Action/Crime/Drama
1 hour and 42 minutes
Rated: R
Written by: Jeb Stuart & Peter Stone
Directed by: Arne Glimcher
Produced by: Arne Glimcher, Steve Perry, and Lee Rich
Cast:
Sean Connery
Laurence Fishburne
Kate Capshaw
Blair Underwood
Ed Harris
Buried deep in the Florida Everglades is a secret that can save an innocent man or let a killer kill again.
The 1990s was a decade that saw a slew of "whodunnit" murder-mystery films being forced upon the public thanks to the wonderfully brilliant The Silence of the Lambs. With filmmakers like David Fincher emerging from this genre resurrection, it would appear to be enough to make Dario Argento assume he'd achieve an overdue Academy Award nomination. However, as is often the case when one genre cash cow is milked to its fullest excess, not everything produced therein could qualify as an instant classic. Such is the case with Just Cause.
The film starts off as a slow-burn-legal-thriller, and it remains that way for almost its entirety. It isn't until the very end that the motion picture takes on a dark, Silence of the Lambs-type atmosphere. This disjointed writing is seen throughout the film, and it proves to be perhaps its largest obstacle to which it never overcomes. Whether this is a result of the film having more than one writer is certainly possible - Sean Connery apparently even contributed to the film's script. Even key plot points seem to be completely disregarded. For example, early in the film Connery's character is informed that the murder victim had the murderer's blood in her mouth - meaning she fought back, but this is later contradicted when Laurence Fishburne's detective character tells him that she was unconscious while murdered. Perhaps the "logic" of the story wasn't what the writers wanted the audience to focus on - meaning that they just wanted them to be entertained and enjoy the ride - but whether in legal thrillers, or giallo-esque serial killer movies, both of which Just Cause tries very hard to be, the logic and realism of the story needs to be what's most important in order for it to be an excellent entry of said genres.
None of the other technical qualities are too troublesome within the film. Although, it should be said that the stock footage of Everglades' landscapes - alligators, whooping cranes, mangrove trees, etc. - cut in between the scenes makes the film feel more like a television program attempting to fill an allotted time frame. Whether this decision was the director's, the director of photography's, or the editor's is unknown - but regardless, it was a poor one.
The film's most favorable aspect is its actors. I'm sure with the amount of experienced performers within it, not much was needed in the way of direction. Blair Underwood does a convincing job, remaining levelheaded during all the right moments - and then slipping quickly to hateful and crazy. Laurence Fishburne is also terrific, but unfortunately his character never seems to fully develop into as interesting of an individual as he is introduced to be. In the beginning of the film he's showcased as a negrophobic, violent, African American, officer of the law. As the film fizzles out, his character is anything but this. An unfortunate misstep considering that this may have been a fascinating road to have gone down and explored - even more so in retrospect considering the racial tensions between law enforcement and African American communities today. The film's leading man, Sean Connery, neither embarrasses himself nor sets himself apart from the heard. Just Cause is certainly not his worst film, but it is unquestionably not a film one would use if they'd want to defend him as an outstanding actor.
The real scene stealer is Ed Harris. Harris, undoubtedly, had a blast performing this role of a deranged, Albert-Fish-like, serial killer. His scenes with Connery prove to be the least boring within the movie (and that includes the car chase, and final climax in the Everglades). Alas, one could fault Harris with overacting - but after the stamp Anthony Hopkins left on our minds, it is probably tough for many of us to picture serial killers as anything but cool, calm, and collected madmen.
With an extremely convoluted story that is nowhere near as intelligent as it is trying to pass itself off as being, Just Cause remains neither memorable nor a complete waste of time thanks to the amount of talent its terrific cast can conjure up.
5.5/10
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