If only The Pelican Brief were purposefully controversial.
The Pelican Brief (1993)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 46
Fresh: 25
Rotten:21
Average Rating: 5.5/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 23 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: In Alan J. Pakula's (KLUTE) thriller THE PELICAN BRIEF Julia Roberts plays Tulane University law student Darby Shaw. After the consecutive murders of two Supreme Court Justices, she becomes... In Alan J. Pakula's (KLUTE) thriller THE PELICAN BRIEF Julia Roberts plays Tulane University law student Darby Shaw. After the consecutive murders of two Supreme Court Justices, she becomes intrigued with the case and assembles a brief on her theory of who committed the murders. However, things start to get tricky when those who've read her brief turn up as corpses, which prompts her to enlist help from Washington Herald reporter Gray Grantham (Denzel Washington). Their further gathering of evidence to prove her hypothesis only results in moving their names up on the hit-list. Replete with cameo roles by high-profile actors such as playwright Sam Shepard (TRUE WEST) as the law professor with whom Shaw has an affair, this box office hit closely follows popular novelist John Grisham's (THE FIRM) best-selling book. The film's themes are in line with late director Pakula's abiding interest in conspiracy drama, a topic explored in many of his best films such as ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and THE PARALLAX VIEW. [More]
Starring: Julia Roberts, Denzel Washington, Sam Shepard, John Heard
Starring: Julia Roberts, Denzel Washington, Sam Shepard, John Heard, Tony Goldwyn, James B. Sikking, Robert Culp, Hume Cronyn, John Lithgow, William Atherton, Stanley Tucci
Director: Alan J. Pakula
Director: Alan J. Pakula
Story: John Grisham
Composer: James Horner
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Reviews for The Pelican Brief
It's too bad that Pakula allows this 1993 movie to dawdle after its climax, but prior to that he's adept at suggesting unseen menace and keeping things in motion.
You'd think that Pakula would be just the man to tease the intellectual and emotional depth out of a Grisham potboiler, but you'd be wrong. [Blu-ray]
Pakula has improved on Grisham's book by excising much of the detritus, crafting a taut, intelligent thriller that succeeds on almost every level.
A curiously disappointing thriller from Alan Pakula, reaffirming the notion that John Gresham's best-selling novels are more fun to read (at the airport) than watch on the big screen, even if they star Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts.
Definitely an easy rental and a good way to drown a couple of hours if you're looking for a little suspense, some law stuff, lotsa secondary players and a couple of renowned leads delivering the goods.
An old hand at this sort of thing, Pakula goes through the motions, but not much more.
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