Marshall

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2:19

Marshall

PG-13

2017

1h 58m

History

Drama

Biography

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

145 Reviews

84%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

Young Thurgood Marshall faces one of his greatest challenges while working as a lawyer for the NAACP. Marshall travels to conservative Connecticut when wealthy socialite Eleanor Strubing accuses Black chauffeur Joseph Spell of sexual assault and attempted murder. He soon teams up with Sam Friedman, a local Jewish lawyer who's never handled a criminal case. Together, the two men build a defense while contending with racist and anti-Semitic views from those who deem Spell to be guilty.

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Critics Consensus

Marshall takes an illuminating, well-acted look at its real-life subject's early career that also delivers as an entertainingly old-fashioned courtroom drama.

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Mar 25, 2020

This real-life case makes for an entertaining courtroom drama that nonetheless reduces Marshall to the level of Perry Mason and consigns to the end credits his greater triumphs arguing Brown vs. Board of Education and other landmark civil rights cases.

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Jesse Hassenger

AV Club

Sep 14, 2018

B-

Marshall isn't so different from a well-made TV movie. But it plays well on the big screen anyway...

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Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Oct 23, 2017

3/5

The film does have the desired effects on the less demanding parts of the brain. And Marshall's story is one worth hearing.

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

Jul 20, 2025

4/5

The film’s dramatized character study allows you to still absorb the complete measure of the man as if you were watching a masterful symphony.

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Fletcher Powell

KMUW - Wichita Public Radio

Jul 21, 2021

The movie is a solid, if unspectacular, piece of work, and a relief from the tired tropes of more traditional biopics.

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Dec 5, 2020

7/10

For the most part, it transpires as if designed from the most standard of templates - with long odds, harsh opposition, and surprise witnesses.

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Robert P

@Superbad Nov 7, 2026

Marshall is a *4* star Movie!!!

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Paul J

@RT93323692 Mar 24, 2026

This isn't really about Thurgood Marshall, it's about Friedman. Bozeman who plays Thurgood has like three lines and the movie focuses on one of his more marginal cases where he doesn't have the right to speak in court. Therefore you have to sit through the guy who plays Friedman's weak B list acting. Also no mention of Brown v Board and Marshall's rise to success. Just lame ass Friedman

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Neil M

@Neil-MacG Sep 8, 2025

A beautifully crated re-telling of a great story.

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Horror fan 4

@Horrorfan4life Jan 28, 2025

A very well made movie and story filled with great performances. Bosman and Gads terrific chemistry fuels this movie. Tim Treakle

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Kyle M

@RT77296778 Apr 25, 2024

Courtroom dramas this electrifying stem from intellectual preparation for a deftly spellbinding effect strengthened by impeccable performances, particularly Chadwick Boseman and Josh Gad’s dynamic at both their finest alongside Sterling K. Brown’s resonating edge, spiritedly overcoming the uncomfortably associated prejudices as part of highlighting a politically renowned legacy by directorial peak. (A-)

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Matt H

@RT05315608 Jan 6, 2024

I love a good court room drama but I really wish this film would have focused more on his entire life than just one specific case.

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Reginald Hudlin

Director

Chadwick Boseman

Thurgood Marshall

Josh Gad

Sam Friedman

Kate Hudson

Eleanor Strubing

Sterling K. Brown

Joseph Spell

Dan Stevens

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Synopsis

Young Thurgood Marshall faces one of his greatest challenges while working as a lawyer for the NAACP. Marshall travels to conservative Connecticut when wealthy socialite Eleanor Strubing accuses Black chauffeur Joseph Spell of sexual assault and attempted murder. He soon teams up with Sam Friedman, a local Jewish lawyer who's never handled a criminal case. Together, the two men build a defense while contending with racist and anti-Semitic views from those who deem Spell to be guilty.

Director: Reginald Hudlin
Producer: Paula Wagner, Jonathan Sanger
Screenwriter: Michael Koskoff, Jacob Koskoff
Distributor: Open Road
Production Co: Hudlin Entertainment, Chestnut Ridge
Rating: PG-13 (Sexuality|Mature Thematic Content|Some Strong Language|Violence)
Genre: History, Drama, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 13, 2017, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 26, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $10.0M
Runtime: 1h 58m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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