The Pelican Brief (1993) – Encore Review

“Darby Shaw, you take my breath away.” – Professor Thomas Callahan

Number of Times Seen – at least 3 times (Theater in ’93, 20 Jun 2017 and 1 Aug 2023)

Link to original review – Here

Brief Synopsis – A law student writes a paper connecting two political assassinations which might be somehow related to the higher levels of government and must run for her life when she becomes a target.

My Take on it – Such a great novel that is translated well to the screen. Julia Roberts is perfectly cast in the lead role and helps add so much to the realism of the story. The political intrigue is great here and they do a wonderful job showing the various connections between the key players involved here. John Grisham was at his best at the start of his career and this is one of his best written stories. The story knows how to create a lot of tension along the way and that enhances things even more. It always amazes me to watch older movies that end up featuring lots of familiar faces before they became that way and this film is filled with them all over the place. The chemistry between Roberts and Denzel Washington is lukewarm at best and that takes a bit away from the way things play out.

Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – For the scenes inside the White House, the sets created for “Dave (1993)” were used. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (8/10) (no change from original review)