User reviews

If you listen to the critics who knows where we would be. I

ignored the comments that this was another Fugitive only a female version, but found the movie fast paced and well acted by Tommy Lee Jones and Ashley Judd, as well as the whole cast. I liked the story line and it was exciting and the time just flew by. Go see it you will enjoy it!!!!

Despite all the flaws in logic and legal proceedings, Ashley Judd and Tommy Lee Jones make this movie an enjoyable watch. The premise is kind of ridiculous, but their charisma and performances keep you engaged. I'd actually forgotten a lot about this film since the first time I saw it, so it was fun to revisit it again.

I've read all the bad reviews-I can say that it's really not THAT bad-granted-this picture has no realism whatsoever but-I could rattle off the names of many movies even more unbelievable that are still considered good films.

Not that this is a really GOOD film or anything-but it does what it does well-which is to get your attention and hold it-no great analysis, no deep conversations afterward about "what it all meant". Just a bit of time away from day to day life.

The movie is also trying to appeal to a particular crowd, the type who like these type of "mind thrillers'(Guilty as sin is another one, Malice, Final analysis etc etc) There's a whole host of movies like this one.

Now this particular movie stars Ashley Judd who is so talented she almost had me thinking she really was locked up-definitely a quality actress-and if your a female and have just had a really BAD breakup you may wanna see it for that "woman will triumph" quality.

Not that I'm saying this movie is great but I always tend to look for the bad AND the good-I thought one of the worst thrillers(a lot worse then this) was malice with Kidman and Alec Baldwin-that one was not only improbable but also extremely boring-but I'm getting off the subject at hand...

I liked this. saw it in the theater and rooted for Ashley all the way.

Seen a lot worse in my time.

And lastly if you wanna check out ridiculous movies(and it's a SEQUEL to boot) rent "revenge of the stepford wives".

Double Jeopardy actually seemed like my sort of film, and when I finally saw it I thought it was enjoyable. It is far from flawless, although the premise was interesting the story itself has some credibility lapses and has a lot of derivative elements. The film has the odd draggy moment and the characters are rather clichéd. On the other hand, Double Jeopardy looks wonderful, with striking scenery and stylish photography and editing. The music is not too generic either and it helps the atmosphere, and the script is well paced and sharp. Double Jeopardy is also well directed and Tommy Lee Jones and Ashley Judd give great lead performances, and although the rest of the characters aren't as interesting or as well written, effort is done both in written and performance quality to make them credible. Overall, an enjoyable film. 7/10 Bethany Cox

I absolutely love this movie. It's an amazing thriller with a really great cast and a really interesting story. Some movies do not withstand the test of time but this one surely does. I've watched it many times over the years and always enjoyed it. It's suspenseful and engaging with great characters developments and not a dull moment. Highly recommended!

In the Whidbey Island, Libby (Ashley Judd) is happily married with her husband Nick Parsons (Bruce Greenwood) and their son Matty. Nick is having financial problems but promises to Libby to buy a sailboat if she likes her. They go to sail in the vessel while Libby's best friend Angie (Annabeth Gish) stays with Matty. During the night, Libby and Nick drink wine and make love. When Libby wakes up, she and the boat are covered with blood and Nick is missing. She finds the galley's knife on the deck and out of the blue, the US Coast Guard arrives. They unsuccessfully look for Nick's body and later Libby is becomes the prime suspect to kill her husband to receive an insurance policy and is sentenced to prison. Angie and Matty stop visiting Libby and she finds that her best friend has moved to San Francisco. She calls her from the prison and finds that Nick is alive by chance and living with Angie. Libby befriends her cellmate Margaret (Roma Maffia), who is a former lawyer, and she gives advices to Libby. Six years later, Libby is on probation under the care of her tough officer and former lawyer and Professor Travis (Tommy Lee Jones). But she is determined to find Matty, Angie and Nick.

"Double Jeopardy" is a flawed, but entertaining thriller. There are no explanations for many situations, like, for example, the blood on the vessel and in Libby's clothes, or how a public persona can be so invisible. But the plot is engaging and if the viewer shutdown the brain for the flaws, will centainly enjoy this film. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Risco Duplo" ("Double Risk")

Their definition of double jeopardy is so wrong that it insults intelligence. DJ protects a person, presumably found innocent the first trial, from being retried for that SAME crime. SAME ...as in same victim, same day, same circumstance. Not SAME victim but DIFFERENT day, circumstance. Using their interpretation of DJ, I could assault someone, be tried and go to prison, get released, and go assault that person again and get off scott free. Maybe a small legal point to most viewers, but I prefer to watch movies that don't make me scoff at the stupidity of the central premise. That said, the action is decent.

