A Film Review: The Pelican Brief (1993)

'The Pelican Brief' (1993)

Director: Alan J. Pakula

Cast: Julia Roberts as Darby Shaw, Denzel Washington as Gray Grantham, Tony Goldwyn as Fletcher Cole, Sam Shepard as Thomas Callahan, John Heard as Gavin Verheek, James B. Sikking as F. Denton Voyles, Robert Culp as The President, John Lithgow as Smith Keen

Synopsis: After two Supreme Court members’ assassination, a law school student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) was interested in their death’s reason and began her own investigation. The whole business is rather tangled, as it was connected both with the politics (particularly the White House) and the environmental protection. In order to confirm her rendition, Darby had to endanger her life, as hunting started of her.

Review: ‘The Pelican Brief’ was forgotten for several years. In that brief Greens protested against the canal lying across the river with endangered pelican species, but the White House ordered to shut down it. However, after two Supreme Court members’ assassination, a law school student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) tried to find out the truth having written her own brief rendition, which was right and which nobody was going to disclose. That’s why the White House began gradually removing those who were connected with that brief: Darby’s professor and lover Thomas Callahan (Sam Shepard), his friend lawyer and special counsel to the FBI director Gavin Vereek (John Heard), and everybody who had any contact with the young woman. Then Darby turned to Gray Grantham’s  (Denzel Washington) help, a reporter for the fictional 'Washington Herald' and a man in whom her lover believed. And now hunting started not only of Darby, but either of her friend, as the truth shouldn’t leak to the press.

  The film makes us think about many things, like an honor and justice, a real money and influence power, environmental protection, and law. It makes us think about our world, as we live in a lying and corrupt world, where money and power settle everything, where people (particularly the government) don’t think much of danger and consequences that their actions will cause. It shows us the same thing again, that sometimes people don’t want to believe the truth, which have been waiting so long.

  Speaking about the actors’ performances, I think to say that they played well, means to say nothing. As during the whole film I got an impression that all of them were created for these roles. I always liked Julia Roberts’ participation, and here she played excellent. Her character reminded me of Tess of ‘Ocean's Twelve’ (smart, purposeful and acting at her own risk). As for Denzel Washington (who was an embodiment of honor and justice), his acting is not inferior to Julia Roberts.

  To sum it up I’d like to say that I really liked this film. Despite of the duration and the amount of text (in comparison with actions) it didn’t seem boring. On the contrary, after the first assassination I was engrossed in the film, like I was not in my room, but there, in the film.