Presumed Innocent (1990) – Encore Review

“My mommy hurt my head! ” – Wendell McGaffney

Number of Times Seen – Between 5 – 10 times (Theater in 1990, cable, video, DVD, 20 Feb 2015 and 8 Dec 2018)

Link to original review – Here

Brief Synopsis – A prosecutor is accused of murdering his former lover and must find a way to prove his innocence of the crime.

My Take on it – This is a film that I recall seeing in the theater when it came out and was so taken in by t, I actually chose to read the novel that it was based on.

They manage to keep the pacing of the story at a great level and the choice to slowly reveal more and more information as to what is going on works extremely well throughout.

The cast is superb with Harrison Ford as his dramatic best here.

The supporting cast is filled with lots of great actors who give stellar performances here including Raul Julia, Bonnie Bedelia, Brian Dennehy, Greta Scacchi, Paul Winfield, John Spencer, Bradley Whitford and Joe Grifasi.

This film is able to mix compelling courtroom drama with investigative work really well and it takes the story to a higher level.

The dialogue is superbly written and they manage to keep thing moving in a very riveting fashion while at the same time making it plausible that numerous characters could conceivably be the killer.

This is a great adaptation of the novel and somehow they manage to make the leap from the pages to the screen while still keeping things quite interesting and captivating throughout.

Bottom Line – Excellent story that keeps things at a great pace while slowly revealing information that keeps changing things.  Superb cast led by Ford works really well.  They get a great mix of courtroom drama along with investigative work that helps take things to a higher level. The dialogue is superbly written and the way things move along is riveting because they make it plausible for numerous characters to actually be the killer. Great adaptation of a best seller that doesn’t lose much in its leap from the pages to the screen. One of the best of its genre. Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Paul Winfield read the novel in the late 80s and loved it, telling his agent if a movie was ever made, he had to have the role of the judge. A few years later when the movie was actually in preproduction, Winfield campaigned hard for the part of the judge, impressing director Alan J. Pakula, who auditioned him and subsequently cast him. (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy (9/10) (no change from original review)

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