The Pelican Brief (1993)

Excellent adaptation.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

You can read the plot synopsis but the point is missed on people from NYC and LA. This goes to the heartland and explains how discreet government corruption can hurt us badly. Its also illustrates why "obstruction of justice" is such an important law and why (now) Donald Trump should be deposed and thrown out. Just remember the truism, "if one lies about small things, they will like about big things too"

This film suffers from over length. Also the ending feels like it was added on. It seems like a post production re-shoot. In this film Julia Roberts plays a legal student. The murder of two supreme court justices have prompt her into seeing if she can figure out the reasons and motives for their murders. She then writes about her finding called "The Pelican Brief". After she presents this to 2 people they are murdered. She then decides to take off and contacts a reporter hoping she can find a way to save her own life. Now many scenes in this film should of been edited down or the film should of had a re-write before production began. There is several scenes in the first 1/2 that could have been edited down or been presented with a little more suspense. Julia Roberts and Denzel are fine but the movie is too long!

This is an intriguing political thriller where law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) writes a brief about a government conspiracy after two U.S. Supreme Court justices were assassinated. Soon, she finds herself a target of corrupt government spies.The action begins when misfortune starts to happen around Shaw after her brief landed in the hands of the FBI, and soon finds herself dodging assassins and hiding out in hotels across the country, giving us an exciting on-the-run plot. She finds her only ally is journalist Gray Grantham (Denzel Washington), who forms a good team with Shaw in trying to expose these bad guys and find the truth behind the conspiracy. The theory implicating White House officials adds onto the tension of the plot.The acting is good and believable the Roberts and Washington have some good chemistry together. Their characters were well-developed as the movie progresses. Those bad guys popping up here and there with their disastrously deeds give you suspenseful moments, and makes you wonder if the government or Uncle Sam is watching your every move.Overall, a good political thriller that one will find captivating.Grade A-

This movie shows how capitalism deals with environment in the US. The story is similar to what the international oil companies (IOCs) does worldwide. This is particularly true for developing countries where the inefficient government and chaotic situation allows them to go far more than they go in US. The movie also successfully demonstrates the interrelations among corrupt politicians, government officials and the big corporations. However, it depicted an ideal role for the media which is rarely the case. What I believe that, mostly because of the benefits from commercials of IOCs, the media mostly favors the powerful corporations. The most important point is that, while it tells the story, the movie does not bore the viewer. I strongly recommend wide viewing of this movie and then think about the case when the OICs operate in a freer environment. I would also wait for similar movies which speaks about Middle Eastern or Nigerian version of such stories. Happy viewing.