Product Details

• Actors: Jeff Bridges, Glenn Close, Maria Mayenzet, Peter Coyote, Dave Austin
• Directors: Richard Marquand
• Writers: Joe Eszterhas
• Producers: Don Carmody, Martin Ransohoff, Michele Connors Raley
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Sony Pictures
• VHS Release Date: June 24, 1994
• Run Time: 108 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6302800757
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #130,561 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Before screenwriter Joe Eszterhas wrote the ridiculous Showgirls, he crafted some entertaining if porous thrillers along the lines of the 1985 Jagged Edge, a taut mystery about an attorney (Glenn Close) who defends a newspaper publisher (Jeff Bridges) accused of murder. The fact that Close's character falls for him is more convenient than plausible, but it is a necessary emotional bridge for Eszterhas and the late director Richard Marquand (Eye of the Needle) to build toward a powerful finale. Scary, fun as courtroom dramas go, the film is well serviced by the two lead stars and has impressive support from costar Peter Coyote and especially from Robert Loggia, who plays Close's cop buddy. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sharp Cast, Blunted Thriller, June 17, 2000

By 

J. Michael Click (Fort Worth, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Jagged Edge (DVD)

A ponderous murder mystery-thriller that plays better than it normally would thanks to solid star turns by an impeccable cast. Jeff Bridges (always an economical and subtle actor) is perfect as the cryptic suspect; and Glenn Close strikes a delicate balance between intellectual aloofness and romantic vulnerability as the defense lawyer who becomes too involved with her client. Nice work also by Peter Coyote as the prosecution, Leigh Taylor-Young as a vengeful woman spurned, and (especially) Robert Loggia as a foul-mouthed, hard-living evidence investigator. The combined intensity of these gifted actors almost camouflages the plot manipulations that plague the script's credibility from beginning to end ... almost.

The digitally mastered DVD transfer is more than acceptable, providing sharp anamorphic visuals and crystal clear sound. The disc provides both letterboxed and pan-and-scan presentations, and includes thumbnail biographical sketches of the director (Richard Marquand), Bridges, and Close. Four theatrical trailers ("Against All Odds", "Arlington Road", "The Natural", "Air Force One") are used to plug other Columbia Tristar videos, but unfortunately the trailer for "Jagged Edge" is not on the menu. Recommended for fans of Bridges and Close, or those interested in the career of screenwriter Joe Eszterhas; other viewers, specifically devotees of tightly plotted mysteries, may find the film less engaging.

16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Did he do it or didn't he? That is the question., January 24, 2004

By 

Matthew Rocca (Matthew, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jagged Edge (DVD)

"JAGGED EDGE" begins on a stormy night at a beach home. A killer walks through the halls with a jagged hunting knife in his hands. After he has killed a rich woman and her maid, and written the "B" word on the wall with her blood, Jack Forrester, the victim's husband, is arrested. Glenn Close plays his lawyer who falls in love with him. The two have a forbidden affair. Did he do it? Or didn't he? There's plenty of evidence on both sides. Is Glenn Close's character defending him because she honestly believes in her mind he is innocent, or is "another part of her anatomy" doing the thinking? Suspense and mystery are so well done in this film, and it is never boring. What an exquisite movie, with marvelous performances from Glenn Close and Jeff Bridges. The beginning is very eerie and frightening, but it would have been even more frightening had it not been on a "mysterious stormy night" like most thrillers, and it was just a nice, serene night, and suddenly he comes in and kills her. Still, it was very well done. The ending could have included more detail, but really, I loved the movie so much, I don't care. WHAT A MYSTERY! WHAT TWISTS! WHAT A THRILLING RIDE! FOR FANS OF MYSTERY AND COURTROOM DRAMA I DEFINELY RECOMMEND THIS SPECTACULAR FILM!!! P.S. The music perfectly fit the moods of the movie too.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The script that made Joe Eszterhas famous., February 13, 2000

By 

John Cobb (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jagged Edge [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Forget Showgirls and Sliver, and Flashdance, and Basic Instinct, Jagged Edge gave Big Joe his bones, his legitimacy.

A good suspenseful thriller, a bit dated, a trifle cliché (the suspect's wife had been sleeping with the country-club tennis pro, of all things), but well-paced, and well-acted.

Glenn Close takes her place in rarefied air here, the strong, but attractive adult female lead. An air uninhabited in film throughout the 90s..Susan Sarandon may try best to fill this spot, but she is nowhere near the attractive, desirable lead that Close was during this period.

Beautiful Bay-area landscapes only add to the overall package.

I wouldn't rate this high in the genre, but I see absolutely no reason to diss it either.

A solid overall effort.