--- title: "A Time to Kill" year: 1996 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/a-time-to-kill" fi1m_id: "a-time-to-kill" imdb_id: "tt0117913" tmdb_id: 1645 wikidata_id: "Q498867" fi1m_score: 55 critics_score: 54 critics_reviews: 8 published: "2026-10-05T00:24:57.569280+00:00" updated: "2026-10-05T00:25:19.472831+00:00" region: "LT" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # A Time to Kill (1996) Directed by Joel Schumacher · 2h 29m · Crime, Drama, Thriller ## Identity A Time to Kill - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/a-time-to-kill - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** a-time-to-kill - **IMDb ID:** tt0117913 - **TMDB ID:** 1645 - **Wikidata ID:** Q498867 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0117913/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/1645, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q498867 **Fi1m score: 55** · Critics 54 from 8 reviews *In a sentence:* A film about whether a jury can be fair, which made up its own mind before the credits finished > Samuel L. Jackson gives Joel Schumacher’s Grisham adaptation a centre it has not earned. Around him the film sweats, shouts and stacks every scene so that only one answer is possible, then congratulates us for reaching it. Well acted, and not to be trusted. ## Synopsis Clanton, Mississippi. Ten-year-old Tonya Hailey (Rae’Ven Larrymore Kelly) is raped and beaten by two white men in a pickup truck and left for dead. Days later her father, Carl Lee Hailey (Samuel L. Jackson), walks into the county courthouse with a rifle and shoots both men dead on the stairs as they are led to court. He asks Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey), a young white lawyer, to defend him. District attorney Rufus Buckley (Kevin Spacey) wants a conviction and the death penalty. Jake has his old mentor Lucien Wilbanks (Donald Sutherland), a law student, Ellen Roark (Sandra Bullock), and a wife, Carla (Ashley Judd), who wants him to walk away. Freddie Lee Cobb (Kiefer Sutherland), brother of one of the dead men, goes to the Klan. ## Review Joel Schumacher’s film of John Grisham’s first novel opens in Clanton, Mississippi, with the rape and beating of a ten-year-old girl, Tonya Hailey (Rae’Ven Larrymore Kelly), by two white men in a pickup truck. Her father Carl Lee Hailey (Samuel L. Jackson) shoots them both on the courthouse stairs, then asks a young white lawyer, Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey), to keep him from the death penalty. Akiva Goldsman’s screenplay puts a real question on the table: can this man get a fair trial from a white jury in this town, and should he. The film spends 149 minutes answering it the way everyone in the cinema wants it answered, with a choir. We were horrified by the opening, and we should have been. Schumacher shoots the assault in pieces: beer cans thrown from a truck, a bag of groceries going into the dirt, a child’s face afterwards. Kelly is on screen for a few minutes and the whole film rests on them. What troubled us was what came next. Having shown us the worst thing it has, the film spends the rest of its running time cashing it in, using it to close down each argument before anyone has made it. Jackson is the reason to watch. He plays Carl Lee as a man who has done the sums and knows the total, and he barely raises his voice. In the jail scenes with McConaughey he is the one person in the film who is not performing for a gallery, and those scenes are the best thing here. Kevin Spacey’s Rufus Buckley, the district attorney, is a politician in a good suit who is plainly enjoying the case, and Spacey enjoys him. McConaughey has the jaw, the sweat and the voice for a closing address; what he is not given is much to do between the sweating and the address. Sandra Bullock’s Ellen Roark, a law student who turns up to help and keeps turning up, is a great deal of energy pointed at a thin part. Oliver Platt gets the jokes. Peter Menzies lights everything as heat: sweat on every forehead, amber sun through slatted blinds, dust hanging in the air of Larry Fulton’s courthouse, with its wide steps and white columns. Elliot Goldenthal’s score, brass under massed voices, tells us what to feel a beat before the scene does, every time. William Steinkamp cuts the courtroom to the gallery rather than the witness box; each point scored gets a reaction shot, and the camera holds on it until we have got the message. The Klan is where the film comes apart. Freddie Lee Cobb (Kiefer Sutherland), brother of one of the dead men, goes looking for men in hoods, and from the moment they appear this is a different picture, a pulp thriller about burning crosses with a trial attached. Every white character