became box office hits and established Grisham in Hollywood. Runaway Jury arrived at the tail end of that legendary run, and Grisham hasn’t had the same cinematic track record since.
Runaway Jury was underrated compared to the other Grisham adaptations despite its fantastic cast. But that makes it ideal to be rediscovered again now the film is on Hulu.
Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman are at the top of their game
Runaway Jury was the penultimate film in Gene Hackman’s career, and it gave him one of his best villainous characters. Hackman plays Rankin Fitch, a jury consultant whose legal philosophy is that almost every court case is decided before the trial during jury selection. Fitch knows which jurors he can manipulate and which ones will need to be blackmailed or coerced into seeing things his way. Fitch is so slimy that he makes Hackman’s Lex Luthor seem virtuous by comparison.
Speaking of virtue, Dustin Hoffman’s Wendell Rohr is no Superman, but he’s brave enough to take a case that attempts to hold a gun manufacturer liable for a mass shooting. It’s an uphill battle all the way, but Hoffman imbues Rohr with empathy for the victims and an undercurrent of fury towards the gun makers. Rohr really believes in the case and he’s largely an admirable character, even though Hackman kind of steals the entire movie from Hoffman.
John Cusack and Rachel Weisz bring the intensity
John Cusack tends to be better known for his comedy or rom-com films like Say Anything, High Fidelity, and Being John Malkovich. But when it comes to drama, Cusack is a little underrated. Runaway Jury gives Cusack a chance to shine as Nick Easter, a man inside the jury who hatches a scheme with his girlfriend, Marlee (Rachel Weisz), to swing the verdict towards one side.
Through Marlee, Rohr and Fitch are offered the opportunity to deliver the outcome they want in return for a $10 million payoff. Because Marlee is the one on the outside, she is actually in danger when Fitch’s associates start pushing back. Thankfully, Marlee proves to be fierce in her own right, especially during a harrowing encounter with one of Fitch’s thugs.
It’s a cat-and-mouse game with high stakes
Neither Fitch nor Rohr is eager to give in to Nick and Marlee’s ultimatum, but Fitch does everything he can to take the power away from them. Fitch’s attempts to find dirt on Nick come up empty, and Marlee demonstrates that she won’t roll over either.
That’s why the later stages of the film become cat-and-mouse games between the two sides, as Nick and Marlee pursue their agenda while Fitch’s men try to understand who they are and what they really want.
The ending is very satisfying
Without spoiling the resolution, we can say that Runaway Jury successfully brings its story to a conclusion and presents a definitive outcome. It even feels justified, given what the film reveals about the losing side and how far they were willing to go for their desired verdict. A strong ending always makes a story more complete, and that’s the final reason why you should watch Runaway Jury on Hulu this month.
Watch Runaway Jury on Hulu.
