Jersey Justice

Local Filmmaker Premieres 'Jersey Justice'

By: LIndsay Warner, The Evening Bulletin

07/25/2007

Currently in limited pre-release screenings to garner interest for a wider release, "Jersey Justice" is a small-budget film created by a movie buff on his first venture behind the camera. But "Jersey Justice" doesn't feel like a low-budget, first-time film, and it seems likely Hunt will get his funding. Revolving around a 24-hour period in which Polly O'Bannon's (Baker) husband is shot and killed in a mix-up between several Philadelphia thugs, the shocked housewife turns to violence to avenge her husband's undeserved death. Collecting weapons and supplies in record time, O'Bannon hits the road looking for her husband's killer, attracting a variety of colorful characters similarly thirsting for revenge - or a good road trip - along the way.

Felix Romeo, played by Maria Soccor, New York model and actress, a rough & ready biker with her own incentive for revenge, strongly flavors the script with her defiant independence, while Irish drunkard Finney (Ed McCool) lends a car and a touch of humor to the mix. John Williams (Johnny Roastbeef in "Goodfellas") also crops up as Big Bill Romeo, the bartender at "Mrs. Jay's," a shady biker bar where the first part of the revenge plan is enacted. Although O'Bannon is on a vengeful killing spree, Baker's portrayal of the character lends a sympathetic tinge to her portrayal - though it seems unlikely that O'Bannon would be able to proceed as far with her plans as she does without police intervention.

Still, the story is entertaining, fast moving and a nice twist on the often-used male revenge thriller. The shady dealings of the gang at the scene of the murder confuse the plot slightly, but Hunt retains a strong connection to O'Bannon throughout, using her humanity to maintain empathy.

As a local to where the film was shot, this "revenge thriller with a twisted edge" was lots of fun to watch. Blanche Baker really did a bang up job balancing her role as revenger and a Christian 'soccer mom' after seeing her husband gunned down on the streets of Philly. The characters that showed up in her life after that in the next 24 hours made the plot come alive. Maria Soccor's performance sizzled as the sexy bad-ass bartender who had a couple of great tricks up her sleeve. I'd love to see her in more leading roles! Another actress that I really enjoyed in her cameo role as Gun Lady was Mary Mooney who was great at her sales job. I joined the audience as we laughed at the hilarious one-liners and the prize goes to the cameo couple in the biker bar who mentioned something funny about their kids. Thanks to the intense acting and the great directing by John Charles Hunt the bad guys were easy to hate and the good guys drew you in as we couldn't help root for our heroine's success. Go see Jersey Justice and walk away with a new spin on what you would do if you were pushed to the edge.

Wow! Just came back from the 5th screening and every time there is something else that makes me laugh! I think one of my favorite lines is when one of the biker thugs asks if he thinks the cops have called his house. His friend and fellow in crime replies, "If you're a cop, do you think you're going to call ahead? You're just gonna go to the house with your guns drawn man!" I have great expectations for this movie. We just have to keep spreading the word!

And did you check out Polly's face in the gun shop while she's buying a gun? Notice when the clerk goes to pick out a gun for her, Polly looks around like a little kid in a candy shop, like she's waiting for her birthday present and Christmas all at once. Look at it again, if you're still not trying to wrap your head around two women in a gun shop!

Loved the story line, and also loved the humor in it. Some VERY funny line's! Awesome and Very well done!!!! I'm glad that I saw it the second time, I was able to see some scene's parts in scene's that I missed the first time. Great acting, great cast, just a great film. I'm really looking forwarded to it being distributed. Best of Luck on the film, I am for certain it will be a hit out there. Blanche Baker was perfect for the roll that she played!!!! Great seeing her in a film again. Finny, what can I say about Finny? He was the bomb, played such a wonderful roll, and was just too funny! All the other cast were wonderful. This truly is a must see movie, I would not hesitate to see it again.

YOU ROCK!!!

My husband and I were privy to a showing of "Jersey Justice," a new New Jersey independent film. This indie was well-written, well-directed and well-acted. The characters were worth caring about. This is a "pulp" film without too much gratuitous violence. It is certainly a "revenge" film in the vein of Standing Tall. Certain frustrations borne out of particular political characters' actions of present day were interspersed throughout the film. Overall, this is a very enjoyable film with lots of interesting characters. You are constantly wondering how all the "loose ends" will finally tie up. You can certainly feel for the lead character, Polly's, frustration and turmoil from early on in the movie, throughout. Mr. Hunt certainly keeps us wondering about the outcome of the movie, right up to the last 20 minutes. A big thumbs up to the cast and crew for a great deal well done.