Ashley Judd is very beautiful and apt for this role. The way she characterizes a wife,a mother and an victim is too good. Hats off to Ashley Judd. After Elizabeth Taylor ,I like the acting skill of this fine women. Ppl - watch this movie.Its a nice dose of suspense,romance and dose of other emotions as well and Ashley Judd did her best. The story is subtle. Good screen play. Good direction. All in all good investment of time. Watch it for Ashley.They say that this movie has some issue in the legal interpretation of some legal point but I think that it has no relevance to the movie in so far as the way the screen play is done.I believe that the movie doesn't weigh on that interpretation alone as the climax just sinks into us without that gravity. I personally think though the story is good,Ashley carried it excellently well and an extremely delicate one at that. Infinite thanks to this beauty of an actor and a person. Thanks all.

Double Jeopardy is an interesting enough thriller, but it just isn't as satisfying as you would expect a movie with this premise to be. Ashley Judd is just annoying for the first hour or so of the film, and it isn't until the fugitive style chase begins that the movie gets really interesting. And this, of course, is where Tommy Lee's excellent acting is the most entertaining and fun. He has unfortunately been somewhat typecast since his spectacular performance in The Fugitive, but at least he has been typecast in a role that is always fun to watch and that he can always pull off excellently.

I think it's pointless to try to argue whether or not the whole double jeopardy law can truly be handled in the way that it was described in the film, but as a crime film Double Jeopardy was pretty good. Judd's husband in the film is one of those characters that's easy to hate, and not only because of what he did in the movie. You just look at this guy and you immediately don't like him. That's good casting, but it also completely voided any effectiveness that his `auction' might ever have had. And how about that coffin scene! Who cares that no one gets buried in a coffin that has plenty of room for two! That was one of the creepiest things I've seen in a movie in years.

Clearly, there is nothing spectacular about Double Jeopardy. It's not going to win any awards and it probably won't be remembered for very long. But it has a certain charm that can unfortunately only be appreciated if you're in the right state of mind when you watch it. Don't expect it to be as good as The Fugitive just because Tommy Lee Jones is in it (really, are any movies as good as The Fugitive?). I mean, let's face it, Double Jeopardy isn't even as good as Under Siege, but as far as a moderately entertaining crime thriller to kill a couple hours, you could definitely do a lot worse.

Not that it's a horrible movie, but it was certainly nothing new. I didn't find a single surprise in the movie and overall found it to be almost boring.

I thought Ashley Judd and pretty good as was Bruce Greenwood. Tommy Lee Jones was OK, although his character was weak and never really developed.

As for the story, it's a good idea, but the execution leaves something lacking. There were no surprises in the story (something very important in a "thriller"). Without the twists and turns expected in a good thriller, the story seems to just meander to the inevitable ending. I (as did the group of people I was with) knew the ending about 15 minutes into the movie. There was no suspense of "who did it" or "will he get away with it".

All that can really be said about "Double Jeopardy" is that it had potential--great cast and good story idea. However, it just never came together. Part of this might be attributed to the marketing of the movie. As an example, "The Sixth Sense", released just a few weeks prior, managed to keep the ending a (sort of) secret, until it was seen. With "Double Jeopardy" though, the viewer goes into the theater knowing who did it and able to guess the ending without much thought.

I couldn't belive it when I read these comments and most of them were negative. This is one of my favorite movies!! I absolutely loved it. I think Ashley Judd is an incredible actress and Libby is my favorite character that she plays. This movie keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time. What I love most is all the steps she goes through to finally find her husband and son. I just feel like screaming "GO Girl!!" like half the time. I love the character of Libby and how she is so strong and smart and doesn't take any crap from anybody. I don't know why people didn't like this movie more. I think it is wonderful and really touching about a mother's love. Regardless of what these other comments say... go see this movie!! Decide for yourself what you think but I doubt you will be bored. Wonderful movie!! 10/10

Yes, common law does contain a "double jeopardy" principle: one cannot be tried for the same crime twice. A friend of mine who knows something about legal theory (I know next to nothing) points out that one can nevertheless face the same CHARGE twice. If I am convicted of stealing Fred's car it's just not true that the law can't touch me if I steal his car a second time - in the eyes of the law, which is not a complete ass, I have committed TWO crimes, even though they both bear the same description: `stealing Fred's car'.

