DOUBLE JEOPARDY

  DOUBLE JEOPARDY IS A 1999 FILM STARRING AHSLEY JUDD AND TOMMY LEE-JONES ABOUT A WIFE WHO IS FRAMED FOR HIS MURDER, BY HER HUSBAND - WHEN SHE DISCOVERS HE IS STILL ALIVE SHE BREAKS PAROLE TO TRACK HIM DOWN AND SEE HER ESTRANGED SON - BEARING A STRONG SIMILARITY TO THE STORY OF THE COLONIAL BULLDOG AND WEALDEN DISTRICT COUNCIL - CONSPIRING WITH SUSSEX POLICE - ALLEGEDLY

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US Vs UK - In the United Kingdom, Colonel Childers would be more likely to be convicted of murder, based on the flawed testimony of several witnesses, and a total lack of exonerating evidence. In the case of the British Bulldog, in exactly the same way, the State saw to it that the evidence needed to defend, was never provided to the defence. In the UK, the state controls the crime scene and Legal Aid does not (did not) extend to obtaining independent forensic medical evidence. Barrister Julian Dale, and Solicitor Timothy Stirmey confirmed that to the defendant. Later, barristers in England went on strike because Legal Aid fees were so low, they were unable to defend their clients. The King (or Queen) as Head of State, is responsible for ensuring that their subjects are treated fairly, with a government that provides an effective administration. We think this true story will show it to be anything but the case in a Britain that is seriously in debt, hence, looking to save money by denying those accused of serious crimes, with a viable defence. That is aside from the corruption in local government, and collusion by Wealden and Sussex police, working with the CPS to rig the deck.

Double Jeopardy is a 1999 American crime thriller film directed by Bruce Beresford, and starring Ashley Judd, Tommy Lee Jones, and Bruce Greenwood. Released on September 24, 1999, the film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $177 million against a $40 million budget, distributed by Paramount pictures. We think the story line is great, the film well produced and superbly cast. A great variation of the Fugitive theme, the state framing an innocent woman, for a crime that was never committed in the first place. And, both Ashley Judd and Tommy Lee-Jones are perfectly cast.

PLOT

Libby and Nick Parsons are wealthy residents of Whidbey Island, Washington. Libby's friend Angela watches their four-year-old son, Matty, so they can spend a romantic weekend sailing. Libby awakens on the boat to find blood everywhere and Nick missing. The Coast Guard arrive, after receiving a call from Nick who claims to have been stabbed, and finds Libby on the boat holding a bloody knife.

Although Nick's body is not found, Libby is convicted of murder. Her motive is assumed to be a $2 million life insurance policy and her alleged knowledge that Nick was under investigation for embezzlement. Libby asks Angela to adopt Matty and care for him while she is in prison. When Angela stops bringing Matty to visit, Libby tracks Angela to San Francisco, obtaining her address and phone from school staff, calling on the prison's payphone and demanding to speak with Matty. During their conversation, Nick enters Angela's apartment and Matty calls out, "Daddy!" before the phone disconnects; Libby realizes Nick is alive and faked his death.

Inmate Margaret, a former lawyer, advises her to get paroled, and says that Libby can kill Nick with impunity due to the Double Jeopardy Clause in the US Constitution, meaning she cannot be convicted of the same murder twice. Libby spends her prison time exercising instead of loitering.

After six years in prison, Libby is paroled to a halfway house under supervision of parole officer Travis Lehman. To search for Nick, Libby violates curfew and is caught breaking into Matty's old school to get Angela's records. As Lehman is taking Libby back to prison, she drives his car off a ferry in Puget Sound, grabs his gun, and swims to shore. Going to her mother, she gets emergency cash and an old pickup truck.

Obtaining an address for Angela in Evergreen, Colorado, Libby discovers that Angela married a man named "Simon Ryder" and was killed in an explosion caused by a natural gas leak. An archived newspaper photo of Angela reveals a Wassily Kandinsky painting that hung in their home. Researching the painting's sale at a gallery, Libby traces Nick to New Orleans. Lehman almost catches her at the gallery, but she flees. In New Orleans, she finds Nick running a hotel under the alias "Jonathan Devereaux".

Libby confronts Nick publicly at a party he hosts at the hotel, drawing him aside and demanding he return Matty in exchange for her not exposing him. Claiming he faked his death to avoid bankruptcy and to provide her and Matty with the insurance money, Nick says he never believed she would be convicted. She refuses to buy either this story or about Angela's circumstances of death. Libby demands to meet Nick at the public Lafayette Cemetery the next day to get Matty. During their conversation, Lehman arrives at the hotel, and Libby slips out. Lehman informs "Jonathan" that Libby believes he is her supposedly dead ex-husband and informs the police that she is in the area.

