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:

Attraction. Desire. Deception. Murder. No one is ever completely innocent.

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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

Harrison Ford's hair was cut in such a way to make him look "wimpier" than his previous brave leading man roles.

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Goofs

During the trial, the attorneys are allowed to walk up close to the witness that is testifying. In reality, counsel would be behind a lectern or podium and can only approach a witness with permission of the judge.

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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

Spoofed in Liar Liar (1997)

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Soundtracks

Let The Drummer Loose
Written by Richard Wolf, Bret Mazur and Y.C. Smith
Produced by Richard Wolf and Bret Mazur
Performed by Y.C Smith

User Reviews

Bland, Boring Pakula

The lead investigator (Harrison Ford) on a murder case becomes the prime suspect after it is revealed that he was having an affair with her. With fingerprints and DNA everywhere, can he convince them of his innocence? Besides Harrison Ford, we have Raul Julia playing a role other than Gomez Addams, which is nice to see. There is also the medical examiner, who is hilarious, by far my favorite character in the movie.

Not director Alan Pakula's best work by far, though he does well by covering the ground he covered in "All the President's Men" by mixing crime and politics. This is always an intriguing mix, especially when executed by a capable director, writer and cast. This film has such things, and is therefore a worthy film, and enjoyable.

I found the flashbacks to be annoying more than anything. I understand they were important to make the connection between the victim and the accused, but she was presented as if she was a gorgeous catch, but was rather hideous and manipulative. Her alleged liaisons with important men does not make her a victim that gets much sympathy from me.