Review of Presumed Innocent (1990) by Rocknblues 8 — 08 May 2014

Director Alan J. Pakula (All the President's Men, Klute)has delivered a solid courtroom drama. Granted, a lot of the courtroom drama feels a bit familiar in some ways, but it's not over the top and silly like we are accustomed to seeing. Raul Julia really stands out as the opportunistic defensive lawyer.

Pretty much every character here is dirty, and pretty much none of them are easy to root for.The man on trial here clearly loves his family, but he gives in and has an affair with his wife, only to be pushed aside by the home wrecking victim when he isn't ambitious enough for her taste. The judge is corrupt, and the boss is an overbearing prick that abandons Rusty when times get tough.

The only one seemingly worth having a lot of sympathy for is the Rusty's wife (played by Die Hard's Bonnie Bedelia)but her role is typically underwritten. The biggest weak link is Harrison Ford himself. Never once does he make it seem like he could be guilty of murder. So you're more or less interested in this movie for the performances and plot twists. Which you might or might not like.

I want to give this a higher rating, but the lead performance tips you off that someone else committed the murder. After you finish watching the movie it will become obvious why this movie usually does not get mentioned when people talk about Harrison Ford's best movies.