"If you want justice, go to a whorehouse. If you want to get screwed, go to court." So states Richard Gere at his smarmy best as a headline-chasing defense lawyer whose conscience gets the better of him when he defends a seemingly guilty young man in a sensational Chicago murder case. Edward Norton upstages his polished co-star as the stammering defendant. The always invaluable Alfre Woodard is the no-nonsense judge. You'll probably want to rewind to fully comprehend the nifty surprise ending. Optional. (K. Lee Benson)[DVD/Blu-ray Review—Mar. 3, 2009—Paramount, 130 min., R, DVD: $14.98, Blu-ray: $29.99—Making its second appearance on DVD and first on Blu-ray, 1996's Primal Fear (Hard Evidence Edition) sports a nice transfer on both versions (with 5.1 Dolby TrueHD sound on the Blu-ray). DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary (by director Gregory Hoblit, writer Ann Biderman, producer Gary Lucchesi, executive producer Hawk Koch, and casting director Deborah Aquila), “The Final Verdict” retrospective featurette (18 min.), a “Star Witness” featurette on costar Edward Norton (18 min.), a “Psychology of Guilt” segment on the insanity defense (14 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a decent thriller that looks even more snappy on the Blu-ray version.]
Primal Fear
(Paramount, 130 min., R, avail. Oct. 15) Vol. 11, Issue 5
Primal Fear
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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