Trial by Jury (1994)

9% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
35% of users liked it
(1,102 ratings)

Joanne Whalley-Kilmer stars as a woman corrupted by the criminal justice system in this courtroom suspense thriller. She plays a civil servant named Valerie Alston, a single mother living in New York City, who gets placed on a jury trying the case of mob boss Rusty Pirone (Armand Assante). A former… More Joanne Whalley-Kilmer stars as a woman corrupted by the criminal justice system in this courtroom suspense thriller. She plays a civil servant named Valerie Alston, a single mother living in New York City, who gets placed on a jury trying the case of mob boss Rusty Pirone (Armand Assante). A former homicide detective gone bad, Tommy Vesey (William Hurt), is now working for Pirone. He kidnaps Valerie and threatens her and her son with more harm if she votes to convict Pirone. At the trial, District Attorney Daniel Graham (Gabriel Byrne) proves himself to be willing and able to stoop to unethical means to convict Pirone. In the jury room, Valerie skillfully exploits factions among the jurors in order to win an acquittal. Now cynical and corrupt herself, Valerie seduces mob boss Pirone to extract her own rewards for her service. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 48 min.
Directed By: Heywood Gould
Written By: Jordan Katz, Heywood Gould
Genres: Mystery & Suspense, Drama

In Theaters: Sep 9, 1994 Wide
On DVD: Jul 18, 2000
Studio: Warner Home Video

Critic Reviews

Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
The movie is far-fetched and contains some of the corniest dialogue heard in years.
Ed Gonzalez, Apollo Guide
The most frustrating aspect of this film is how it blatantly exploits its female characters.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Anthony V

How to waste a great cast.

Cast

            Joanne Whalley as Valerie Alston

            Armand Assante as Rusty Pirone

            Gabriel Byrne as Daniel Graham

            William Hurt as Tommy Vesey

            Kathleen Quinlan as Wanda

            Ed Lauter as John Boyle

            Margaret Whitton as Jane Lyle

            Richard Portnow as Leo Greco

            Joe Santos as Johnny Verona

            Stuart Whitman as Emmett

            Lisa Arrindell Anderson as Eleanor Lyons

            John Capodice as Limpy Demarco

            Gene Dinovi as Pianist

            William Duell as Jimmy

            David Eisner as Melman

            Jack Gwaltney as Teddy

            Kay Hawtry as Clara

            Graham Jarvis as Mr Duffy

            Gene Mack as House Detective

            Andrew Miller as Krasny

            William R. Moses as Paul Baker

            Sandi Ross as Court Officer

            Andrew Sabiston as Elliot

            Paul Soles as Mr Kriegsberg

            Beau Starr as Phillie

            Mike Starr as Hughie Bonner

            Scott Wickware as Cop

            David Cronenberg as Director

            Elena Kudaba as Elena

            Richard Fitzpatrick as Balsam

            Stan Coles as Detective Gray

            Joanne Whalley-Kilmer
            
See full cast