At Lafayette Cemetery, Nick has a local boy lure Libby into one of the mausoleums, attacks her, and entombs her alive, but she frees herself. Meanwhile, Lehman visits "Jonathan's" office and notices the Kandinsky artwork Libby researched at the gallery. Now unsure of Libby's guilt, Lehman gets a photocopy of Nicholas Parsons' driver's license.

Lehman intercepts Libby, who breaks down sobbing. He goes to Nick's hotel and reveals to Nick that he knows Nick's true identity. After Lehman asks for a $1 million bribe for his silence, but agrees to take $100,000, expressing concern that Libby could blow their deal, Nick says that he has "buried" that problem. Libby then enters the room with Lehman's gun. She and Lehman have cornered Nick, and Libby says she can kill him with impunity. After Nick discloses that Matty is at a Georgia boarding school, Lehman reveals that he recorded Nick's confession of burying Libby. Nick pulls a gun, shooting and wounding Lehman. In the ensuing struggle, Libby shoots and kills Nick. Lehman insists they return to Washington to win her pardon. They later find Matty at the boarding school, where he recognizes Libby, saying he had been told she was dead, and they embrace.


CAST

- Ashley Judd

- Tommy Lee-Jones

- Bruce Greenwood

PRODUCTION

Paramount Pictures acquired Double Jeopardy in 1995 as a pitch from screenwriters David Weisberg and Douglas S. Cook for producer Leonard Goldberg with Paramount acquiring the project for $260,000 against $500,000.

Double Jeopardy began development as a potential project for Harold Becker before Becker departed to pursue other projects. Luis Mandoki was then attached to the film until he too bowed out of the film. In August 1997, it was reported Bruce Beresford would direct the film. Jodie Foster was attached to star in the film as Libby Parsons and Bruce Beresford met with her several times about the script. In December 1997, Foster departed the project citing "personal reasons" with Paramount scrambling to find potential replacement leads with Helen Hunt noted as one possible option.

In April 1998, Tommy Lee Jones was reportedly in negotiations to play the co-lead in the film for a fee higher than the $10 million he'd earned for U.S. Marshals. That same month, Ashley Judd entered talks for the lead role after Hunt and Michelle Pfeiffer both declined. Robert Benton performed an additional rewrite of the script. In June of that year, Annabeth Gish and Roma Maffia enter negotiations for roles in the film. The following month, Bruce Greenwood was cast as Nick Parsons after being screen tested alongside William Baldwin and Dylan Walsh. Initially, the producers had wanted Greg Kinnear for the role of Nick.

Both Meg Ryan and Brooke Shields declined the lead role.

Double Jeopardy was filmed from July 15, 1998 to October 21, 1998.


CRITICS AND BOX OFFICE

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 28% based on 87 reviews and an average rating of 4.5/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "A talented cast fails to save this unremarkable thriller." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 40 out of 100 based on 30 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Roger Ebert gave the film two and a half stars out of four, and said "This movie was made primarily in the hopes that it would gross millions and millions of dollars, which probably explains most of the things that are wrong with it." Leonard Maltin gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, calling it "slick entertainment". Mick LaSalle from the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the film is a "well-acted diversion, directed by Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy) with an intelligent grasp of the moment-to-moment emotion". Gregory Weinkauf of Dallas Observer described it as "a solo Thelma and Louise crossed with a gender-reversed The Fugitive with a dry twist of Fletch." For her performance in the film, Ashley Judd won Favorite Actress at the 6th Blockbuster Entertainment Awards.

The US has a Written Constitution, meaning that if the accused had been found guilty, he would have had a right of appeal. But, in the US, unlike in the UK, a Jury is unlikely to convict where vital evidence is missing. In the UK, a Judge can instruct a Jury to make of it what they will ... In other words, go ahead and convict ....

MOVIE INFO

An Innocent Man 1989

Atonement 2007

Carrington VC (Court Martial) 1954

Django Unchained 2012

Double Jeopardy 1999

Enemy of the State 1998

Fatal Attraction 1987

John Wick 2014

Gladiator 2000

Mr Bates Vs The Post Office (Horizon) 2024

Rambo First Blood 1982

Rules of Engagement 2000

Sisu 2023

The Bonfire of the Vanities 1990

The Crown, Netflix 2013 - 2023

The Fugitive 1993

Yes (Prime) Minister 1980 - 1988

REFERENCE

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