GurlyIamBeach Instant Favorite.

Dartherer I really don't get the hype.

Claire Dunne One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

DeuceWild_77 Let me start to say that i never read the John Grisham's book this movie is based on, so i'm judging only the motion picture.When "The Pelican Brief" came out in '93 it was a major box office hit everywhere, partly due to the casting of Julia Roberts as Darby Shaw (still riding on the "Pretty Woman" success which made her being cast in almost every greenlighted project around that time, from the average potboiler, "Sleeping with the Enemy" to the trite / corny, "Dying Young" and Spielberg's misstep, "Hook", all undeserved blockbusters...) and for being the second Grisham's work adapted to the big screen, after the vastly superior "The Firm" directed by Sidney Pollack and starring Tom Cruise, which opened earlier in that year with good reviews and millions earned at the box office.The veteran Alan J. Pakula was a great director during the 70's, his political thrillers such as "The Parallax View" ('74) and "All the President's Men" ('76) or the crime / thriller "Klute" ('71) are among the best made in that decade, but in the 80's besides "Sophie's Choice" ('82) his career kind of tanked, only saved by the critical and box office success of "Presumed Innocent" ('90), starring Harrison Ford, that made Pakula a relevant name again and based on his skill directing those political thriller films, Warner Bros. offered him the chance to helm "The Pelican Brief", which he also produce and provided the screenplay.The story itself, even if it was standard, became confusing since the start due to badly edited sequences and the lack of information that was given to the viewer about what is happening on screen and who are those people involved in that situations, with Pakula assuming that every moviegoer read the book. Scenes were randomly happening, characters appear and disappear without proper development or explanation and the way Darby uncovers the truth, surpassing the F.B.I., it's too far-fetched.It didn't help that the pace is sluggish and the movie didn't involve, amaze or even dare, it's in fact dull and boring mostly of its length and feels like Pakula condensed half the book in some key scenes to get the storyline moving and the rest was just for showing the imposed by the Studio, Julia Roberts in every scene and camera angle possible and imaginary (and always with the same irritating expression). A bored looking Denzel was cast in a role that asked for a rich white man, playing here second fiddle to a troubled protagonist (like he did in "Philadelphia" the very same year, but he was much better in that) and refused the interracial love affair with Roberts like the characters in the book, which was a good decision not because of the skin color, but for the lack of on-screen chemistry between the two.The brilliant supporting cast are wasted here: the late great Sam Shepard was given almost nothing to do; John Heard & Stanley Tucci failed to leave an impression; Robert Culp played his part too goofy to be the President of United States and only Tony Goldwin (still in "Ghost" mode) showed some signs of being awake.In short, "The Pelican Brief" is a lifeless film directed by an once big name director, far away from his glory days, that feels more like a Julia Roberts' vehicle than an exciting political thriller. It may be one of the worst Grisham's adaptations to the big screen, if you like the genre you rather watch "The Firm", "The Client" ('94) or even "A Time to Kill" ('96), because this one is a near waste of time...

sol- Intrigued by the coincidental assassination of two supreme court justices, a law student comes up with a conspiracy theory that lands her in trouble when it turns out that her hypothesis is correct in this legal thriller written and directed by Alan J. Pakula from a novel by John Grisham. The skilled craftsman behind 'The Parallax View' and 'All the President's Men', Pakula knows how to helm a good paranoia thriller and there are several superb sequences here that showcase his craft. The best of these has an incognito hired assassin walking hand-in-hand with the film's oblivious heroine; Pakula drums up much tension by dragging out the assassin slowing reaching for a gun he has hidden on his person. 'The Pelican Brief' is not, however, a paranoia thriller in the strictest sense of the term. There is no real mystery element at all (despite the 'Mystery' genre listing on IMDb). It is always clear who the bad guys are and it is also always obvious that the protagonist's life really is in danger. In short, the film lacks the ambiguity and uncertainty that renders something like fellow 1993 Grisham adaptation 'The Firm' so dynamic. The film misses the mark with an overly sentimental ending too, but the acting is at least solid from all concerned. Leads Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington have great chemistry together without ever the suggestion of romantic sparks, and John Lithgow, Told Goldwyn and Stanley Tucci are all in fine form. The film is invariably exciting at times too. It is just not all that one might expect from a project with Pakula and Grisham's names both attached.

Alan Caras I like the movie better now than when first released. I think the weakness of the movie is due to the weakness in setting the scene, and the manner of telling the tale. The director blew it.Roberts and Washington salvage the director's ham handed story telling, and this is an excellent ensemble cast.I would have preferred the story be told more directly, and the plotting, planning and execution of the assassinations be revealed. Instead of a mystery, I think the story is better told as a good old fashioned detective story. The director could have used some of the old Phillip Marlow or Sam Spade series as models.

fahimay I have to tell and affirm that movies made in the 90's have more substance and intelligence than recent ones. The movie is centered on intelligent discussion, so you need to concentrate to follow the plot. Though I haven't read John Grisham at all, I love the movies based on his novels. So far have watched A Time to Kill, Runaway Jury, The Firm, The Client; and I think the legal elements make the thriller more exciting.Being a fan of Denzel Washington, he aptly fits into the role and love the way he moves confidently, with practiced ease. Julia Roberts looks pretty, and gives a commendable performance as the scared legal student on the run. When she remarks her brief was 'ludicrous', I never expected it to form the crux of the plot (though the movie was titled about a brief), I mean what can a law student discover that the FBI cannot? But that's the way John Grisham thinks, and it's interesting.I was a bit disappointed that there were no court scenes as I love courtroom dramas. Nevertheless, the movie keeps you at the edge of the seat, as you keep trying to find out who were the perpetrators of the murder. I found myself wanting to know more even after Roberts reveals the content of her brief to Washington, and was quite satisfied in the end.