The Stream: It’s a courtroom drama inspired by true events – you know how this is going to go.

The Big Screen: There are some surprising twists and Jamie Foxx is excellent.

The Final Bill: A crowd-pleasing and funny courtroom drama that checks all of the entertainment boxes.

– Trip Fontaine
Director: Maggie Betts
Writers: Maggie Betts and Doug Wright story by Doug Wright based on an article by Jonathan Harr
Stars: Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, Jurnee Smollett, Alan Ruck, Mamoudou Athie
Genre: Drama
Rating: R for language
Runtime: 2 hours 6 minutes
Production Companies: Amazon Studios, Bobby Shriver, Double Nickel Entertainment, Foxxhole Productions, Maven Screen Media
Platform: In limited theaters on October 6, 2023 and on Prime Video October 13, 2023

Hey, Streamers! There are slim pickings at the theaters this weekend.  If you’ve already had your share of the scary movies and you are not clamoring to see Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour on the big screen, then maybe you should find something to good to watch at home.  Luckily, Prime Video has a new release called The Burial starring Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones just for you.   

Inspired by true events, The Burial is a legal drama about a contract dispute between a small business owner and the big corporation attempting to put him out of business. Tommy Lee Jones plays Jerry O’Keefe, who owns 8 funeral homes and a burial insurance company in Alabama.  O’Keefe made some poor financial decisions which leaves his businesses in jeopardy.  O’Keefe makes a deal with the Loewen Group, owned by Raymond Loewen (Bill Camp), to sell 3 funeral homes in order to rescue the rest of his business from ruin and have a legacy to pass on to his children. When the deal goes bad, O’Keefe seeks out the legal expertise of Willie E. Gary (Jamie Foxx), who has earned a reputation as a flashy Johnnie Cochran-type attorney, to represent him in this otherwise simple legal dispute. Of course, nothing is as simple as it seems and with Willie Gary at the helm of the case anything can happen. Legal maneuvering and courtroom hijinks ensue.

Pure and simple, The Burial is a delight.  Courtroom dramas are a dime a dozen, and there isn’t much one can do to set them apart from each other.  Yes, these movies have similar beats no matter what the case is. I can’t say this movie contributes anything new to the structure of your common legal drama.  Nevertheless, The Burial does what it does very well.  It is entertaining, funny, and inspirational. The movie has the benefit of being a David versus Goliath story with instantly likeable main characters. Moreover, the movie attempts to broaden the scope of this trial beyond just O’Keefe and Loewen, which is both surprising and poignant.

Jamie Foxx. Jamie Foxx. Jamie Foxx. Watch this movie and tell me Jamie Foxx is not a national treasure.  He is so good as Willie Gary. He is flashy and sensitive and has such a commanding presence. Between this and They Cloned Tyrone, Jamie Foxx is having a very strong year at the movies. The cast as a whole is great not just Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones, but also Jurnee Smollett, Mamoudou Athie, Alan Ruck and Amanda Warren.  I will say though that Jurnee Smollett doesn’t get enough to do. She’s great in her scenes as the lead attorney for the Loewen Group, but I wanted to see more of her. She was really ready to go toe-to-toe with Foxx, but she doesn’t have enough screen time.

There are definitely some corny moments – some very corny moments. The music selections seem a bit off at times as well, which doesn’t help.  In an inspirational story like this, there doesn’t need to be the extra musical manipulation to make it work. You’ll roll your eyes at some lines and some needle drops, but the story is so engaging that you’ll forgive its shortcomings.

Ultimately, The Burial is an outstanding, funny and poignant legal drama. Although there isn’t anything new added to the legal drama genre, the story itself is good enough to be engaging and entertaining. Jamie Foxx proves again that he’s a great, commanding actor. Grab a big box of popcorn and enjoy this one.