Juror #2: Clint Eastwood's 'cleverly constructed' courtroom drama is 'rock solid'
Nicholas Hoult stars in 'morally complex' film about a juror on a high-profile murder case

"What are the chances, eh?" said Ryan Gilbey in The Guardian. "First you get picked for jury duty even though your pregnant wife might deliver your child before you can deliver a verdict." Then, you realise that you alone know for certain that the defendant accused of murder is innocent – "because you are the guilty party. Small world!" That is the setup for "Juror #2", directed "with intermittent drollery" by Clint Eastwood.
The film's protaganist, Justin, is played by Nicholas Hoult, who proves a "perfect fit for the everyman whose secrets emerge in conflicting flashbacks". We learn that when Justin was driving home one night, he hit what he thought at the time was a deer – but which he starts to suspect was, in fact, a woman, and the victim in this case. Suspense is "kept on a low flame, but the film offers cosy pleasures", and it is nice to see Hoult reunited with Toni Collette (the prosecuting attorney), who 20-plus years ago played his mother in "About a Boy".
"Juror #2" is getting a wide release in the UK, but is only being shown in 50 cinemas in the US, which seems an "injustice", said Johnny Oleksinski in the New York Post. Although now 94, Eastwood "still knows how to make a damn good movie": this is "morally complex, smart fare", and even if it is a bit clunky in places, you find yourself constantly wondering: "Could this happen to me?"
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Eastwood's films have been ropey of late, said Matthew Bond in The Mail on Sunday, but this one is "rock solid" – "cleverly constructed, very nicely acted and beautifully paced". He has hinted that this may be his last movie; if it is, it "would be a very classy swan-song".
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
October 13 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Monday's political cartoons include Donald Trump's consolation prize, government workers during shutdown, and more
-
Can Gaza momentum help end the war in Ukraine?
Today's Big Question Zelenskyy’s request for long-range Tomahawk missiles hints at ‘warming relations’ between Ukraine and US
-
The Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners being released
The Explainer Triumphant Donald Trump addresses the Israeli parliament as families on both sides of the Gaza war reunite with their loved ones
-
The delightful, smutty world of Jilly Cooper
In the Spotlight Millions mourn the ‘Mrs Kipling of sex’
-
Choose your own wellness adventure in Greater Palm Springs
The Week Recommends Hit the spa, try a sound bath or take a hike
-
A Taylor Swift analysis, the digital-addiction solution plus what it means to be a gay Black artist — all in October books
The Week Recommends This month's new releases include ‘Taylor’s Version’ by Stephanie Burt, ‘Enshittification’ by Cory Doctorow and ‘Minor Black Figures’ by Brandon Taylor
-
Lee Miller at the Tate: a ‘sexy yet devastating’ show
The Week Recommends The ‘revelatory’ exhibition tells the photographer’s story ‘through her own impeccable eye’
-
6 eye-catching rounded homes
Feature Featuring a central spiral staircase in Michigan and a Balinese-style estate with ocean views in Hawaii
-
A House of Dynamite: a ‘nail-biting’ nuclear-strike thriller
The Week Recommends ‘Virtuoso talent’ Kathryn Bigelow directs a ‘fast-paced’ and ‘tense’ ‘symphony of dread’
-
The Finest Hotel in Kabul: a ‘haunting’ history of modern Afghanistan
The Week Recommends Lyse Doucet’s sensitively written work traces over 50 years of Kabul’s ‘Inter-Con’ hotel
-
The Smashing Machine: Dwayne Johnson is ‘magnetic’ in gritty biopic
The Week Recommends The wrestler-turned-Hollywood-actor takes on the role of troubled UFC champion Mark Kerr