Jagged Edge

 Dir: Richard Marquand/USA/1985/109 mins/Dolby stereo

Lps: Glenn Close, Jeff Bridges, Peter Coyote, Robert Loggia

A tense courtroom thriller, with newspaper editor Jack Forrester (Jeff Bridges) on trial for the murder of his rich wife, found knifed to death along with her maid in what appears to be a ritual killing. Glenn Close is Teddy Barnes, the defence attorney who reluctantly takes on the case, and, against her better judgement, becomes emotionally involved with her client.

Jagged Edge moves rapidly along, playing with expectations and assumptions. The court scenes, whilst dominating a considerable part of the film, are as exciting and dramatic as the most physical of thrillers, interspersed with Teddy's developing relationship with Jack and her doubts and insecurities about her job. As the story reaches its powerful, tantalising conclusion, the suspense becomes unbearable, the real identity of the murderer remaining undisclosed until the last few seconds of the film. And through the twists and turns of the plot, you'll be kept guessing right up to that final, excruciating scene. 

HM/ML

The film is also notable for what a fellow committee member described as "the most gratuitous use of Dolby Surround Sound ever" - a game of squash where the ball can be heard hitting all sides of the court, using the multiple speakers.