
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, February 18, 1995                   TAG: 9502220027
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ACTORS' ENERGY MAKES `JUST CAUSE'

For almost the first hour, "Just Cause" appears to be a fairly serious legal thriller about the death penalty. But then the familiar pieces begin to fall into place and the story becomes a whodunnit. Those familiar with mysteries, particularly in fiction, won't have too much trouble staying one step ahead.

That's not too serious a problem, however. The film is so well-cast and well-acted that it's almost always fun to watch.

Harvard law professor Paul Armstrong (Sean Connery) is passionately, but academically opposed to the death penalty. When Evangeline Ferguson (Ruby Dee) tells him that her son, Bobby Earl (Blair Underwood), is on death row in Florida, he reluctantly agrees to take on the case. It seems that when Bobby Earl was arrested eight years ago for a brutal murder, police officer Tanny Brown (Laurence Fishburne) beat a confession out of him.

Armstrong goes down to the little Everglades town where the crime took place, hoping to find new evidence or something to save Bobby Earl. Instead, he learns that his wife, Laurie (Kate Capshaw), was involved with an earlier phase of the case and that another death-row inmate, serial murderer Blair Sullivan (Ed Harris), knows something about it, too.

Working from John Katzenbach's novel, writers Jeb Stuart and veteran Peter Stone (``Charade'') set out their clues in an orderly fashion, though they do cheat with one key piece of information. First-time director Arne Glimcher does acceptable work behind the camera. He keeps the focus on his stars and lets them do most of the work, until the big, cliche-ridden finish.

The mistakes in that department are often a problem with this kind of story. The film's energy comes from the three male leads.

Ed Harris is the spookiest and most reptilian screen psycho since Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lechter. Though his scenes are brief, his presence is memorable. The story really belongs to Fishburne and Connery. As two antagonists supposedly on the same side of the law, they bring to mind Orson Welles and Charlton Heston in "Touch of Evil," and Rod Steiger and Sidney Poitier in "In the Heat of the Night." One is the local guy who knows how to get things done, while the other is a relatively innocent outsider whose presence upsets the routine.

And even if Connery (who also served as executive producer) gets top billing, Fishburne is the more commanding screen presence. From his letter-perfect rural Southern accent to the aura of authority he projects, he gets the details right in every scene.

So, to enjoy "Just Cause," try to overlook the flaws and don't think too actively. Let the actors do their job.

Just Cause ** 1/2

A Warner Bros. release playing at the Tanglewood Mall Theatre and Salem Valley 8. 110 min. Rated R for strong language, subject matter, violence.

by CNB