Product Description

A lawyer finds himself framed for his ex-lover's murder.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: R
Release Date: 7-SEP-2004
Media Type: DVD

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7069 in DVD
• Brand: FORD,HARRISON
• Released on: 1997-12-17
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish, French
• Dubbed in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .25 pounds
• Running time: 127 minutes

Amazon.com essential video
Rich with ambiguity, this smooth adaptation of Scott Turow's bestselling mystery novel stars Harrison Ford as Rusty Sabich, the prosecuting attorney assigned to a case involving the murder of a beautiful, seductive lawyer (Greta Scacchi) with whom he'd been having a secret affair. After the investigation gets off to a slow start, damning evidence points to Rusty as the prime suspect. His career is destroyed when his superior and secondary suspect Raymond Horgan (Brian Dennehy) sets him up for the fall. Bonnie Bedelia plays Rusty's wife Barbara, who is not above suspicion herself. While Ford's performance rides a fine line between presumed innocence and possible guilt, director Alan J. Pakula (All the President's Men) maintains a consistent tone of uncertainty that keeps the viewer guessing. --Jeff Shannon

From The New Yorker
A ponderous adaptation of Scott Turow's cunningly plotted mystery novel. The director, Alan J. Pakula, has shot and paced the movie as if it weren't a mystery but a serious character study, an art film. It's lit (by Gordon Willis) like "Cries and Whispers," only without the bright-red accents: the movie's palette seems to consist of brown and gray-earnest, business-suit colors. The lunacy of treating this story as a deep exploration of character is that the only thing we really want to know about the character in question-Rusty Sabich (Harrison Ford), a Midwestern prosecutor accused of murdering one of his colleagues (Greta Scacchi)-is: Did he do it or not? Ford, in what is probably an unplayable role, has to maintain a tense, repressed, impenetrable expression throughout. The supporting actors provide the picture with a bit of energy. Bonnie Bedelia, as Rusty's nervous, self-deprecating wife, gives lovely shadings to a tough part. As the judge presiding over Rusty's trial, Paul Winfield supplies some sorely needed comedy. And Raul Julia, as the hero's lawyer, is an elegant, commanding presence in the courtroom scenes. Also with Brian Dennehy. Screenplay by Pakula and Frank Pierson. -Terrence Rafferty
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Whodunit????
This review refers to the DVD edition(Warner Bros) of "Presumed Innocent"

Director Alan J Pakula with us his usual flair for suspense("Klute"/"The Pelican Brief"), really draws us in and keeps us guessing in this courtroom thriller. The cast is also wonderful at keeping the mystery alive as they portray their parts perfectly, never giving away anything.It stars Harrison Ford, Brian Dennehy, Raul Julia, Bonnie Bedelia and Greta Scacchi.

Ford is a prosecuting attorney. He's one of the best around, so when a fellow attorney is brutally murdered, he is assigned the case. He is a bit reluctant though. This fellow attorney, was a brillant lawyer,as well as a beautiful and sexy woman, and one other thing...he was having an extra marital affair with her and when it ended, he became obsessed with winning her back. Uh Oh...all the evidence eventually points right at him! Don't rule ANYBODY out in this edge of your seat courtroom drama.

An above average murder mystery, with a great cast and brillant director. The music of John Willilams also adds just the right touch of suspense. I hadn't seen this one for quite a while, so I actually forgot whodunit, until almost the end, and I enjoyed it as much the second time around as the first.

The DVD has a good picture and nice color(not the very best I've seen, but pretty decent) which may be viewed in either a widescreen version or standard. The sound in Dolby Dig Surround was very good but would be even better in 5.1. Don't look for too much in the way of special features. There are some production notes, , a theatrical trailer,it may be viewed in English, French and Spanish and has subtitles in those langauges as well.

Also I must mention the really terrific performances of the supporting cast. Paul Winfield(with his oh so recognizable voice) as the Judge, John Spencer, as the Detective helping Ford with evidence, and Anna Maria Horsford as an assissant in the office.

A good buy and terrific addition to your suspense collection.
Never assume....Never presume....
Go for It...Laurie

also recommended:
Just Cause
Blind Horizon
Die Hard Trilogy Letterbox Edition

Cornered by the Fates
Harrison Ford gives a riveting performance of a man cornered by fate, with so many facts staring him in the face that it is hard for others to believe that he has not killed femme fatale Greta Scacchi, his co-worker in the public prosecutor's office who abruptly terminated an affair with him when he refused to try and take his boss Brian Dennehy's job away from him and provide her with the top deputy's post. The femme fatale prosecutor, highly ambitious, also had an affair with Dennehy as well as Paul Winfield, the judge who presides over Ford's murder trial.

As typical in legal circles, a cornered defendant lawyer seeking to prove his or her innocence to a jury hires a respected adversary to defend his or her cause. After all, who has a better idea of a lawyer's worth than someone who has tangled in courtroom battle with that same individual? In this case prosecutor Ford calls on talented defense attorney Raul Julia to represent him. Ford is crushed to quickly learn after hiring Julia that Dennehy, the boss he refused to conspire against, after losing a bid for reelection reveals that he will testify against his former chief assistant.

Also coming into the fascinating mix is the neurotic wife of Ford, played by Bonnie Bedelia, who was well aware of his tryst with his fellow prosecutor. Bedelia plays a key role in the drama which is not resolved until after Ford's trial has played itself out.

Director Alan J. Pakula, the master of suspense filmmaking who previously gave us "All The President's Men" and "Klute," keeps the action moving at a quick pace. The trial scenes are particularly well done and move briskly. The adversary nature of a hard-nosed murder trial is convincingly presented.

Ohboy, ohboy, ohboy!
Scott Turow is just simply an outstanding legal thriller author, and, IMO, this is still his best. It's ambiguous, sneaky, freaky, scary, and realy believable. A lovely and very seductive lawyer is murdered, and it becomes clear she's been having an affair. Then, much to his amazement, damning evidence points to the prosecuting attorney (played awfully well by Harrison Ford) as the prime suspect, esp when his superior (and a possible other suspect) sets him up for the fall.
And then there's Ford's odd possibly mentally ill wife...
Super good all the way through, and it'll keep you guessing as long as you don't read any reviews that give it away.