Let us suppose, though, that it's different in the case of murder, at least in some jurisdiction somewhere. (It's easy to see why murder might be a special case.) Suppose that Libby Parsons, falsely convicted of killing Nick Parsons, now has the legal right to REALLY kill him. What of it? Murder is the ONLY crime Libby is at legal liberty to commit; but how does one commit ONLY murder? It's just not possible. In order to murder Mick, Libby must break any number of other laws: she must inflict grievous bodily harm, or damage property, or endanger someone's safety, or carry a concealed firearm, or create a public nuisance, or loiter, or jaywalk - I'm sure there are enough laws on the books to keep her locked away from precisely as long as if she'd simply been convicted of murder a second time, and a good thing too.

It's hard not to think of this when she JUMPS PAROLE in order to go in search of her presumed-dead husband. What's the point of this detail? The film wants to wave what it supposes to be a clever gimmick in our faces: the fact that Libby can commit murder within the law. If she then breaks a law - which she needn't have done, and which the film certainly needn't have been constructed so as to make it the case that she needed to have done - what's the POINT of the double jeopardy routine? I don't know that there was much point anyway. Do we really want this woman to break out of jail and murder her husband? Of course not. We like her. She's not yet a killer and we don't want her to become one, even if killing her husband is in her interest, which it isn't. This would have been a better film if Beresford had at some point halfway through made it clear to us that the "legal principle" Libby had heard from her friend in jail was but a distortion of the truth.

Anyway: this bugged me. But it's not to say that "Double Jeopardy" isn't otherwise a well-made thriller, distinctly enjoyable to watch. It has Tommy Lee Jones doing his schtick, for one thing. I actually prefer his character here to the one he bore in "The Fugitive". Everyone remembers his reply in the earlier film to "I didn't kill my wife": "I don't care." But it's a line that was just thrown in because it sounds cool. In "Double Jeopardy" Jones has a more discernible character, and he's more fun.

The premise of this film is a good one. It is well set up and interesting from the start. It's downhill from there on. While there are slick action sequences and lots of close calls, the possibility of these things taking place is preposterous. First of all, no body and a conviction. It almost never happens. Aren't there any forensics? What about the blood? Was it his. The prison scenes are so antiseptic with the two buddies becoming the immediate friends. Then there is old bulldog Tommy Lee Jones (one of my favorite actors) with his own ghosts. The downfall of the film, however, is that it defies the the law of gravity. The whole thing winds down to where we are supposed to believe that the diminutive Ashley Judd is able to accomplish all this because she ran around in the rain and pumped a little iron in prison. By the way, does anyone know how loud a gun is in a closed space when fired right near one's ear? It's just another one of those questions that makes this whole thing ludicrous.

Great plot - excellent acting - beautiful sights and scenes. Exciting story with lots of action. Thoroughly enjoyable - even if one knows the plot in advance. Many touching moments. Strongly recommend this movie which has something for everyone.

Bruce Bereford's Double Jeopardy is an enjoyable and engrossing film mostly because Ashley Judd and Tommy Lee Jones make their characters so compelling and interesting that we don't have time to think much about the big plot contrivances that propel the movie forward. And Bruce Greenwood's oily, sleazy villain is also very well done. Beresford's direction and the editing keep it fast paced, and the stunning locations are a mini-travelogue.

One more note: I was very annoyed with the trailer for this film, which revealed every aspect of the story. It says something - About me ? About the trailer ? - that I decided to watch it anyway, but it does seem very heavy-handed of the studio that their trailer bludgeons rather than entices us.

A silk purse from a sow's ear, indeed.

This is really my kind of movie, with good action and a plot that keeps you guessing as to exactly where the story is going. Tommy Lee Jones is right at home as he pursues his latest fugitive; and Ashley Judd once again plays the strong, independent female. Two of my favorite actors doing what they do best.

While I am more that willing to allow for some dramatic license, I was really distracted at times by events in the movie that were too far removed from the way things happen and the way people act in the real world. The prosecutor in the courtroom scene would have at least been warned by the judge for some of her outrageous remarks and behavior. I was also troubled by the fact that Ashley Judd's character while seeking help locating her son from prison, never tried to contact her lawyer. They seemed to have a good relationship. What happened to this guy? Did he die, fall off the edge of the earth or what? Finally, I don't see how even the smallest car can fall off the back of a ferry boat full of passengers and not be noticed by at least one person. Still that is what we are asked to believe.

These and a few other distractions aside, it wasn't a bad film. It just could have been so much better. Still, it was worth a couple of bucks on a rainy afternoon.