Poor execution kills intrigue of ‘Justice Served’
Somewhere, deep inside “Justice Served,” there is the kernel of an interesting idea. But you’ve got to look hard, because the finished product is pretty dire stuff.
The film is based around a gimmicky concept that has some potential. Two people are drugged; when they awake, they are inside a makeshift courtroom. The “defendant” is strapped to a chair behind glass; the person on the other side has access to a button, which will provide the defendant with a shock. There is no judge; a voice heard through a speaker is addressed as “Justice.” That last part is pretty lame; you keep expecting to hear Janet Jackson respond as her “Poetic Justice” character.
The concept feels a bit “Saw”-ish, but there are twists. The so-called defendant (Jay Giannone) was accused of murdering a woman and got off. The person with access to the button is the victim’s widower (Chase Coleman). So is he going to simply torture the person or attempt to find out if he’s truly innocent?
That’s the part of the movie that could be interesting. But before that comes some unconvincing introductory scenes involving street thugs and widower Luke meeting with a therapist (the acting is hit or miss, mostly miss). Once the “courtroom” proceedings begins, it turns out the same thing is happening in two other rooms to two other sets of people, so we follow their stories as well. There’s simply too much going on.
Marvin Young writes and directs the film; he also plays one of the defendants (he’s better known as rapper Young MC of “Bust a Move” fame). Young really overstuffs the film with characters and plot; the movie continues for a good 30