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- 2009
- PG-13
- After Dark Films
- 1 h 46 m
- 2009
- PG-13
- After Dark Films
- 1 h 46 m
Summary High profile lawyer, Mark Hunter has an impeccable record putting criminals behind bars and is a shoo-in for governor in the upcoming election. But when ambitious rookie journalist, C.J. Nicholas begins investigating Hunter for tampering with evidence to secure his convictions, the district attorney’s perfect record is up for scrutiny. ...
Directed By: Peter Hyams
Written By: Douglas Morrow, Peter Hyams
- 2009
- PG-13
- After Dark Films
- 1 h 46 m
- 2009
- PG-13
- After Dark Films
- 1 h 46 m
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt
35
6.7
Where to Watch
Summary High profile lawyer, Mark Hunter has an impeccable record putting criminals behind bars and is a shoo-in for governor in the upcoming election. But when ambitious rookie journalist, C.J. Nicholas begins investigating Hunter for tampering with evidence to secure his convictions, the district attorney’s perfect record is up for scrutiny. ...
Directed By: Peter Hyams
Written By: Douglas Morrow, Peter Hyams
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
35
0% Positive
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
82% Mixed
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
18% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 11 Critic Reviews
35
0% Positive
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
82% Mixed
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
18% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Like the decent B-movie director that he is, Hyams tosses in two gripping car chases and blows up a few more vehicles for good measure. But otherwise, there's little in this pointless rehash to distract audiences from the pleasure of watching Tamblyn.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
6.7
67% Positive
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
8% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
25% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
6.7
67% Positive
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
8% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
25% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
A good movie about a journalist exposing a corrupt DA. But how can he expose the DA? He frames himself for murder to show how the DA would manufacture fake evidence. Seems like a dumb idea and the movie makes it even dumber, but it makes for an interesting story with a twist at the end.
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After I saw Michael Douglas in the movie, A Perfect Murder (which you can rent from **** as a download, but otherwise isn't available for download or streaming), which is a very good thriller, I wanted to see Michael Douglas in any other thriller I could.
So I rented Beyond A Reasonable Doubt, which is a solid if average thriller, except for two things. First, there's just not enough Michael Douglas. I don't know why movie studios think we don't want to continue to watch our beloved stars as they age. He's still Michael Douglas and he's still excellent. The second problem is, they throw in an absurd double backflip of a twist in the final scene that is so unbelievable you just have to pretend it never happened. There was a period from about 2005 until just a couple of years ago, when every thriller had to throw in a ridiculous extra super twist at the very end. They always ruined the story but thankfully these days they don't seem to be doing that anymore. Beyond A Reasonable Doubt fell right smack dab in the midst of that silly trend.
Basically, the plot (without giving away more than a trailer would) is about a journalist who has a hunch that a successful prosecutor is planting DNA evidence in every case he tries, to win a conviction, and the journalist sets out to prove it. Michael Douglas is the evil DA. It's a fair rental, but if you haven't seen A Perfect Murder yet, rent that first. It's a lot better.
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Lang's film, the last he made in the U.S., exposed the immorality of the death penalty; Hyams's retread offers only more plot and longer, louder car chases.
The lack of charisma exhibited by leads Jesse Metcalfe and Amber Tamblyn doesn't help matters, and not even the stalwart presence of Michael Douglas fails to provide the proceedings with sufficient gravitas.
The would-be noir Beyond a Rea sonable Doubt has an absurd story, but on the plus side you can hardly see what's going on because the photography is so murky.
It's sad that Michael Douglas signed onto this movie. The dialogue is complete crap and the last line of the movie is stupid and laughable. Worst of all the movie builds up to nothing. It feels like it just stops. I get the feeling that the producers wanted to give it a manageable running time so they cut large chunks that might have helped the movie, but not likely based on the dialogue up to this point. The wist ending to the movie is also horribly obvious from well before the second act gets started. Don't waste your time on this piece of garbage
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Production Company
Autonomous Films,
Foresight Unlimited,
Government of Saudi Arabia,
RKO Radio Pictures,
Signature Entertainment,
Aramid Entertainment Fund
Release Date Sep 11, 2009
Duration 1 h 46 m
Rating PG-13
Tagline Why would a man frame himself... for murder?
