A Time to Kill (1996)

 Makes a statement.
A Time to Kill is a wonderful and deeply moving film. Based on John Grishman's novel, this film has a violent but profound subject matter and the star-studded cast is excellent especially Samuel L. Jackson, Matthew McConaughey and Sandra Bullock. I highly recommend purchasing this intelligent court room drama, enjoy! May 8, 2008

 Should have been better
Carl Lee Hailey (Samuel L. Jackson) is a poor black man in a racially-divided Southern town. When two white men brutally rape his daughter, he decides to kill them and he does - in front of witnesses. The hot-shot DA (Kevin Spacey) is almost guaranteed a murder conviction, and novice attorney Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey) decides to defend Carl Lee.

This movie is so full of top-notch actors I expected to be swept up in the story and moved by it, but I wasn't; many of the actors are wasted and I kept wondering if it would ever end. Although Sandra Bullock gets top billing, she doesn't become involved in the film until an hour and fifteen minutes in, and then she's in and out and has nothing to do but look good. McConaughey is the star; he's perfect as a young Atticus Finch-type and definitely the best part of the movie. Spacey is mesmerizing as always in his off-beat way, but he plays a one-dimensional bad guy. The wonderful Chris Cooper is wasted in a small part, as are Donald and Keifer Sutherland and Ashley Judd. Oliver Platt is just annoying as Jake's buffoonish buddy.

It's way too slow-moving as every nuance of courtroom protocol is tediously explored, while the rampant racial hatred of the town could have been an exciting movie all by itself. The trial's outcome is never really in doubt, but still it's a surprising verdict. The movie should have had fewer characters and subplots and let us connect more with Carl Lee and his family, instead of focusing on the handsome lawyer. I imagine this Grisham story worked better as a novel than a film. March 16, 2008

 A Time to Kill
Excellent movie, we enjoyed it very much, loved the cast and probably can't add anything useful to the other positive reviews. One significant and entirely inexplicable feature stands out re this film and another Grisham, the "Pelican Brief:" Why on earth is the movie separated into two parts, with half on each side of a DVD???? DVD's are supposed to be an improvement in medium over videotape, but it's far more convenient and much more pleasurable to watch the videos of these two films, given that there is no need to scrutinize the movie beforehand to see which side to play first, and no necessity to get up mid-movie and flip the ?!@!! thing over. Who's nutty idea was this? I truly hope he/she has moved on to honest work outside the entertainment industry. February 23, 2008

 90 Percent Klan Members
This is America, wake up. Because I'm 100 percent European, in Klan terms I'm somewhere in between a n indian and a privelidged white. I'm a squire in the French Klan. They weren't really known for their sense of humor nor being a big pervert either. But it was known that thee USA had about 90 percent Klan members. Wake up. They hate gays and they hate blacks. Indians were neutral to. They didn't lynch natives. So in Klan terms I'm European, Im NOT A PRIVELEDGED WHITE!!! Sandra Bullock?!! If hyou want someone who's gonna sit at home and take care of the kids all day and get fat and dxepressed, take a hike. A successful man this deacade or try since 1996 can have any woman they want. They don't care how popular you are! January 28, 2008

 This movie did not need to be about race to leave it's mark...
YES THEY DESERVED TO DIE AND I HOPE THEY BURN IN HELL!!!

Let me start by saying I am a Black American Woman. And I am a MOTHER. This movie took place in a time where the justice system was not on the side of MINORITY Americans, period. But let's put that all aside for a minute. This movie is about a PARENT. Parents KNOW their role is to protect and nurture their babies. And any parent with their child in the same situation, black, white, latino, asian, would probably temporarily go insane and seek revenge, especially in those times where racism was a huge part of life. And look at the nature of the CRIME that his little girl went through: Two grown behind men, drunk and nasty and violent at that, snatched his little girl. A GIRL. She was a baby!!! They violently beat her, they RAPED her, they took her ability to trust, to have children of her own, and thought they KILLED her after they bust her in her head, but she was strong....so strong......and she stayed alive. THEY knew what they were doing. Now, I don't even support the death penalty, but for any man, of ANY race might I add, do that to ANY child, again of ANY race, they are too sick to do the world any good.

This movie was very upsetting, and I did think for a moment, what would I have done if that was MY baby. I would have went CRAZY and reacted the same way. Can't nobody try to "talk sense" into me when it comes to the safety of my children at the hands of another person. In addition, Carl was getting information that was pointing towards those two men walking FREE. THAT is why Carl Lee's character killed them before that could happen.

I do agree that the whole line of "imagine she was white" was very ridiculous and not to mention irrelevant in my opinion. Samuel L. Jackson did not kill those two men because they were white. He killed them because they hurt his baby. HE did not see race when he pulled that trigger. The valid point that should have been made was "imaging she was YOUR young daughter." Because ANY parent worth their soul would take matters into their own hands if the judicial system was not bringing them due justice. Remember that movie Eye for an Eye with Sally Fields? THAT is my point. November 18, 2007

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