The Burial (El negocio de la muerte)

Don't let the synopsis of this movie turn you away! It sounds like it would be an utterly boring movie about a funeral home contract. And at its very surface, I guess you could say it is. But this film goes way deeper than that, spinning out stories of friendship, history, race relations, good vs evil and all that.

Even though it has a 2 hour runtime, at no point did I feel it was dragging on, or compelled to check my email or some such like many movies do. There's more than enough substance here to keep your eyes glued through the entire time.

While the supporting cast were all great, Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones were absolutely phenomenal in this one. One of the best performances I've seen to date by both actors. Highly recommend.

Came across this on Prime amongst oceans of other movies I had never heard of. Some spare time on my hands and a sucker for all things TLJ, why not? I thought.

Based on a true story (aren't they all). A funeral home director, O keefe played by TLJ feels hard done by an investor who wishes to run the business to the ground after a supposedly contract deal.

Jamie fox plays the hot shot lawyer trying to recover the damages. This bit I didn't understand as to why exactly they were taking the investor to court.

The film was dull, I mean really dull. With implausibility and cliches circling like a poltergeist haunting nothing was capturing my attention. Everything was predictable, zero surprises. The opposition lawyer, Mame, supposedly a super-lawyer who had never lost a case was a complete amateur.

The production standard is quite good and tongue in cheek performance by Jamie Fox gives a few chuckles but that's about it.

One to avoid. In fact movie standards have crashed in the last 20 years and this film bears all the hallmarks.

The movie hits a lot of notes and I came out of the theater thinking, well, most of America will love this movie and 30%, guess who, will not. So read the reviews carefully for hidden agendas. Jamie Foxx is utterly brilliant. I can't believe we almost lost this guy. Jones is perfectly cast. And the pace, writing, and tone kept me engaged with the true story. It's not a comedy as some listings may imply. It's more like real life where people say and do funny stuff to get through the course of a normal day. Kudos to the director, too, who you could tell had grasp of the story and kept a steady, never overplayed hand.

You know Jamie Foxx? Yeah, that guy. The clown. The guy from Booty Call, from They Cloned Tyrone .. man, was i ever wrong about someone.

Elderly Tommy Lee Jones is a funeral-home-business owning guy, not poor, but a working man. Due to faults not of his own, he gets into business with Evil Canadian Corporation, who then try to stiff him.

TLJ resorts to hiring successful TV lawyer Jamie Foxx. Now, this guy is a BLACK lawyer. He exploits this by filing his suits in the poorest, most predominantly black circuits, and plays the Victim Of The Man card to win his cases - with, apparently, massive success.

Evil Corportation puts against him equally black lawyeress Jurnee Smollett, up'n' coming Harvard lawyer ready to throw back in his face the race card.

While the film is not race-based, it does not pretend that race isn't a factor when Evil Corporation is willfully targeting the most impoverished areas of the south. There's a few tinges of Erin Brockovitch, and it's dialogue-heavy throughout, but man, you will not believe the quality of a performance that Jamie Foxx puts in for this movie. I would have never in a million years thought this comedy actor had the talent to pull out of his .. coat .. a straight courtroom drama. Don't get me wrong, Foxx plays to his strengths, but he also shows some finesse that, realistically, nobody could have predicted the man had.

NOT as great as Erin Brockovitch, but absolutely worth it.

8/10.

History is replete with the darkest chapters of human behavior, showcasing how individuals, driven by insatiable greed, can resort to anything to exploit others. While times may have changed, the relentless pursuit of accumulating wealth persists. In the contemporary landscape, these greedy individuals often lurk behind the scenes, orchestrating their actions through the guise of a corporate entity.

The narrative unfolds like a cinematic tale, depicting the struggle of a small businessman against the machinations of a powerful corporation. The film delves into the company's attempt to undermine the entrepreneur, aiming to acquire his business at a fraction of its worth and subsequently turning that investment into substantial millions. The pursuit of wealth becomes so consuming that these corporate leaders lose touch with the very basics of life, such as the cost of their own sustenance.

Tommy Lee Jones and Jamie Foxx deliver exceptional performances, bringing sheer class to their roles in this compelling courtroom drama-a definite must-watch.