Retro Film Review: Judicial Consent (1994)

Actress Bonnie Bedelia is best known for the role of protagonist's wife in Die Hard, and because of that and her relatively plain looks, she was destined to play similar roles and thus remain second or third fiddle in many other films. So, it was very refreshing to see Bonnie Bedelia playing main character for a change in Judicial Consent, 1994 courtroom thriller written and directed by William Bindley. Protagonist of the film (played by Bedelia) is Judge Gwen Warwick, one of the major candidates for the prestigious post in Michigan Supreme Court. Being ambitious professional, she spends a lot of time in law libraries in order to ensure her nomination and prepare for her new responsibility. There she meets young Martin (played by Billy Wirth), who seems to be pleasant alternative to her boring husband Alan (played by Will Patton). A murder of her old mentor is an event that would turn her life upside-down and endanger her career. She becomes a judge in that particular case, and, to make things even worse, there are plenty of evidence that might point towards her as a perpetrator of the crime.

Shot with a relatively low budget (and probably even lower ambitions of its authors), Judicial Consent is in some ways better than it is to be expected form this sort of film. Thanks to very capable cast of character actors, acting is very good, and music by Christopher Young is pleasing to the ears. Unfortunately, all this is not enough to improve impression given by complicated plot that is resolved in rush and predictable, and therefore, unsatisfactory manner. All in all, those who see Judicial Consent might have a feeling that they had seen this film before. Those who don't will not miss much.

RATING: 3/10 (+)

(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.movies.reviews on October 20th 2001)

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Movie URL: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/131514-judicial-consent?language=en-US
Critic: A