A Time To Kill

A Time To Kill is a 1996 crime drama thriller film directed by Joel Schumacher and written by Akiva Goldsman. Based on John Grisham's 1989 novel. It stars Matthew McConaughey, Samuel L. Jackson, Sandra Bullock and Kevin Spacey with Brenda Fricker, Oliver Platt, Ashley Judd, Charles S. Dutton, Patrick McGoohan, Kiefer and Donald Sutherland.

Plot
In Canton, Mississippi, a fearless lawyer and his assistant defend a black man accused of murdering two caucasian men who raped and assaulted his ten-year-old daughter, inciting violent retribution and vengeance from the Ku Klux Klan.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) It is very faithful to 1989 John Grisham novel.
 * 2) Fantastic story about how taking the law into your own hands leads to serious consequences which also tackles the controversial topic of racism.
 * 3) Great acting from a brilliant cast.
 * 4) A brilliant soundtrack from Elliot Goldenthal.
 * 5) "Yes, they deserved to die, and I hope they burn in Hell!"
 * 6) Very memorable characters, especially the aforementioned ones.
 * 7) Excellent directing by Joel Schumacher.
 * 8) The movie poster is well crafted.
 * 9) Nice Mississippi location filming.
 * 10) This is one the few times Akiva Goldsman has shown amazing skills as a writer.

Box Office
The movie went on to gross $152.2 million worldwide against its $40 million budget making it a commercial success.

Critical Response
The critical reception was generally positive. It currently holds a 67% rating on Rotten Tomatoes with the critical concensus, "Overlong and superficial, A Time To Kill nonetheless succeeds on the strength of its skillful craftsmanship and top-notch performances".

Roger Ebert gave the movie three out of four, saying: "I was absorbed by A Time To Kill and found the performances convincing," and added that "this is the best of the film versions of Grisham novels, I think and it has been directed with skill by Joel Schumacher".

On Metacritic, it has a rating of 54/100. It was nominated a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture from Samuel L. Jackson.

Videos
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Trivia

 * The book was John Grisham's first novel. But, the movie is his fourth.
 * Oliver Platt and Kiefer Sutherland starred together in Flatliners (1990) and The Three Musketeers (1993).
 * This is the second time Kiefer Sutherland plays a villain in a movie directed by Joel Schumacher. The first was The Lost Boys (1987), and the third was Phone Booth.