who doubts Carl Lee is a Klansman or a coward. Every argument against a man shooting two prisoners on a public staircase is put in the mouth of Buckley, whom we have been told to dislike. A film that wants to debate whether a killing was right needs one decent person to argue that it was not. There is nobody. By the time of the closing address we were stirred, and then faintly ashamed of ourselves, because we could feel which strings had been pulled and in what order. Schumacher had filmed Grisham before, in *The Client* (1994), and that was the better film because it was smaller: a boy, a lawyer and a secret, with no case to make about America. This one wants to be about race, justice and the South, and it has only a thriller’s tools to do it with. Grisham’s plots run like machines, and the machine here is well oiled. It is the thinking on top that is missing. Most critics split much as we have. If you want two and a half hours of good actors in a hot room and a story that will not let you drift, it does that job, and the 15 certificate is earned inside the first ten minutes. Watch it for Jackson, who plays the whole film as though he already knows how it will end. He does, and so, by about the twenty-minute mark, do we. *Fi1m score 55, published 5 October 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find A Time to Kill watchable, and a fair number find it gripping: an absorbing, polished Grisham adaptation that holds attention across its length. The praise clusters almost entirely around Samuel L. Jackson, whose taut, anguished performance is singled out by reviewers on both sides of the verdict as the film’s strongest element. Kevin Spacey and Matthew McConaughey also draw notice, McConaughey chiefly for his closing speech, and several reviews credit the film with treating its charged subject forcefully. The reservations are about method rather than craft. Several critics call the film manipulative, pushing hard for the audience’s feelings at the expense of subtlety, and a few go further, objecting to its simplified treatment of race and its apparent endorsement of vigilantism. The spread is wide: Radio Times is warmly positive, while Time Out dismisses the film outright for cultural myopia and The AV Club finds its politics troubling even while admiring the cast. ## Straight answers **Is A Time to Kill worth watching?** *A Time to Kill* is worth watching mainly for Samuel L. Jackson, and we scored it 55. It is well acted and keeps you in your seat for two and a half hours, but it stacks every scene so only one verdict is possible and then congratulates you for reaching it. For those who want good actors in a hot room rather than an argument. **How long is A Time to Kill, and what is it rated?** *A Time to Kill* runs 2h 29m. It is a crime and drama film. **Where can I watch A Time to Kill in Lithuania?** *A Time to Kill* is streaming on Netflix in Lithuania, and it is also available to buy from Amazon Prime Video from €9.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How violent or frightening is A Time to Kill, and is it suitable for children?** *A Time to Kill* is a 15 in the UK and earns it in its first ten minutes, which show the rape and beating of a ten-year-old girl in pieces: beer cans, dropped groceries, the child's face afterwards. It is not for children, and the opening will be too much for many adults. Later comes a double shooting and Klan violence, including burning crosses. **How does A Time to Kill compare to Anatomy of a Murder?** *A Time to Kill* and [*Anatomy of a Murder*](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder) are both trial films, and Preminger's is the better one because it lets both sides make their case and trusts the jury. Schumacher's film puts every argument against its defendant in the mouth of a man we are told to dislike. Watch the earlier film if you want a debate, the later one if you want a thriller. **Is A Time to Kill based on a true story or a book?** *A Time to Kill* is based on John Grisham's first novel, not on a true story. The film keeps the machinery of Grisham's plot, which runs well, but adds little thinking on top of it. You do not need to have read the book; the film tells you what to feel a beat before each scene arrives. **What should I watch after A Time to Kill?** After *A Time to Kill*, try [*Anatomy of a Murder*](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder) (1959, Fi1m 87): Preminger lets both sides make their case and trusts the jury; the contrast is instructive. Then [*In the Heat of the Night*](https://film.one/film/in-the-heat-of-the-night) (1967, Fi1m 85): Poitier and Steiger in a hot Mississippi town, with the temperature doing the arguing; and [*The Verdict*](https://film.one/film/the-verdict) (1982, Fi1m 84): Newman as a lawyer with one case left; Lumet keeps the courtroom quiet. ### Reviews we read (8) - **Radio Times**, John Ferguson (4/5): Ferguson gives the adaptation a positive verdict, noting its box-office success and its role in launching Matthew McConaughey. He singles out McConaughey’s rise to stardom as a notable result of the film. