Customer Reviews
Excellent Film - disappointing DVD version - By: Tina Hett, 10 Aug 2008 
I've always loved this film, I had it on tape for years. It's a great story, intelligent, with superb acting. Other reviews say it all
What did annoy me was that the DVD is two-sided. You have to watch half the film, then turn the DVD over to watch the other half. This isn't going to be enough to irritate everybody but it really irrited me, & I really wouldn't have bought it if I'd known about the format.
I'm the lazy type who likes to settle down, surrounded by food, & not get up again until the film is finished & there's no food left. Like I said, not going to bother everybody but still worth knowing.
a bit slow moving and not as watchable as "The Client" - By: dan the fan, 01 Sep 2007 
I thought that the dvd of "The Client" - also a novel by John Grisham - was a lot more exciting to watch & had a more interesting storyline.
This was undoubtedly becausein the Pelican Brief the criminals are the
government & so everything happensin a more slow & predictable fashion - as though the public servants who featurein the film wrote the script! The Pelican Brief is worth watching once but if you have the choice watch "The Client" instead - it's a gem of a movie with Susan Sarandon & Tommy Lee Jones starring.
John Grisham's Second Best - By: Butters, 10 Jul 2007 
Have watched this a numerous amount of time & enjoy it each time. However, I prefered A Time To Kill. I enjoy books that turn well into films & I definately thought that this was one occasion where it succeeded.
Fast paced movie fairly faithful to the best seller novel - By: Jay, 17 Apr 2007 
Based on John Grisham's best-selling novel previously reviewed
Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) is a law student at Tulane who writes her own theory about who arranged for the assassination of two Supreme Court justices & why. The unfortunate thing is, her theory is right on the money, & once it starts circulating it resultsin a number of deaths. Investigative reporter Gray Grantham (Denzel Washington) turns out to be the one person she can trust & rely on.
"The Pelican Brief" is a solid & entertaining (if lengthy) political / newspaper / legal thriller from the director of "All The President's Men". It keeps its grip thanks to genuinely good film-making & an excellent cast. The climax is reasonably suspenseful.
To screenwriter / director Alan J. Pakula's credit, the villain of the movie - a stereotypically greedy & maniacal tycoon - is deliberately made mysterious & gets no actual screen time - except for an appearancein a key photograph.
Tense and thrilling - By: Petrolhead, 02 Aug 2006 This is great. I'm not usually a fan of Julia Roberts, I've never read John Grisham & I didn't expect much. But it turned out to be a very good night in. The film winds itself up with a tranquil introduction before springing into nail-biting action for the next two hours. Dramatic irony keeps the adrenaline pumping as many of the characters know more than you do... & run the risk of being bumped off for the privilege.
The writers evidently had a ball, with Julia & Denzel running risks that make you want to shout "No, you fools! Run away! Flee to Alaska!"
I just wanted them to cling to the paternal rock of John Lithgow's newspaper editor, the only character who seems assured of making it through to the final credits...
If I had one niggling criticism, the fast-paced editing was occasionally a little too fast, with one or two time-skipsin which Julia would have had to do a great deal & spend alot of time evading bad guys. But that's just a quibble. Sit back and, er... try to relax.
