Clint Eastwood has a distinguished career, both in front of and behind the camera. His 40-film directorial career includes time-honored classics such as The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Bridges of Madison County, Mystic River, and Best Picture and Best Director winners Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. Juror #2, possibly Eastwood’s final film, once again takes up Eastwood’s longstanding exploration of the complexities of justice. In this case, the lens is focused on the pool of jurors themselves when a juror (not to spoil anything, but the second one) realizes he may have a connection to the murder victim that could throw the trial, and his own life, in jeopardy. With high stakes in his own life, he wrestles with guilt, leaving him in complicated positions as the film progresses. At what cost, justice? It’s considerably elevated by strong performances and some excellent directorial and cinematographic choices, but it ultimately is undone by details and narrative pivots that don’t work.

What Is ‘Juror #2’ About?

Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) is an unassuming family man, sitting on the jury in a high-profile murder trial. It was a relatively straightforward murder case. A woman’s corpse is tragically smashed across the rocks of a riverbed, and witnesses point to her drunken, aggressive boyfriend. Kemp’s wife Ally (Zoey Deutch) is weeks away from giving birth to their first child following a tragic loss, as high-stakes a pregnancy as there is. As the proceedings commence, Kemp comes to realize that a terrible mistake he had written off connects him to the victim in terrible ways, a complication that threatens to impact both the trial itself and the fate of the accused. With a child on the way, a checkered past, but a strong desire to see justice done, his guilt propels the jury deliberations into uncharted territory.

A Film With Strong Performances Undone by Inadequate Details
Image via Warner Brothers

While Juror #2 is a legal thriller, it’s perhaps first and foremost a character study centered on the guilt-wracked choices of a man who increasingly believes he may be at fault for the girl’s tragic demise. Much of the film consequently centers around Hoult, who gives an exceptional and emotionally complex performance as the juror with a secret, walking a delicate tightrope between wanting the right thing done and needing to protect his family. Toni Collette is also great as ambitious prosecutor Faith Killebrew, an ambitious bulldog whose commitment to real justice propels the trial and causes complications for Kemp. J.K. Simmons is also quite memorable as a former detective-turned-juror who goes a little rogue as the trial proceeds.

While there are some excellent performances in the film, there are moments and details aplenty that stretch the limits of plausibility. The very premise that a juror happened to be in Kemp’s specific place, time, and situation has about the same statistical probability as winning two lotteries. Juror #2 is full of plot contrivances like these, clearly designed to move the plot along but which don’t ring true. Another case in point is when an inflexible juror tells Kemp he’s noticed something off about him, and lays out the ‘evidence’ that Kemp’s hiding something. That evidence, however, is a wildly loose joining of so-called facts that simply don’t congeal, and are passed over quickly. Conveniently, when Kemp makes a big decision about his stance on the case, cuts to the entire rest of the jury having fallen in line with that decision. In necessary narrative moments, the plotting is full of characters having convenient epiphanies or fact blindness, or reveals of secret work or life histories that emerge when the plot needs them to.

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Plot contrivances are one thing, but the film is full of small details that don’t quite track. Audiences can hear a variety of accents throughout the movie, but Collette has nearly the only Georgia accent. When a juror casts doubt on the official autopsy report based on breaks and injuries, the details of how the death actually occurred genuinely doesn’t track with those injuries. Juror #2 is elevated by strong central performances (though the other jurors, a sizable proportion of the film, sometimes read like caricatures), but it’s largely undone by a parade of undercooked details, deus ex machina moments, and implausible reveals that would benefit from a little more thought in the narrative construction itself.

‘Juror #2’ Is Frustratingly Close To Working
Image via Warner Bros.

Juror #2 is perhaps most frustrating because of how close it is to working quite well. Hoult is remarkable, Deutch holds her own, and Collette and Simmons are, as usual, wonderful every time they’re onscreen. The caliber of performances, smart cinematography, and some excellent directorial choices elevate the material to work far better than it should. At the same time, there are a number of small details that reduce believability here, and create inconsistencies there, ultimately dulling the impact of a movie that would be wildly successful with another script pass or two. It’s a film about truth and justice that ironically stumbles because it simply doesn’t ring true.

Juror #2 boasts great performances and some strong directorial choices, but is largely undone by details and plot contrivances that don’t ring true.ProsHoult is exceptional, and seasoned co-stars like Toni Collette and J.K. Simmons elevate every scene they’re in.It’s a gorgeously shot film, with a number of smart directorial choices that elevate the material. ConsMany major plot elements and twists feel contrived or moved along by deus ex machina reveals.There are many specific details and moments in the film that need a deeper, more thoughtful development to work.

A family man serving as a juror in a high-profile murder trial faces a harrowing moral dilemma when he realizes he might be responsible for the victim’s death. As his internal struggle intensifies, he must decide whether to influence the jury’s verdict to save himself or seek justice for the accused.Release Date October 30, 2024 Runtime 114 Minutes

Juror #2 comes to select theaters on November 1. Click below for showtimes.

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