The Burial
The true story of how good filmmaking can make contract law interesting
Tommy Lee Jones and Jamie Foxx make a charming odd couple in Maggie Betts' smart legal drama, The Burial.
When the future of Jeremiah O'Keefe’s (Tommy Lee Jones) funeral home business is jeopardized by the sketchy practices of massive corporation The Loewen Group, the patriarch decides to fight. The Mississippi businessman takes on a giant Canadian company via a lawsuit, hoping to win back his dignity. It’s a contract law case — which is what we laymen call “boring” — something that’s usually settled out of court by legal correspondence.
But Jeremiah isn’t ready to settle, so he listens to the advice of his young attorney, Hal (Mamoudou Athie), and recruits personal injury attorney Willie Gary (Jamie Foxx) to his legal team. Gary isn’t known for contract law. In fact, he knows very little about it. But what Gary can do is connect with a jury. He has the almost preternatural ability to charm and convince anyone of anything.
But as the team digs into the Loewen case, they realize two things: First, the Loewen legal team is more than ready to shred the ill-prepared Gary to pieces. Second, Jeremiah isn’t the only victim of the Loewen Group’s despicable practices.
Can David fell Goliath in court? Or will money and power once again steamroll the justice system?
Like boot-cut jeans and bucket hats, 90s procedural dramas are enjoying a comeback. The Burial capitalizes on this trend while modernizing the themes for today’s audiences. The villain is a billionaire on a superyacht [ironic, considering Amazon is funding this movie] who is so comically inhuman he’s practically gleeful at the idea of exploiting the grieving. And though a film that is theoretically about predatory business practices in the funeral industry, The Burial is never deadly dull.
That’s thanks in large part to some deft direction from Maggie Betts, who methodically puts these practices into context. It’s one thing to hear about how funeral corporations prey on minority communities, but Betts is careful to put a face to the story and more importantly link these stories to the predatory practices that have been endemic to these communities.
Beyond a history lesson, The Burial is also a wonderful character study. Betts puts a lot of nuance into most of her characters, Mr. Burns-level evil billionaire aside. The Loewen Group lawyers aren’t heartless monsters, they’re the best in their field. Frankly, they’re tired of working for jerks and dealing with casual racism, but that’s how one carves a career in the mid-90s. Even the southern good-ole-boy attorney is given a nuanced portrayal, as he reckons with his past and the all-Black legal team that joins him on Jeremiah’s side of the court.
But Betts spends most of the film’s two hours examining the similarities between the two men at the heart of the story. On the surface, a gregarious Black personal injury attorney from Florida and a stoic Mississippi businessman don’t seem to have much to bond over, but Betts gets to the root of each man’s character. Both Gary and Jeremiah have experienced hardships, and both are determined to carve legacies for themselves. Both men recognize in each other a drive and a fundamental decency that forms a strong bond even when things go wrong.
As Willie Gary, Jamie Foxx gets the showier of the two lead roles. He sinks his teeth into Gary’s showboating style with aplomb. Gary is a born salesman and entertainer. He’s brash, but fun and easily wins over juries with his charm. But the bravado hides a sharp legal mind, which may be Gary’s greatest advantage — it’s easy to underestimate him as all swagger. And while Foxx, who would be entertaining reading the phonebook, is fantastic in Gary’s brazen moments, he’s also surprisingly vulnerable. When Gary’s mask of confidence slips, it’s heartbreaking. Foxx does some wonderful, subtle work showing just how closely Gary guards his insecurities, and how meaningful it is when he lets someone in. It’s a reminder of how powerful Foxx is as a screen presence.
Jones is, unsurprisingly, the less emotive of the duo. He’s made a long career of withering stares and grim expressions. But he lightens up quite a bit as Jeremiah, a decent family man who wants to do right by those around him. He works beautifully with Foxx, and it’s easy to see how the duo build a bond. Also, where else will you see Tommy Lee Jones sing a Tony! Toni! Toné! song?
Like Air before it, The Burial seems to continue the trend of entertaining mid-budget movies for adults that are beautifully made and performed. If you’re in the mood for a courtroom crowd-pleaser, or just need a reminder that Jamie Foxx can slay just about any monologue he’s given, The Burial is a great watch.
Verdict: Maggie Betts’ engrossing courtroom drama is well worth the watch.
The Burial is rated R and available Oct. 13 on Prime.
