The Burial

Phenomenal! an absolute classic, Jamie Foxx cooked and ate in this movie. Everything was on point and realistic. The acting, the predicament they were in and the intensity of the court room. If you're looking for a good movie to watch this is one

This extremely slick entertainment stacks the deck in favor of "the little guy" against a billionaire businessman. It takes obvious liberties with the trial, depicts the billionaire businessman as saying things no successful businessman would actually say, and lets us hear one attorney's summation but does not allow us to hear that of his rival. Even on the movie's own terms, it wants us to celebrate what is clearly a travesty of justice. The legal dispute, as presented in the film, is a relatively minor one: whether a Canadian firm delayed several months in delivering a promised contract. The movie makes clear that the Tommy Lee Jones character is in violation of Mississippi's business code, that he's facing bankruptcy, and that his lawsuit against a Canadian billionaire negotiating to buy three of his funeral homes is, for him, a desperate hail-Mary gesture. The movie also makes clear that his attorney, the Jamie Foxx character, goes judge-shopping for a black district with a black judge, and then proceeds to win his case -- along with a ridiculously large punitive amount -- by appealing to the black jury's resentment toward a white entrepreneur, especially the kind who owns a $25 million yacht. Although these extraneous matters have nothing to do with the case -- which, we understand from the start, is a technical contract dispute -- we see that the jury is swayed by them and that it awards the Jones character half a billion dollars (later somewhat reduced) because it feels the Canadian has been charging too much for funerals. Here's the chance to stick it to a wealthy white guy. We often read these days about the absurdly high judgments that irresponsible juries, swayed by emotion, render against perfectly legitimate businesses in defiance of a case's legal merits. This movie depicts exactly that sort of abuse -- and expects us to applaud it.

History is replete with the darkest chapters of human behavior, showcasing how individuals, driven by insatiable greed, can resort to anything to exploit others. While times may have changed, the relentless pursuit of accumulating wealth persists. In the contemporary landscape, these greedy individuals often lurk behind the scenes, orchestrating their actions through the guise of a corporate entity. The narrative unfolds like a cinematic tale, depicting the struggle of a small businessman against the machinations of a powerful corporation. The film delves into the company's attempt to undermine the entrepreneur, aiming to acquire his business at a fraction of its worth and subsequently turning that investment into substantial millions. The pursuit of wealth becomes so consuming that these corporate leaders lose touch with the very basics of life, such as the cost of their own sustenance. Tommy Lee Jones and Jamie Foxx deliver exceptional performances, bringing sheer class to their roles in this compelling courtroom drama-a definite must-watch.

You know Jamie Foxx? Yeah, that guy. The clown. The guy from Booty Call, from They Cloned Tyrone .. man, was i ever wrong about someone. Elderly Tommy Lee Jones is a funeral-home-business owning guy, not poor, but a working man. Due to faults not of his own, he gets into business with Evil Canadian Corporation, who then try to stiff him. TLJ resorts to hiring successful TV lawyer Jamie Foxx. Now, this guy is a BLACK lawyer. He exploits this by filing his suits in the poorest, most predominantly black circuits, and plays the Victim Of The Man card to win his cases - with, apparently, massive success. Evil Corportation puts against him equally black lawyeress Jurnee Smollett, up'n' coming Harvard lawyer ready to throw back in his face the race card. While the film is not race-based, it does not pretend that race isn't a factor when Evil Corporation is willfully targeting the most impoverished areas of the south. There's a few tinges of Erin Brockovitch, and it's dialogue-heavy throughout, but man, you will not believe the quality of a performance that Jamie Foxx puts in for this movie. I would have never in a million years thought this comedy actor had the talent to pull out of his .. coat .. a straight courtroom drama. Don't get me wrong, Foxx plays to his strengths, but he also shows some finesse that, realistically, nobody could have predicted the man had. NOT as great as Erin Brockovitch, but absolutely worth it. 8/10.

I just got done watching this and I have to say it is definitely worth watching. Tommy Lee Jones did a fine job acting, but Jamie Foxx stole the show. There were some really enjoyable moments, especially when Jamie Foxx was on screen. I really wanted to give this movie a solid 7 out of 10 stars, but in the end, the court case the movie focused on was pretty uninteresting and I'm kind of tired of all the race stuff in movies and the ending was predictable. Were it not for Jamie Foxx's performance, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed the movie as much as I did and I probably wouldn't be recommending anyone see it. The weird thing about the ending though is the director handled it really poorly. The character's reaction was opposite of what you'd think their reaction would be and it just felt really odd and the tone of the movie suffered for it. I ended up deciding on a 6 out of 10.

