Four years ago I wrote about the wonderful book “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption ” by Bryan Stevenson. It is one of the best books I have ever read.
The book was made into a Warner Brothers film which was released in December 2019. Here’s a short summary of the movie from Rotten Tomatoes, where the film has an audience score of 99%
A powerful and thought-provoking true story, “Just Mercy” follows young lawyer Bryan Stevenson (Jordan) and his history-making battle for justice. After graduating from Harvard, Bryan had his pick of lucrative jobs. Instead, he heads to Alabama to defend those wrongly condemned or who were not afforded proper representation, with the support of local advocate Eva Ansley (Larson). One of his first, and most incendiary, cases is that of Walter McMillian (Foxx), who, in 1987, was sentenced to die for the notorious murder of an 18-year-old girl, despite a preponderance of evidence proving his innocence and the fact that the only testimony against him came from a criminal with a motive to lie. In the years that follow, Bryan becomes embroiled in a labyrinth of legal and political maneuverings and overt and unabashed racism as he fights for Walter, and others like him, with the odds-and the system-stacked against them.
The film seems to stick pretty close to the story, and is nearly as moving and sad as the book.
Given all the protests we have had in our country over the past week, Warner Brothers has decided to release the movie for free to various streaming services. While Netflix did not have it, Amazon Prime did and we watched it last night.
It is a wonderful movie, and I’d highly recommend It.
Here’s the trailer:
Note: music playing tonight while writing was Jean-Luc Ponty, a jazz and eclectic violinist. I remember first hearing Jean-Luc’s music while I was in college, back in the late 1970s…
*image from Deadline
I have not read the book, but I’ve heard good things about the movie from a couple of my friends. Thanks for the tip.
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Enjoy!
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The trailer looks good. I might give that one a watch one day.
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Free until the end of June…
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Just Mercy looks like a terrific movie. I wish I had Amazon Prime. Netflix has been disappointing lately. Maybe time for a switch.
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Netflix seems hit or miss. We did enjoy the Lance Armstrong special on ESPN…
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Thanks for the tip, Jim. I’ll keep a look out for it: sadly, Prime’s generosity hasn’t yet reached this side of the pond.
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Jeff Bezos can’t be too generous…
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No, he clearly needs every pound he can make, even if he can give away a few dollars. It wasn’t cheap, either: £9.99 to buy or £4.99 to rent.
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Well perhaps if there are enough riots in the UK, Amazon will feel like it’s a movie everyone should be watching…
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We appear to have done our bit over the weekend, so it’s over to Jeff now…
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Patience…
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I’ve managed to find the Kindle version of the book for 99p to keep me going in the meantime 👍
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I hope you enjoy it as much as I did…
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So do I! It joins a very large virtual pile of books to be read 😊
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my kindle has been getting heavier as well… 🙂
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I use an iPad with the Kindle app. Loads of storage and a much better tablet than Kindle Fire, in my experience.
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I do a lot of my reading on the Kindle app on my iPhone, and really like it. I just got an iPad a couple of months ago, and I have tried the Kindle app, and it is quite nice…
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I’ve tried several Kindles over the years but always return to the iPad, it just feels better, and I like the way it lets you arrange your books into Collections – haven’t found anything similar on the Kindle Fire.
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and it’s the Kindle app you are using on the iPad, correct? I’ll have to look into the Collections feature…
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Yes, that’s right. I find it really useful.
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thanks for the tip!
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You’re welcome. Hope it helps.
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The book is great and the film was at least a poignant representation. Jean-Luc? I thought I was the only one who still remembers and enjoys his work. The best jazz violinist to ever rosin the bow. Great post, Jim!
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Thanks, Brad. Glad you enjoyed the book, the movie, and the violin! Have a great day.
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Thanks for sharing this, Jim. I’ll have to see if I can find it to watch. Looks powerful.
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I hope you can. Norah.
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I hope so too.
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I was just talking to my husband about how I want to watch this movie. Good to know that you thought highly of it. Will have to see it this month!
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please let me know what you think of it if you get a chance to watch it!
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Will do! Does it have a good ending? Yes, I know, I shouldn’t ask….but…..does it? 🙂
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Given that my blog reaches millions of readers, I don’t feel comfortable sharing the end of the film and ruining the surprise… 🙂
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Oh yes I would hate to be the one ro bear the guilt of ruining the ending for your million other fans! 😄
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my fans thank you for your understanding…
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They are welcome. Still waiting to hear what your million fans would think about that…one movie! The one whose name just doesn’t stick in my head. 🙂
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all my fans are with me, except for one… 🙂
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LOL!! I think I need to see some evidence of that Than again I guess it must be nice to know that you have at least one smart fan! 😂
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yes, I am immensely grateful for smart fans like you 🙂
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Oh gosh, now I feel…….
You are welcome! 🙂
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🙂
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Dang, you nade me cry!
My eyes are still wet.
Powerful movie for sure!! I just can’t imagine going through what Johnny D and his family and others went through!
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powerful movie indeed. I’m glad you got a chance to watch it. And good thing there are people like Bryan Stevenson out there fighting for people like Johnny D…
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Totally agree!!
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i will definitely seek this out, i’ve heard from a number of people that this is amazing.
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it’s free on multiple streaming platforms, such as Amazon, Google Play, and YouTube until the end of June…
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Thanks for the tip
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Jim, thanks for sharing. I will need to check my Prime account for this film.
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Our family really enjoyed it…
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Nice write up, Jim. I’d considered seeing this film during its cinematic release but missed it I guess. As a side, about 5 years ago I was in Miami for business and stepped out of an elevator right in front of Mr. Foxx.
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Thanks, Michael. I wonder if Mr. Foxx told people that he ran into Mr. Kuch at an elevator in Miami… 🙂
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Hahaha … I would like to think so, but believe not so.
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you never know what sort of impression you may have made…
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A great film I watched it a little while ago I downloaded it(free) from Utorrent if it isn’t on Netflix generally I can find it on Utorrent… I do have some invites if anyone wants one as it can only be accessed by invite now.
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happy to hear that you enjoyed it as well. I would be interested in one of your uTorrent invites if you have any left! thank you…
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Just let me have your email and I will send you one..
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I sent you a request through your contact page. thank you!
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Invite sent Jim..Utorrent will send you a link…Happy viewing 🙂
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Thanks, Carol!
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My pleasure, Jim 😊
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I haven’t read the book but the trailer seems good- I think I’ll watch the movie.
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I hope you enjoy it!
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I think I will!
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Thanks for the recommendation.
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Enjoy!
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