Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

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Beyond a Reasonable Doubt

PG-13

Released Sep 11, 2009

1h 45m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

7%

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28 Reviews

36%

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10,000+ Ratings

District Attorney Mark Hunter (Michael Douglas) has an impressive record in securing convictions and is contemplating a run for governor. Local reporter C.J. Nicholas (Jesse Metcalfe) is suspicious, however, and starts investigating Hunter's caseload with the help of Assistant D.A. Ella Crystal (Amber Tamblyn). Nicholas decides to frame himself for an unsolved murder to expose Hunter's unscrupulous tactics. But things spin out of his control, and he ends up facing the death penalty.

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Critics Consensus

Hackneyed and over dramatic, this undercooked courtroom drama suffers from bad dialogue and a twist ending you'll see from a distance.

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Empire Magazine

Comes across as more 1980s TV movie than 1950s period piece.

Rated: 2/5

Oct 2, 2009

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Joe Neumaier

New York Daily News

A good rule to follow for wannabe gritty thrillers: Lead actors shouldn't remind you of late-night informercial pitchmen.

Rated: 1/5

Sep 14, 2009

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Ella Taylor

NPR

There's little in this pointless rehash to distract audiences from the pleasure of watching Tamblyn, a fine young actress whose direct, grownup stare belies her baby features.

Sep 14, 2009

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Matt McAllister

Future Movies UK

Rated: 5/10

Jul 2, 2011

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

...an entertainingly absurd thriller that boasts several genuinely exciting interludes and an expectedly riveting performance from Michael Douglas.

Rated: 3/4

May 18, 2011

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Jeffrey M. Anderson

Combustible Celluloid

Hyams takes a perfectly good story and kills it with logic loopholes, inconsistent character behavior, horrendous, headache-inducing cutting, and a number of brainless chase scenes.

Jan 7, 2010

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Alain E

For whatever reason this movie has been victim of mob violence. If you read the professional reviews you end up wondering if we all watched the same movie. In reality this is an expertly constructed whodunnit, but only in the very last scene it is revealed what exactly was going on. Some reviewers claim that they could see it far in advance. Their foresight is being wasted in their present occupation. Expertly photographed and edited this is a very enjoyable movie. The only weak point I found is the unnecessarily long car chase scene in the middle.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

12/17/24

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A.L.Jude P

Feel much better than the original and it deserves accolade.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

11/18/24

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w Scott c

Definitely a long version of a law and order episode. The court decorum is atrocious. They had to stick some romance in to relate to the female audience. A made for tv movie.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

07/18/24

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Robert R

In the beginning I would consider it an excellent TV movie. Then the writer and director had for some reason had include a spoiler plot twist at the end. ‘This was completely amateurish and this movie should only be watched by students first learning about film creation. And not what to do.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

05/17/24

Full Review

HarrisonWHB24

Kinda cheese acting and dialog at times, but was a decent movie until the extremely stupid plot twist at the end ruins the whole thing

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

04/15/24

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D G

This is Naked Gun levels of seriousness and consistency.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

03/08/24

Full Review

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Peter Hyams

Director

Jesse Metcalfe

C.J. Nicholas

Amber Tamblyn

Ella Crystal

Michael Douglas

Mark Hunter

Joel David Moore

Corey Finley

Orlando Jones

Det. Nickerson

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Synopsis

District Attorney Mark Hunter (Michael Douglas) has an impressive record in securing convictions and is contemplating a run for governor. Local reporter C.J. Nicholas (Jesse Metcalfe) is suspicious, however, and starts investigating Hunter's caseload with the help of Assistant D.A. Ella Crystal (Amber Tamblyn). Nicholas decides to frame himself for an unsolved murder to expose Hunter's unscrupulous tactics. But things spin out of his control, and he ends up facing the death penalty.

Director: Peter Hyams
Producer: Moshe Diamant, Mark Damon, Ted Hartley, Michael P. Flannigan
Screenwriter: Peter Hyams
Distributor: Anchor Bay
Production Co: Autonomous Films
Rating: PG-13 (Violence|Brief Strong Language|A Sex Scene)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 11, 2009, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $32.4K
Runtime: 1h 45m

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