A Time to Kill (1996)
79%RT Audience Score: 85%
Awards & Nominations: 7 wins & 12 nominations
Overlong and superficial, A Time to Kill nonetheless succeeds on the strength of its skillful craftsmanship and top-notch performances
If you’re in the mood for a courtroom drama that’s a little bit pulpy, a little bit intense, and a lot bit Matthew McConaughey, then A Time To Kill might just be the movie for you. Sure, it’s got its flaws (like any good legal thriller), but it’s also got some great performances, some thought-provoking themes, and a whole lot of southern charm. So grab your gavel and your homemade wig, and settle in for a wild ride through the deep south.
Production Company(ies)
Horizon Pictures,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
London, Ontario, Canada
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for violence and some graphic language
Year of Release
1996
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital SDDS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Aug 22, 1997
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Samuel L Jackson, Matthew McConaughey, Kevin Spacey, Sandra Bullock, Brenda Fricker, Oliver Platt, Ellen Roark, Carl Lee Hailey, Jake Tyler Brigance, D.A Rufus Buckley, Ethel Twitty, Harry Rex Vonner, directed by Joel Schumacher, written by Akiva Goldsman, drama, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chris Peachment, Lisa Schwarzbaum, Richard Schickel, Todd McCarthy, Geoff Andrew, Grant Watson, David Nusair, James Croot, Leigh Paatsch, Lynnette Nicholas, produced by Arnon Milchan, Michael G Nathanson, Hunt Lowry, John Grisham, R rating, courtroom drama, racial tensions, Southern town, untested lawyer, rape, revenge, bigotry, deliberate crimes, faith, skillful craftsmanship, top-notch performances
Worldwide gross: $152,266,007
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $290,637,057
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 520
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 31,694,336
US/Canada gross: $108,766,007
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $207,606,627
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 331
US/Canada opening weekend: $14,823,159
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $28,293,638
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 490
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $40,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $76,349,820
Production budget ranking: 548
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $41,114,378
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $173,172,858
ROI to date (est.): 147%
ROI ranking: 774
Samuel L. Jackson – Carl Lee Hailey
Matthew McConaughey – Jake Tyler Brigance
Kevin Spacey – D.A. Rufus Buckley
Brenda Fricker – Ethel Twitty
Oliver Platt – Harry Rex Vonner
Director(s)
Joel Schumacher
Writer(s)
Akiva Goldsman
Producer(s)
Arnon Milchan, Michael G. Nathanson, Hunt Lowry, John Grisham
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
7 wins & 12 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (58) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (39) | Rotten (19)
In order to enjoy this mediocre John Grisham courtroom drama, labeled as top-notch entertainment by many of my colleagues, you have to accept an ersatz, cartoonish version of the deep south…
June 14, 2022
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
(Grisham) films are… grossly over-inflated examples of that old genre which hardly ever need change, the courtroom drama. A Time To Kill is no different, except that its verdict would be laughed out of any court anywhere in the civilised world.
November 29, 2017
Chris Peachment
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: C
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
A likable — maybe even lovable — movie.
June 14, 2009
Richard Schickel
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Although it has its share of implausibilities, A Time To Kill is generally the most satisfying of the John Grisham screen adaptations to date.
October 8, 2008
Todd McCarthy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
Justice may be blind, but rarely have courtroom dramas presumed quite so heavily on cultural myopia as this heinous version of John Grisham’s first novel.
February 9, 2006
Geoff Andrew
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
There is a lot in here that is effective, and plenty that works. There is simply also a lot that doesn’t.
July 3, 2022 | Rating: 6/10
Grant Watson
Fiction Machine
…a slow-moving yet mostly engrossing drama…
June 13, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
It’s not perfect, but perhaps that’s part of its sometimes pulpy joy (and certainly McConaughey’s character flaws are part of his charm).
October 16, 2020 | Rating: 4.5/5
James Croot
Stuff.co.nz
Better grab those homemade wigs and gavels, because here comes another ripping, one-size-fits-all slab of legal eaglery from the platinum paperback pen of John “you can buy my collected works at any airport newsagent” Grisham.
May 26, 2020 | Rating: 3/5
Leigh Paatsch
Herald Sun (Australia)
Legal drama candidly tackles race relations in America.
May 29, 2019 | Rating: 4/5
Lynnette Nicholas
Common Sense Media
A gritty, intense and engaging courtroom drama.
June 14, 2009
Film4 Staff
Film4…
Plot
When Tonya Hailey, an innocent little African-American girl is raped and beaten by 2 beer-guzzling rednecks, the town of Clanton, Mississippi is shocked. Her father Carl Lee Hailey is outraged, and figuring he could not see those boys set free, decides to take justice into his own hands and kills them in the court house, in front of numerous witnesses. Now it’s up to Jake Brigance to get Carl Lee off the hook. He has people that help him, but he is up against tough D.A. Rufus Buckley. Will he be able to prove that a black man can get a fair trial in Mississippi?
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Nothing to add here about A Time to Kill.
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