Greetings again from the darkness. "Let's shake on it." There was a time when a person's word and their handshake was enough to seal a deal - whether it was settling on the price of a horse, the bottom line on a new car, or the buyout of a business. Most of us realize those days are long gone, and now it's too often about winning and taking advantage of every situation, regardless of whether that's at someone else's expense. Jonathan Harr's article from "The New Yorker" serves as the source of this "inspired by a true story" tale, with a script from writer-director Maggie Betts (NOVITIATE, 2017) and co-writer Doug Wright (QUILLS, 2000). Every movie lover recognizes the advanced warning of "inspired by" and prepares for some artistic license being taken. Enter Oscar winner Jamie Foxx as Willie Gary, a personal injury attorney who is flashy to the point of gaudy. His suits are as colorful as his speech patterns, and he zips through the sky in his aptly named jet, "Wings of Justice." We've all been berated with TV commercials from these obnoxious lawyers, and Willie Gary is all of them rolled into one third-person speaking courtroom orator. Foxx nails the role and is the perfect counterpoint to his first white client, 75-year-old Jeremiah O'Keefe (Oscar winner Tommy Lee Jones), a Biloxi, Mississippi funeral home owner in a financial bind. While Willie Gary and his wife (Amanda Warren, THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI, 2017) live a life so high it's featured on "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous", Jeremiah is a salt-of-the-earth type who shares 13 kids and 24 grandchildren with his wife (Pamela Reed, THE RIGHT STUFF, 1983). Jeremiah cuts a deal with Ray Loewen (Bill Camp, "The Queen's Gambit), owner of a multi-million-dollar conglomerate. Or at least Jeremiah took it as a deal since the two men shook hands on it aboard Loewen's stunning yacht. What follows are a few too many courtroom drama tropes that would drag the film down if not for the fine performances of the cast. Jeremiah and Willie develop a friendship, despite their contrasting styles and personalities. Willie's adversary in the case is Mame Downes (Jurnee Smollett, SPIDERHEAD, 2022), a top of her Harvard Law Class attorney who has the upper hand on legal issues and a competitiveness to match. Adding depth to the story are Alan Ruck (FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, 1986), Jeremiah's long-time attorney and friend, and Mamoudou Athie (UNDERWATER, 2020) as Hal Dockins, the rookie attorney who brings fresh eyes and keen observations to the proceedings. Athie is a standout here. There are multiple aspects to the film. The core of the case is about doing what you say you are going to do (the phrase "my word is my bond" comes to mind), while at the same time, elements of racism and bigotry hover over most every scene - sometimes to the extreme (a burial ground for slaves). Since there are no shortage of ultra-serious deep dives into racism and predatory business practices, filmmaker Betts takes a different approach. The end result is an entertaining crowd-pleaser with a few too many close-up shots and a creative use of Toni! Tony! Tone! And other music to set the era for us. This is one that allows the entertainment value to take the lead, while not totally overshadowing the key points it wants to make. Opens in theaters on October 13, 2023.

This movie is excellent hands down. Everyone did a fabulous acting job. I was living in the south around this time frame and have heard a Bradford - O'Keefe funeral homes, but didn't know about this particular situation. I was surprised to learn things about the funeral industry that are very pertinent for any person to know. I'm glad they brought out what was happening and I'm hoping that justice was received by everyone involved. Targeting big business and showing the lack of humanity in some business owners was way out front in this movie. I'm really glad they made it. Maybe we will see more like it in the future. I was also intrigued to see Jamie Foxx as a producer.

Jerry (Tommy Lee Jones) runs a number of funeral homes in South Mississippi, but is in debt and agrees to sell a number of them to the giant Loewen funeral company, headed by sneering filthy rich CEO Bill Camp. When Loewen fails to fulfill its end of the bargain, Jerry sues and hires exuberant lawyer Jamie Foxx. Fun Hollywood razzamatazz featuring an apparently heavily dramatised and rather familiar true story of the little man taking on the evil giant that is Corporate America. It pretty much goes in the direction that you think it will, pressing home a few points on racist America along the way. What makes this watchable though is the cast with Foxx on fire shouting and gesticulating at the jury through a ton of gold jewellery, Lee Jones considerably less angry, fast talking and cynical than his usual role and Camp, a nice baddy doing his own little bit of 'Colonel Nathan Jessop' towards the end of the trial. It's quite good fun with jolly turns by the 2 leads although I'll be honest, whilst the Loewen Company are lousy through and through, not sure I understand what law they've broken here - anyway, that's neither here nor there.

Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones had great chemistry and Jamie Foxx is pure entertainment. Unfortunately, the court room scenes are so unrealistic that it takes you out of the movie. I can suspend my disbelief for movies because I want to be entertained and not watch an actual trial but this was too much. I was engaged as the movie was setting up the case and getting familiar with the characters. Then the court scenes start and the judge was basically non-existent as it was basically the two lawyers smearing the other's clients. That does bring up another issue with the movie that is not about realism but whether the true story this is based on is one that should be celebrated. It was right that the exploitative company was held accountable but they were not held accountable to the people they actually affected the most, the the black church and black communities. Instead the money went to O'Keefe. Granted O'Keefe did donate some of the money to different charities. It could have been a great and interesting film about modern day justice that was well acted but the foolishness in the the most pivotal court room moments was enough to bury the movie.

Very well acted. Well written. Well directed. The story was stressful and I definitely did predict a few scenarios but that's mostly cause it's based on a true story so it's easier to predict a real scenario. It has some good love and heart. It's definitely entertaining for a drama. Very stressful and if it's a true story it's hard to complain about the outcome since it's what actually happens. This is a true story that's well told. Well captured and has a strong impact. Emotions flow through the movie. That's hard to get. This is a very good movie and I'd recommend it to anyone that actually likes heart felt court room dramas. I would have gave it a 7 but i picked 8 to make up for the racist people who didn't like the outcome.