“It’s
bad enough taking your father’s
taxi cab without permission; but if
you pick up a girl and she winds up
dead there’s
hell to pay, as Ben Coulter
discovers in Criminal
Justice,
the
compelling BBC drama now on DVD...”
BEN COULTER (Ben Whishaw: Perfume, The Story Of A Murderer, Brideshead
Revisited) is an average 21-year-old boy who finds his car won't
start when he's going out for the night. He takes his father's
black cab and is driving through the streets when he pulls over to answer his
mobile and a young woman, Melanie (Ruth Negga) jumps in.
Although he tells her he is not a cabbie, he agrees to take her "to the seaside"
and, after she has persuaded him to pop an ecstasy tablet with her, they end
up back at her home where they start drinking heavily.
Playing a game of dare, Ben accidentally stabs Melanie in the hand and as they
scramble upstairs she leaves a trail of smeared blood. When Ben goes to leave
in the morning, he cannot wake the girl and switches on the light to find she
has been stabbed in the chest.
Ben panics and frantically tries to wipe everywhere clean before jumping in
the cab and heading for home, but he accidentally hits another car and the police
are called. Unfortunately, the same officers are called to the scene of the
killing and the black cab was seen pulling away from the crime.
Finding himself in custody accused of murder, Ben is appointed a strange lawyer,
Stone (Con O'Neill: Learners, The History of Tom Jones: A Foundling),
who insists that the young man should not try to defend himself but should keep
his mouth shut and, when necessary, only answer questions with "no comment".
Originally screened on BBC 1 in July over five consecutive evenings, the compelling
drama Criminal Justice centres on the aftermath of just one mad night
when Ben finds his life changed forever. His world completely torn apart when
he is refused bail and sent to prison to await trial, Ben is on a rollercoaster
ride through the criminal justice system where the truth is marginalised and
playing the game is the only thing that matters.
Naive, lacking in confidence and unsure of whom to trust — the unconventional
lawyer Stone, the plain-speaking Hooch (Pete Postlethwaite: The Usual Suspects,
In The Name Of The Father) or the charismatically-sinister Freddie Graham
(David Harewood: Blood Diamond, The Merchant of Venice) — Ben finds
his weaknesses are exposed as he deals with the killers, drug dealers and other
vicious criminals among his fellow prisoners.
Written by former lawyer turned respected screenwriter and playwright Peter
Moffat (Kavanagh QC, MacBeth — ShakespeaRe-Told), Criminal
Justice stars a wealth of British acting talent that also includes Lindsay
Duncan (A Year In Provence, Mansfield Park) and Bill Paterson (The
Killing Fields, Bright Young Things), who plays Harry Box. Also featured
are: Juliet Aubrey as Mary Coulter; Charlie Creed-Miles as Ticehurst; and David
Westhead as Barry Coulter. The series is Produced by Pier Wilkie and Directed
by Otto Bathurst.
Criminal Justice is a suspenseful, thoroughly absorbing drama that courts
controversy at every turn, made even more watchable thanks to its very able
cast headed by the talented young Ben Whishaw.
• Acorn Media is delighted to announce the
DVD release of Criminal Justice —the most talked about
drama of the year. The gripping series will be available on a double-DVD featuring
all five hour-long episodes on 6 October (2008). Running Time: 284 minutes |
RRP: £19.99 | Catalogue No: AV9663.
"An entirely compelling drama" — The Guardian
"Whishaw is terrific" — The Telegraph
"Criminal Justice is a suspenseful, thoroughly absorbing drama with a
very able cast headed by the talented young Ben Whishaw" — MotorBar
“It’s
bad enough taking your father’s