If ever there was a case for not believing everything you read on the internet, Jamie Foxx is it. After all, he is not dead, despite rumours that were circulating stating the contrary not so long ago.

The truth is he was severely ill, with the actor himself admitting in a recent post that he had been to “hell and back”, with an illness that hasn’t been publicly revealed as yet. Of course there’s an insatiable appetite to know every single detail of the private lives of stars and celebrities, but we should just probably focus on the important fact, being he is alive, and thankfully on the mend.

There’s a hint of irony then with the release of his latest film, which sees him play a lawyer hired by a man who owns a number of funeral parlours.

Having run his family business for a number of years now, that of funeral parlours and insurance companies, 75-year-old Jeremiah O’Keefe (Tommy Lee Jones) finds himself in a financial pickle, owing a lot of money to the government.

His lawyer and friend Mike (Alan Ruck) thinks he has a solution; he’s aware that a large Canadian company are always keen to buy funeral homes, and that by selling a few of his own might well get them out of his current financial hole. So Jeremiah agrees to a meeting, taking a friend of the family with him, young Hal (Mamoudou Athie), who has just graduated as a lawyer himself.

The meeting appears to go well, with Jeremiah and the company owner Raymond Loewen (Bill Camp) shaking on a deal.

But Jeremiah’s relief is short-lived when the company decide not to uphold their end of the agreement. This leads Jeremiah to decide to sue them, to make a stand more than anything.

Hal suggests that they will need a different approach if they’re to have any chance of winning, and offers the name Willie E. Gary (Foxx), a successful personal injury lawyer. But would he be interested in taking on this contract case and risk his 12 year record of never losing in court?

The court room genre is one that has proved popular over the years, no doubt with its regular tales of the honest protagonist taking on a giant in court proving to be universally appealing. And this is a good example of it.

It’s based on a real case, which always heightens interest, with a large sum of money involved to sweeten the deal.

It’s no surprise to find Foxx playing such an enigmatic character, as he simply oozes charisma and charm. He is larger than life, with a personality to match, who can often be heard talking about himself in the third person. It’s the perfect fit for Foxx, who gives the kind of performance, which he so often does, where you find yourself inexplicably smiling throughout watching him.

He has a great foil in Jones too, who is more than happy to let Foxx take centre stage, where, let’s face it, he always shines, even if the project itself doesn’t quite deserve it. There’s a genuine on-screen friendship between the pair that is touching, the kind that suggests that perhaps a little earlier in both their careers, they could have teamed up in the perfect buddy flick.

Director Maggie Betts, with only her second feature, doesn’t stop there, as she gets some great performances from her cast, most notably Ruck, fresh from his success in Succession, and the wonderful Jurnee Smollet, playing the defence lawyer, who must surely be on the cusp of greatness.

A special mention should go to relative newcomer Athie, who has a quiet, confident Sidney Poitier aura about him, making him definitely one to watch in the future.

The story itself is a tad formulaic, certainly not breaking the mould in terms of the genre, but it’s lifted by the considerable talent of Foxx, who is very much alive and kicking here, and well and truly on top of his game.