Double Jeopardy
Dir: Bruce Beresford
1999
**
The idea behind Double Jeopardy is great. The Double Jeopardy law in America used to state that you cannot be charged for the same crime twice. So when a women is charged for the murder of her husband who actually framed her, changed his name and left town, there is no stopping her from killing him, in broad daylight if she wishes, once she is released from prison. The premise for the ultimate revenge movie no? Well, no as it turns out. She just wants her kids back, which is fair enough but doesn't lead to much excitement. The acting is awful and the script is even worse. The courtroom scenes are toe-curlingly bad, the bachelor auction scenes are even worse! Many of the scenes are absolutely pointless, mindless action generally replaces clever writing. The logic goes straight out of the window, with pretty much every scenario stinking to high heaven. A great idea executed in the worst possible way. It's also really dated considering it was only made in 1999, it feels like a bad 80's movie rather than a bad late 90's movie. Bad movies are ten a penny but when the idea is so strong it makes the experience of watching that little more frustrating.