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-apyf76/a-time-to-kill/) - **Empire**, Ian Nathan (70/100, inferred): Nathan finds the film gripping and thought-provoking, though its closing hero worship weakens its ethical debate. He particularly praises Samuel L. Jackson’s taut, powerful performance. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/time-kill-review/) - **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (70/100, inferred): McCarthy finds the film an absorbing, generally satisfying Grisham adaptation despite implausibilities and contrived melodrama. He praises Samuel L. Jackson’s riveting performance and the film’s polished production. [Read](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/a-time-to-kill-2-1200446194/) - **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (60/100, inferred): The review gives a mixed but somewhat favorable verdict on the courtroom drama. It singles out the film’s forceful treatment of its charged subject matter. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1996/07/24/movies/film-review-a-father-s-revenge-for-his-child-s-rape.html) - **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (50/100, inferred): Turan finds the film undeniably watchable but excessive, with its relentless push for audience arousal undermining subtlety. He singles out Samuel L. Jackson’s anguished, focused performance as the film’s strongest element. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-07-24-ca-27251-story.html) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (50/100, inferred): The review regards the film as an emotionally manipulative courtroom drama. Its focus on provoking audience emotion is a central complaint. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-time-to-kill-1996) - **The AV Club**, Keith Phipps (35/100, inferred): Phipps argues that the film’s treatment of race and justice is overly simplified and its endorsement of vigilantism is troubling. He praises the principal performances, especially Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey, and singles out Matthew McConaughey’s climactic speech. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/a-time-to-kill-1798194955) - **Time Out**, TCh (20/100, inferred): The review is sharply negative about the film’s handling of cultural issues. It faults the courtroom drama for relying heavily on cultural myopia. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/a-time-to-kill) ## Details - **Director:** Joel Schumacher - **Director:** Joel Schumacher - **Screenplay:** Akiva Goldsman - **Novel:** John Grisham - **Cinematography:** Peter Menzies - **Editor:** William Steinkamp - **Music:** Elliot Goldenthal - **Production design:** Larry Fulton - **Costume design:** Ingrid Ferrin - **Producer:** Michael G. Nathanson, John Grisham, Hunt Lowry - **Cast:** Matthew McConaughey as Jake Brigance; Sandra Bullock as Ellen Roark; Samuel L. Jackson as Carl Lee Hailey; Kevin Spacey as Rufus Buckley; Ashley Judd as Carla Brigance; Donald Sutherland as Lucien Wilbanks; Oliver Platt as Harry Rex Vonner; Charles S. Dutton as Ozzie Walls - **Runtime:** 2h 29m - **First release (Romania):** 24 July 1996 - **Genres:** Crime, Drama, Thriller - **Budget:** $40 million - **Box office:** $152 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=701GQjY6PaI ## Where to watch in Lithuania - Netflix: streaming - Amazon Prime Video: buy €9.99, hd *Checked 2026-10-05.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Anatomy of a Murder* (1959), Fi1m 87: Preminger lets both sides make their case and trusts the jury; the contrast is instructive. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/anatomy-of-a-murder.md) - *In the Heat of the Night* (1967), Fi1m 85: Poitier and Steiger in a hot Mississippi town, with the temperature doing the arguing. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/in-the-heat-of-the-night.md) - *The Verdict* (1982), Fi1m 84: Newman as a lawyer with one case left; Lumet keeps the courtroom quiet. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-verdict.md) - *The Insult* (2017): A Beirut pavement quarrel reaches the courts and the country; nobody is simply right. - *Just Mercy* (2019): An Alabama death-row case told without a choir; Foxx is as still as Jackson. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/a-time-to-kill