Six-time Academy Award nominee Jim Sheridan and David Merriman co-write and co-direct Re-Creation, a new instalment in the oeuvre of juror dramas, which has enjoyed its world premiere in the Spotlight Narrative section of the Tribeca Film Festival. Basing it on the true-crime tale of the murder of French filmmaker Sophie Toscan du Plantier in 1996, Sheridan and Merriman create a highly recognisable, 12 Angry Men-inspired scenario that imagines the discussion between jurors should the accused, journalist Ian Bailey, have been tried in his native Ireland.

We centre our sympathies on Juror #8 (Vicky Krieps), who is initially the only one to believe outright that Bailey could potentially be not guilty – not necessarily believing he isn’t, but refusing to cave to the prevailing sentiment. Toss further spanners into the works, and you get an equally fiery Juror #3 (John Connors) deeply shaped by his pursuit of what he believes is justice. Original music by Anna Rice bookends the film and creates a fable-like quality around the story, which is very clearly noted as an imagination, rather than a by-the-book take on the true-crime genre.

The film is undoubtedly carried by Krieps and Connors, who push the drama past its expected beats, even though anybody familiar with the 12 Angry Men conceit might feel that the story in Re-Creation has been done before. The two brave the fire all the way to the bitter end, which, while it isn’t necessarily unexpected, is a satisfying payoff to the movie’s 90 minutes. Sheridan also appears as Juror #1, the grounded presence in the group. During the proceedings, secrets about each person’s past emerge, revealing their hidden biases concerning the case.

DoP Carlo Thiel’s never-intrusive lensing elevates the film beyond its stage-play core – but doesn’t overdramatise – at its tensest moments, particularly in a riveting reenacted scene taking place in the dark. Re-Creation is a story driven – nay, propelled – by our fixation on what we believe is the truth, embedded in its heavy dialogue-based script. But even its title suggests to us that the “truth” may be but a (re-)creation of memories or lies, of what the collective ordains as truth.

Re-Creation is an Irish-Luxembourgish co-production staged by Hell’s Kitchen and Joli Rideau Media. Spain’s Latido Films holds the rights to its world sales.