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The Pelican Brief
1992 2h 21m PG-13
Mystery
,
Thriller
,
and more
6.6
55%
61%
66%
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A law student uncovers a conspiracy, putting herself and others in danger.
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Directed By
Alan J. Pakula
Written By
John Grisham
,
Alan J. Pakula
Studio
Warner Bros. Pictures
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Cast of The Pelican Brief
Julia Roberts
Darby Shaw
Denzel Washington
Gray Grantham
Sam Shepard
Thomas Callahan
John Heard
Gavin Vereek
Tony Goldwyn
Fletcher Cole
James B. Sikking
FBI Director Denton Voyles
William Atherton
Bob Gminski
Robert Culp
The President
Stanley Tucci
Khamel
Hume Cronyn
Justice Rosenberg
John Lithgow
Smith Keen
Anthony Heald
Marty Velmano
Nicholas Woodeson
Stump
Stanley Anderson
Edwin Sneller
John Finn
Matthew Barr
Cynthia Nixon
Alice Stark
Jake Weber
Curtis Morgan / Garcia
Casey Biggs
Eric East
Christopher Murray
Rupert
Sonny Jim Gaines
Sarge
Kevin Geer
K.O. Lewis
Joe Chrest
Song and Dance Man from Bar
Richard Bauer
Managing Editor
Ralph Cosham
Justice Jensen
Tom Quinn
Sara Ann Morgan's Father
Michelle O'Neill
Sara Ann Morgan
Edwin Newman
Self
Helen Carey
Federal Clerk
Howard Shalwitz
Washington Herald Journalist
Carol Sutton
New Orleans Policewoman
Magee Hickey
Self
Ellie K. Wang
Reporter at National Cathedral
Franchelle Stewart Dorn
University Registrar
Karen Bralove
University Placement Clerk
Teagle F. Bougere
Male University Student
Carey Varner
Female University Student
Sandra Quarterman
Laura Kass
Cynthia Hood
Parklane Receptionist
Beverly Brigham
Safe Deposit Teller
Doug Coleman
Male Pursuer with Gun
Eliza Coleman
Female Pursuer with Gun
Carrie Boren
Reporter
Amber Nelson
Teen Bicyclist
Kelly Lynn Richards
Protester
Greta Valenti
Kid at Parade
Jerry Van Dyke
Assistant Coach Luther Horatio Van Dam in Coach (archive footage)
Harold Surratt
Parklane Security Officer
Shanna Connell
Tulane Law Student
Michael Port
Tulane Law Student
Gene Babb
Reporter
Kyle Duvall
Reporter
Karl Warren
Reporter
James Earl Reed
Reporter
Kyle Prue
News Desk Reporter
Jurian Hughes
White & Blazevich Receptionist
Peter Carlin
Edward Linney
Terrence Currier
Rosenberg's Nurse
Jewell Robinson
Senior Washington Herald Editor
Kim Peter Kovac
Senior Washington Herald Editor
Norman Aronovic
Senior Washington Herald Editor
Carl Palmer
Cop in Cowboy Boots
Scott M. Jefferson
Lt. Olsen
Danny Kamin
Hooten
Mark McLaughlin
CIA Agent in Hotel Room
Robert Pavlovich
CIA Agent in Hotel Room
Constance Yelverton
Clerk at Sheraton Hotel
Kim Kettle
Gavin Verheek's Wife
Alan Wade
Parklane Administrator
Paul Morella
White & Blazevich Attorney
Ed Johnson
White & Blazevich Security Guard
Dick Stilwell
White & Blazevich Security
Deborah Ben-Eliezer
Marie Halliburton - Protester
Catherine Boyd
Protester
Keith Fluker
Agent
Marianne Hettinger
Eyewitness
Joe James
Runner (voice)
Shane LeCocq
Mardi Gras Party Patron
Kimberley Roper
French Quarter Prostitute
Codie Scott
Man Partying in Quarter
William Shipman
Office Worker
Avo Shirazee
Teen Bicyclist
John A. Taylor
Law School Administrator
The Pelican Brief Reviews
New York Times
Janet Maslin
As the film piles on shovelfuls of further exposition, Mr. Washington and Ms. Roberts are left to look terrific and recite perfunctory lines.
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
A clever device to take your mind off your problems for 141 minutes.
ReelViews
James Berardinelli
An unnecessarily-long thriller that contains far more talking than action.
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
Dennis Schwartz
A juicy conspiracy theory thriller.
EmanuelLevy.Com
Emanuel Levy
A routine thriller, curiosuly disappointing from Alan Pakula that even stars like Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts can't rescue
Antagony & Ecstasy
Tim Brayton
If I would still call it one of Pakula's very best films since the end of the 1970s, that says far more about the decline of his career than anything else.
Common Sense Media
Joyce Slaton
Talky political thriller won't engage kids.
Film Freak Central
Walter Chaw
If only The Pelican Brief were purposefully controversial.
Austin Chronicle
Marc Savlov
Grisham's novel was no landmark of literary originality to begin with, but Pakula streamlines the story into a corner, and then lets it run 30 minutes longer than necessary.
Groucho Reviews
Peter Canavese
You'd think that Pakula would be just the man to tease the intellectual and emotional depth out of a Grisham potboiler, but you'd be wrong. [Blu-ray]
JoBlo's Movie Network
JoBlo
Definitely an easy rental and a good way to drown a couple of hours if you're looking for a little suspense, some law stuff, lotsa secondary players and a couple of renowned leads delivering the goods.
Newsweek
David Ansen
Pakula's always had a cool style, tending toward solemnity, but let's face it, All the President's Men this movie is not. You wish he'd have a little more fun with the pulpy material.
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
It's too bad that Pakula allows this 1993 movie to dawdle after its climax, but prior to that he's adept at suggesting unseen menace and keeping things in motion.
Variety
Brian Lowry
Pakula has improved on Grisham's book by excising much of the detritus, crafting a taut, intelligent thriller that succeeds on almost every level.
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
A brightly wrapped, ketchup-drenched mush-burger, it slides down the Zeitgeist esophagus like a slippery McPelican. You pay, you swallow, you drive home. You're left with nothing except, possibly, heartburn.
Hartford Courant
Malcolm Johnson
Both Roberts, with her intense fragility, and Washington, with his thoughtful heroism, prove invaluable in pulling us into the heart of the film.
TV Guide
A shallow bore.
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