Review of The Pelican Brief (1993) by Ma'ark T — 17 Jan 2017

Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington co-star in the John Grisham based book, The Pelican Brief. Roberts is a promising law student Darby Shaw. When two supreme court judges are, both murdered, she has a theory known as the Pelican Brief. This theory proposes a massive conspiracy that involves government officials, the president, and a major corporation that has them both murdered for political and financial gain. She proposes this theory to her professor, who soon winds up dead along with several others that become abreast to this theory.

She soon comes across Gary Grantham (Washington) and she wants to get the story published. The two don't have any concrete proof and begin investigating to find the truth. They most avoid assassins, government spies, and are constantly fearing for their lives. The theory is eventually revealed in full and it theorizes that the justices were killed because they would not let expansion of a company to expand their territory because the land would threaten an endangered species of pelicans and their nesting ground. The new justices to be elected would be less pro environmental and vote and allow for the corporation to expand.

The Pelican Brief is a pretty average action thriller. Roberts and Washington put in typical performances to bring the film to an end. The fact that the theory is clearly true based on the people's deaths, makes for a less suspense, and the eventual reveal of the theory is at a point where I stopped caring much about the film. Despite the big names attached, The Pelican Brief does not offer much else and is likely one of Grisham's weakest novels and movies. This was also Alan J. Pakula's second to last film. Those who are a fan of the book will surely question the casting of Washington, and the lack of the romance between his character and Roberts that does exist in the book, but was not in the film at Washington's request.

-01.15.2017.