Find Movies & TV
Home
Live TV
On Demand
Discover
Explore
Movies & TV Shows
Most Popular
Leaving Soon
Categories
Action
Animation
Comedy
Crime
Documentary
Drama
En Español
Horror
Music
Romance
Sci-Fi
Thriller
Western
Explore
Browse Channels
Featured Channels
Crime 360
Nashville
FailArmy
Categories
Hit TV
Drama TV
Movies
True Crime
News
Sports
Reality
Classics
Sci-Fi & Action
Chills & Thrills
Comedy
Game Shows
Nature & Travel
History & Science
Food & Home
Lifestyle
Kids & Family
En Español
International
Anime+
Music
Sign In
The Pelican Brief
Directed by
Alan J. Pakula
PG-13
1993
2h 21m
Mystery
,
Thriller
,
and more
6.6
56%
61%
6.6
Add to Watchlist
A law student uncovers a conspiracy, putting herself and others in danger.
More
Where to Watch The Pelican Brief
Amazon Video
Buy $12.99
Apple TV
Buy $12.99
Fandango At Home
Buy $12.99
+3 more
Cast of The Pelican Brief
Julia Roberts
Darby Shaw
Denzel Washington
Gray Grantham
Sam Shepard
Thomas Callahan
John Heard
Gavin Vereek
Tony Goldwyn
Fletcher Coal
James B. Sikking
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
Casey Biggs
Eric East
Christopher Murray
Rupert
Sonny Jim Gaines
Sarge
The Pelican Brief Ratings & Reviews
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.
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.
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews
Dennis Schwartz
A juicy conspiracy theory thriller.
Common Sense Media
Joyce Slaton
Talky political thriller won't engage kids.
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.
Film Freak Central
Walter Chaw
If only The Pelican Brief were purposefully controversial.
TV Guide
A shallow bore.
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.
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]
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.
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.
Greenwich Village Gazette
Eric Lurio
Julia good Denzel better.
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.
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.
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.
Watch The Pelican Brief Videos
The Pelican Brief
The Pelican Brief
Trailer
Take Plex everywhere
Watch free anytime, anywhere, on almost any device.
See the full list of supported devices
Home
Live TV
On Demand
Discover
