1999, 1 hr 45 min., Rated R for language, a scene of sexuality and some violence. Dir: Bruce Beresford. Cast: Ashley Judd (Libby Parsons), Tommy Lee Jones (Travis Lehman), Bruce Greenwood (Nick Parsons), Annabeth Gish (Angela Green).

Sometimes you just need a mindless movie.

After giving my brain a workout the last month with films such as American Beauty, Three Kings, Bringing Out the Dead and Fight Club, I decided to let my brain become a vegetable and enjoy a film that shouldn't be taken seriously.

Not that it hurt having Ashley "super-duper eye candy" Judd as the star (check out how she fills that dress at the bachelor auction...HOOWAH!), and Tommy Lee Jones as her costar is also a plus. Neither really shows off their acting chops in Double Jeopardy, but they are fun to watch. In my opinion, for Jones this represents as the third act in his "The Fugitive" trilogy. It may be time for him to move on to something where he isn't looking for escaped criminals while trying to prove their case.

Overall the film is just what I expected, enjoyable if forgettable. The film takes you step by step through the plot with no real surprises because every event is telegraphed minutes ahead. If you've seen just one movie in your lifetime, you'll know what's about to happen on screen.

I'm not even going to attempt to get into the issue of how the legalities contained in Double Jeopardy are incorrect. But it makes for an interesting premise. Let's just say that from everything I've seen and heard regarding the movie and the statute, if she were to kill her husband for real the second time, she would still go to jail for the crime.

Also, I can't really comment on how this film is making $100 million at the box office because of how it "empowers" the heroine. But, if women need to feel liberated by the thought of killing their husbands, then we may need to seek some massive therapy in this country.

So, the plot is: Libby Parsons and hubby Nick live in splendor in the Northwest until Nick frames her for his murder. Libby goes to prison and hardens a bit, seeking only to find her son and dispense of a little problem with the husband who is alive.

Here's a question: Libby is put in prison for slicing and dicing her husband, yet gets out of prison in six years! I don't care if she was innocent, the fact that hundreds of actual killers are being let out after only six years is very disturbing. To quote Cartman of South Park, "Hippies suck!"

While behind bars, Libby discovers her would-be dead hubby is actually breathing and walking around the country under pseudonyms, and now Libby is set on revenge. She goes through a 30-second sequence where she turns into Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor in Terminator 2, working out, running (even in the rain! what spirit!) and generally preparing to kill her husband when released.

Not to mention how one aside comment by a fellow prisoner leads her to become a Nancy Drew-like super sleuth. As if we needed someone to actually tell her to use her brain! Oh, wait, we're not using our brains while watching this movie. Sorry.

Ladies, is a guy you're not interested in bothering you for a date? Then I think Judd finds the perfect solution. Tell him you'd be glad to have a drink, but you have to call your parole officer first. Because you were in prison. For killing your husband. I wouldn't advise you to actually go through with the story, but it will shoo away unwanted suitors very quickly.

I think I may have let my mind wander a bit too far during the film, because it didn't return until I got home and discovered I had driven to Wal-Mart and bought the "Monster Ballads" CD. You know the one, of all those love songs sung by hard-rockers in the late 80s.

Sure there are some great songs, but it is not music I'd prescribe for a member of Mensa. Then again, maybe they should stretch their minds from Mozart. Or, go see Double Jeopardy, where they can have an IQ under 150 like the rest of us.