The greatest movie ever made..!

Admirable film.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

"Trial by Jury" has one of those deeply interesting premises when you hear it sounds like something new, fresh and exciting. Trouble is that the script turns and the way the movie is conducted leaves something in the air that makes you feel deeply torn about what you've just seen. I've seen it a few times (enjoyed a little on my first view; didn't impress on my second; but now, it's an okay movie that I can recommend). The appeal is due mostly to the cast and some great sequences that doesn't fade away in your memory so easily. As I said, the story's premise is the main factor that pulls you in from the start. Valerie, an idealist woman (Joanne Whalley-Kilmer) who firmly believes in the power of justice is selected for jury duty in this important cast involving a dangerous mobster, the menacing Rusty Pirone (Armand Assante, very good) who seems completely in charge of himself and the people around him despite facing a long-term prison for murder and other crimes. Pirone notices something in that particular female juror, and thus decides to ask to his comrades to find ways to get to the woman just to get one vote to unbalance the jury and the verdict, which will get him a new trial while the ambitious and dedicated prosecutor (Gabriel Byrne) doesn't uncover more evidences and more witnesses against the gangster. Meanwhile, Valerie has to deal with threats to her son's life and her own, on the hands of the mysterious Tommy Vesey (William Hurt), a man under Pirone's command and who pushes her to the limit in finding means to convince the jury that Pirone is innocent - even though the testimonies from the few witnesses already seem to convict the guy. If the plot sounds familiar to you is probably because you've already seen it the non-official remake with Demi Moore, "The Juror", which isn't a better film, it just works better with the thrills in a more memorable and frightening way. But somehow "Trial by Jury", over all these years was the one I always wanted to look back. It's classy, heavily dramatic in the sense that I cared about the characters (even the bad ones), a lot more than "The Juror" was. Despite the mediocre performance by the leading lady, I always liked the fact the script doesn't transform her into a super smart girl who finds all the means and answers to her problems - except for the very final scene with the mobster, that transition is just awfully hard to buy. She has the classic look Pirone admires when required, convinces a bit as a devoted mom but when it's all about serious things happening, she fails a bit. Another problematic aspect of the script, besides the slow development outside of the trial, deaths and threats sequences, is that we're not able to fully understand the real motive of the trial. They state that it was murder against a rival but it feels too cheap, more should be added and with more layers. While Byrne and Richard Portnow (as Pirone's talky lawyer, nice role by the way) conducts the whole circus with great presence, it's hard to understand the actual case because it's all torn in bits and pieces. Writers Heywood Gould (also the director) and Jordan Katz made it look too simplistic, just as much of the characters actions at times - why make the nice prosecutor such a clueless guy? With his character turned into a more investigate man, the twists and turns of the film would pay-off a lot more. As for the three main guys, Assante dominates the screen with great presence; Hurt makes an excellent use of his calm voice both to threat and to make sure to Valerie that, in some ways, he can help her; and Byrne makes a good job as Pirone's biggest nightmare - their scene at the restaurant is priceless. Mention must be made to Kathleen Quinlan as the sexy and killer lady from Rusty's team. Involving drama and average thriller, "Trial by Jury" succeeds a little even with that strange lack of balance. Not a bad way to spend the time. 7/10

I discovered this film while searching for laserdiscs. It's a good way to find forgotten gems. TBJ is a crime film that never becomes tiresome mostly due to the fantastic emotionally alluring portrayal of a single mom by Joanne Whalley. She's your average girl stuck in a mess with a megalomaniac king pin. Fortunately for the viewer her body is not average, giving her character that added, "I don't know I'm sexy" vibe. Armand Assante turns in a great performance as he easily puts out charm and terror with a simple stoic glance. The root of the film which is the two worlds colliding, gets delivered with believability. The real gritty hoots of the film are William Hurt playing a twisted x cop that still has remnants of good in him and the ever delectable Kathleen Quinlan as a quirky sot. I really liked the script. The seedy undercurrent feel that the film has is captured with words that give an inner chuckle and a solid outer grimace. Some courtroom antics are quite stagey but those scenes can be muscled through if you like the genre. TBJ is not a routine crime thriller and throws some very interesting entertainment punches.

I thought the movie was good, but felt all the leading characters (with the exception of Armand Assante as the mob boss) were badly miscast. One of the essential elements of the plot was the mob boss's obsession for the juror, because he had a thing for classy women who looked like movie stars from the 1940s. Although Joanne Whalley is an excellent actress and always a beautiful on-screen presence, I don't feel she fit the 1940s mold, and didn't seem to have much on-screen chemistry with Assante. Another actress such as Kim Basinger (in a pre-LA Confidential Veronica Lake type of performance) might have made that plot element more believable. William Hurt was also miscast as the crooked cop. After seeing Tom Berenger in "Breaking Point" he would have been a much better choice. Gabriel Byrne and Kathleen Quinlan's roles could have been played by Treat Williams and Kelly Preston. Other than the casting of the lead actors, I liked the look of the film (photography, set design, costumes, etc.) and enjoyed watching it. I thought it was a much better film than "The Juror" (with Demi Moore and Alec Baldwin) that had a similar theme and was released the same year.

In New York, Valerie Alston (Joanne Whalley-Kilmer) is a single woman, who has a small son and is the owner of a store of clothes. She is convoked to participate of the jury of the trial of the mobster Rusty Pirone (Armand Assante), who will be judged for several murders. In the eve, the key witness of the prosecutor Daniel Graham (Gabriel Byrne) was executed with the four police officers that were protecting him by Pirone's men. Meanwhile, the ex-cop Tommy Vesey (William Hurt), who also works for Pirone, threatens Valerie, menacing to kill her son if she does not claim that Pirone is not guilty. "Trial by Jury" is not a bad movie, but it could have been a great film-noir. The first three-quarters of the story are indeed excellent. But there are two weaknesses in this film: the first one is the performance of Joanne Whalley-Kilmer. The character of Valerie lives a terrible dramatic dilemma and a very conflictive situation between her consciousness and the request of the mobster, and demanded a more expressive actress. Unfortunately, Joanne Whalley-Kilmer keeps the same expression in the most different situations along the story. The second weak point is the conclusion of the story, which is too much "Hollywoodian" to be credible. Anyway, this film is a good entertainment. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Tribunal Sob Suspeita" ("Tribunal Under Suspicion")