DE Special Projects Editor

It is amazing how a potentially great movie can be ruined by something as insignificant as, let’s say, its plot.

The Juror, a movie that has the mob, a trial, suspense, two of the hottest actors in Hollywood, sex, violence and a family unwillingly thrown in the middle of it all, seems to have the groundwork for a great movie.

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But the movie fails by taking all of these elements, and mixing them with poor execution. The final product, sadly enough, is a disappointing movie that at one time had potential.

The Juror follows Annie (Demi Moore), a struggling sculptor and single mother who is selected as a juror in a murder trial, in which Mafia boss Louie Boffano stands accused of ordering the whacking of a rival.

Soon after she is picked, two mobsters, Eddie (James Gandolfini) and The Teacher (Alec Baldwin) place Annie under surveillance. The Teacher poses as a art collector and gains the favor of Annie. The two agree to have lunch and later, a date.

Just when things start going well, he exposes his true identity. Using threats as a means of persuasion, he tells her to enter a verdict of not guilty in the murder trial. If she does not, she and her son Oliver (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) will be in great danger; in other words, he will kill them.

But just when you think there is going to be a long drawn out trial that will engulf most of the movie, the jury enters a verdict of not-guilty, and the trial is over.

Even though Annie has fulfilled her obligation, The Teacher falls in love with her, and his methods of intimidation become more stiff in his race to win her over.

This turn in plot creates many new situations, but the movie does not reveal how these situations come about. This creates big holes in the plot, which the movie seems to never notice or pay attention to.

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But what really kills this movie is its cast of supporting actors. Despite the Armani suits, the mobsters are more like clowns, and are more funny than threatening.

Rodney, one of The Teacher’s friends, is a stupid baffoon that would be better casted in one of the many Police Academy movies, than in a somewhat serious drama such as The Juror.

And the list goes on.

The only two bright spots in the cast are Annie (Moore) and her friend Juliet (Anne Heche). Moore does an effective job in playing the emotionally wrecked mother who will do anything to save her child. Crying, yelling and at times psychotic with fear and anger, Moore gives the one performance that distinguishes this movie as a true thriller.

Heche plays the chipper and somewhat naive young professional that, though innocent, is thrown into the ring of fire just because she is a friend of Annie’s. Heche plays does not have the Hollywood-standard beautiful looks. But she is an actress most viewers will like because of her friendly-gentle disposition, and her character’s valiant support for Annie in her time of trouble.

The most disappointing role is that of The Teacher. Baldwin’s character seems inconsistent. One minute crazy, one minute sane, the next, something in-between, this character seems generically bad or at the least, too undeveloped in the plot. This makes little sense considering the significance of his role in the film.

The Juror is somewhat predictable. We all know Annie will not be killed. No director in Hollywood could be that cruel or unpredictable. But most of all, the movie surfs on the verge of being good at times. But it ends up dragging audiences through a mediocre tale of triumph in the face of evil that they have seen billions and billions and billions of times before.