Movie Type: Psychological Thriller, Courtroom Drama
Themes: Dangerous Attraction, Murder Investigations, Work Ethics
Main Cast: Jeff Bridges, Glenn Close, Peter Coyote, Robert Loggia, Leigh Taylor-Young
Release Year: 1985
Country: US
Run Time: 108 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In this hit thriller, a prosecuting attorney-turned-defense lawyer falls in love with a rich, charming client who's been accused of murdering his wife and her maid with a hunting knife. When an unknown assailant gruesomely slays San Francisco newspaper heiress Paige Forrester (Maria Mayenzet), her husband and business partner, Jack Forrester (Jeff Bridges), turns to corporate attorney Teddy Barnes (Glenn Close) for counsel. Teddy, who quit her job with the district attorney's office four years earlier over an ethical dilemma, has reservations about returning to criminal work; nevertheless, she accepts the assignment, convinced of Jack's innocence and eager to face off in court against her old boss, DA Thomas Krasny (Peter Coyote), who's about run for attorney general. With the help of investigator Sam Ransom (Robert Loggia), the recently divorced Teddy builds a strong defense for her client, though the work -- and her incipient romance with Jack -- cause strain in her relationship with her children. When Jack's innocence and his romantic intentions come into question, Teddy feels her life slipping back into a moral quagmire until a series of courtroom denouements set the stage for even bigger surprises. Big-name screenwriter Joe Eszterhas' follow-up to Flashdance, Jagged Edge was directed by Richard Marquand, who had previously lensed Return of the Jedi. Parts of Jagged Edge were shot on-location in San Francisco, whose City Hall provides the film's courtroom exteriors. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
Review
Although its film noir plot turns prove somewhat unwieldy and its courtroom dramatics seem more than a little familiar, this early Joe Eszterhas effort works because of its well-drawn female protagonist, brought convincingly to life by the young Glenn Close. As principled former prosecutor Teddy Barnes, Close manages to embody her character's tangled professional, domestic, and romantic conflicts with the intelligence and warmth she brings to all but her most villainous roles. As for her co-stars, Jeff Bridges successfully treads the line between unctuous and appealing in his deliberately enigmatic role, while Peter Coyote plays the manipulative, amoral district attorney with convincing slickness. Robert Loggia gets stuck with a stock gumshoe character, but he has fun with it, as do the performers portraying the parade of low-lives and society types who grace the witness box. Some nice San Francisco scenery characterizes Matthew Leonetti's cinematography, while Richard Marquand's direction remains effective and unobtrusive. In short, Jagged Edge is a slick Hollywood product, its leading lady elevating what would otherwise be a standard-issue suspense exercise. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide
John Dehner - Judge Carrigan; Marshall Colt - Bobby Slade; Diane Erickson - Eileen Avery; Louis Giambalvo - Fabrizi; William Allen Young - Greg Arnold; Brandon Call - David Barnes; Phyllis Applegate - Mrs. Stiles; Karen Austin - Julie Jensen; Guy Boyd - Matthew Barnes; Walter Brooke - Duane Bendix; Sarah Cunningham - Judge; Michael Dorn - Dan Hislan; Woody Eney - Austin Lofton; Bruce French - Richard Duffin; John Furlong - Butler; Bill Gratton - Jury Foreman; Ben Hammer - Dr. Goldman; John X. Heart - Reporter; Lance Henriksen - Frank Martin; Sanford Jensen - Scott Talbot; James Karen - Andrew Hardesty; Suzanne Lodge - Reporter; Richard Marion - Reporter; Edwina Moore - Reporter; Sue Rihr - Reporter; Al Ruscio - Carl Siegal; Lynn Stalmaster; Abigail van Alyn - Reporter; David Wiley - Court Clerk; Terry Wills - Reporter; Biff Yeager - Reporter; John Clark - Dr. Holloway; Maria Mayenzet - Page Forrester; David Austin - Policeman; Jay Crimp - Mrs. Barnes' Assistant; Sharon Hanian - Assistant District Attorney; Brenda Huggins - Reporter; Christina Hutter - Jenny Barnes; Sharon Madden - City Editor; Richard Partlow - Policeman; Joyce Shank - TV Interviewer; Judith Siegfried - Reporter; Sally Train - Reporter; Ann Walker - Mrs. Barnes' Secretary; Dean Webber - Newscaster; James Winker - Ted Fitzpatrick; Karen Wonnell - Stablehand; Mike Mitchell - Bailiff
Credit
Peter Smith - Art Director, Michael Dennison - Costume Designer, Elizabeth Pine - Costume Designer, Ann Roth - Costume Designer, Richard Marquand - Director, Sean Barton - Editor, Conrad Buff - Editor, John Barry - Composer (Music Score), Bob Mills - Makeup, Gene Callahan - Production Designer, Matthew Leonetti - Cinematographer, Terry Carr - Producer, Martin Ransohoff - Producer, Christopher Burian-Mohr - Set Designer, Beverli Eagan - Set Designer, John Warnke - Set Designer, Gene S. Cantamessa - Sound/Sound Designer, Debby Porter - Stunts, Joe Eszterhas - Screenwriter
The movie opens with the brutal murder of Paige Forrester at her remote beach house. An intruder in a black mask ties her up in bed and kills her with a hunting knife. He writes the word 'Bitch' on the wall above the bed with her blood. Her husband Jack Forrester (Jeff Bridges) is devastated. To make matters worse, he is then arrested for her murder by Thomas Krasny (Peter Coyote), a posturing D.A.. Jack tries to hire lawyer Teddy Barnes (Glenn Close) to defend him. Barnes used to work for Krasny, and she is reluctant to take the case, as she stopped working in criminal law after an incident with Krasny.
