Presumed Innocent (1990)

As a lawyer investigates the murder of a colleague, he finds himself more connected to the crime than anyone else.

Director:

Alan J. Pakula

Writers:

Scott Turow (novel), Frank Pierson (screenplay)

Stars:

Harrison Ford, Raul Julia, Greta Scacchi

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harrison Ford	...	Rusty Sabich
Brian Dennehy	...	Raymond Horgan
Raul Julia	...	Sandy Stern
Bonnie Bedelia	...	Barbara Sabich
Paul Winfield	...	Judge Larren Lyttle
Greta Scacchi	...	Carolyn Polhemus
John Spencer	...	Detective Dan Lipranzer
Joe Grifasi	...	Tommy Molto
Tom Mardirosian	...	Nico Della Guardia
Anna Maria Horsford	...	Eugenia
Sab Shimono	...	'Painless' Kumagai
Bradley Whitford	...	Jamie Kemp
Christine Estabrook	...	Lydia 'Mac' MacDougall
Michael Tolan	...	Mr. Polhemus
Madison Arnold	...	Sergeant Lionel Kenneally

Storyline

Rozat Sabich - Rusty to most that know him, even in formal circumstances - is the Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Kindle County, Illinois. His wife, Barbara Sabich, has been struggling with focus on completing her Ph.D. dissertation in Mathemetics - a thus far ten year process - she who nonetheless is applying for a college teaching position. They are generally in a loving, supportive marriage, Barbara who seems to have gotten over Rusty's infidelity with his colleague Carolyn Polhemus, an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney. Carolyn is ambitious, she who, in part, used Rusty to try and climb up the ladder. Barbara will still throw the issue of Carolyn in his face whenever there are problems between the two. Rusty and Carolyn's affair is unknown to others in their personal and professional circles. Rusty is handed the most personal case of his career when his boss and mentor, Chief Prosecuting Attorney Raymond Horgan, assigns him the case to discover who killed Carolyn, her dead body...

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Plot Keywords:

adultery | neo noir | woman murders a woman | murderess | murder | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes it's dangerous to presume.

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

The Joseph Mazzello Fan Page, Presumed Innocent

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 July 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Aus Mangel an Beweisen

Filming Locations:

The Hackley School, Tarrytown, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$22,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,718,981, 29 July 1990, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$86,303,188

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$221,300,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Mirage Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Paul Winfield read the novel in the late 80s and loved it, telling his agent if a movie was ever made, he had to have the role of the judge. A few years later when the movie was actually in preproduction, Winfield campaigned hard for the part of the judge, impressing director Alan J. Pakula, who auditioned him and subsequently cast him.

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Goofs

When Rusty is discussing the case in Stern's office, there is a small figurine of a deer on the end table holding the lamp. When the camera angle changes to Rusty sitting next to the same table, the figurine is gone.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Rusty Sabich: [voiceover] I'm a prosecutor. I'm part of the business of accusing, judging and punishing. I explore the evidence of a crime and determine who is charged, who is brought to this room to be tried before his peers. I present my evidence to the jury and they deliberate upon it. They must determine what really happened. If they cannot, we will not know whether the accused deserves to be freed or should be punished. If they cannot find the truth, what is our hope of justice?

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was cut by 10 secs for a 15 certificate to remove the lines "He was trying to fuck her to death" and "Paying to suck his cock in a public place". Video releases were upgraded to an 18 though the prints used were the same as the cut cinema version.

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Connections

Referenced in Bates Motel: Presumed Innocent (2014)

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Soundtracks

Country Dreams
Written by Jim Jacobsen (as Peter Morris)
Performed by Jim Jacobsen

User Reviews

Never presume anything

Since it's Harrison Ford on trial for the murder of his coworker/mistress, and most everyone loves Harrison Ford, you want to believe he's innocent. But that belief is never a sure thing in "Presumed Innocent": a gripping, suspenseful whodunit that keeps you guessing mercilessly. All the leads here are right on target, especially Ford as the mumbling, elusive murder defendant. Most importantly, all the main players are ambiguous in one way or another, and while I certainly will not give away the ending (which is a beauty, I promise you) keep that in mind as you watch. Can you trust anyone??

The final scene was shocking and thought-provoking. And I couldn't help but think of the title, "Presumed Innocent." Naturally.