Krasny runs into Barnes in a restaurant, where she is dining with her ex-husband. He tells her that "Henry Styles hanged himself in his cell", which clearly distresses her. Barnes visits Sam Ransom (Robert Loggia), a two-bit private detective who used to work for Krasny's office as well. He stopped private investigations at the same time that Barnes left Krasny's office, and it becomes clear that Styles' case was the reason why. During her visit with Ransom, Barnes decides to take the case.
In the course of preparing for the trial, Barnes and Forrester spend a great deal of time together, and eventually, they sleep together. Ransom warns Barnes that Forrester is just trying to make her care more about his case so that she won't lose it. She says, "I know that!" In the run up to the trial, her office begins receiving anonymous typed letters that mention things about the case. All of the 't's' in the letters are slightly raised, and Ransom has the notes analyzed, determining they were typed on a 1942 Corona typewriter.
In a pre-trial meeting, Barnes tells the judge that Krasny has a history of not meeting his discovery obligations. She is warned about making such powerful claims without any evidence.The prosecution's case relies mainly on circumstantial evidence. A jilted woman claimed that Paige told her she was divorcing Jack, but Barnes discredits her with evidence, including a love letter, that her advances had been rejected by Jack, causing Paige to cut off all communication with her. The other main witness is a locker room attendant at a private club who claims to have seen a hunting knife in Forrester's locker. Barnes discredits him by proving that the knife was in another member's locker.
Krasny calls a witness who had an affair with Forrester. The details of her relationship with Forrester are eerily similar to the way he seduced Barnes. She is horrified and threatens to drop the case. She only agrees to proceed due to a sense of duty, though she has become convinced that Forrester is guilty. Another note arrives at her office saying, "He is innocent. Santa Cruz. January 21, 1984. Ask Julie Jensen."
Barnes drives to Santa Cruz and interviews Jensen, who then testifies at the trial that she was attacked in the same manner as Paige Forrester. All of the details match, but she says her attacker seemed to stop himself from killing her. As Krasny is busy objecting that the attack on Jensen is unrelated to the one on Forrester, he lets slip that his office had investigated the attack and not revealed it in discovery. In chambers, the judge threatens to have Krasny disbarred. It's become obvious that he's lost the case and that Barnes once again believes Forrester is innocent. Krasny seems deranged as he yells at Barnes that Forrester is guilty and comparable not to a psychopath but to an "iceman". Krasny insists that Forrester staged the earlier attack on Jensen and that he's been sending Barnes the anonymous notes leading her along.
After the 'not guilty' verdict is read, Barnes announces to the media that she left Krasny's office over the Henry Styles case, where Krasny suppressed evidence that proved Styles was innocent. Krasny walks off in disgust. Barnes goes over to Forrester's house to celebrate, and they sleep together again. In the morning, as she is changing the sheets on the bed, she discovers a Corona typewriter in his closet. She tests it by typing 'He is innocent', and the 't' is raised just as it was in the anonymous notes she received. She flees in a panic with the typewriter.
Back at home, she calls Ransom in a panic, without saying what's wrong. Forrester calls to ask why she left, and she tells him that she found the typewriter. He feigns innocence and says he's coming over. The masked figure from the opening scene breaks into her house and confronts her in her bedroom. As he starts to attack, Barnes shoots him multiple times. Ransom comes in with his gun drawn and unmasks the attacker, who is revealed to be Forrester.
Trivia
A Return of the Jedi poster can be seen on the door of Barnes' children's room. Marquand had directed Return of the Jedi two years earlier.
