The Pelican Brief is an movie in which story revolves around a law student uncovers a conspiracy, putting herself and others in danger. So, today we will share some of its interesting facts about this topic. The President questions Coal’s idea of addressing the nation while wearing a cardigan sweater. This is based on a real-life incident in which then-president Jimmy Carter addressed the nation in a cardigan sweater during the height of the fuel shortages in the 1970s. The characters that Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington play in the film become lovers in Grisham’s novel. Although Roberts was interested in bringing that romance to the screen, Washington disagreed, feeling that target audiences did not want to see an interracial romance.
Director Alan J. Pakula pulled a prank on the set, involving the then-couple Julia Roberts and Lyle Lovett. Roberts was filming a scene where she is supposed to talk on the phone with the character played by John Heard. Pakula sent Heard’s lines to Lovett (who was touring and away from where the film was being made), allowing him to speak to his wife. Roberts played the scene normally, though she didn’t recognize the voice over the phone. It was only after Pakula yelled “Cut!” that she learned that it was Lovett who was acting with her.
Darby and Callahan discuss Bowers v. Hardwick, a real Supreme Court case that ultimately upheld a state’s right to make homosexual activity illegal. Darby passionately argues that the Supreme Court was wrong. In 2003, the Supreme Court ruled in Lawrence v. Texas that such laws were unconstitutional.
The law firm of White and Blazevich, is a parody of Chicago based Kirkland & Ellis, one of the oldest and wealthiest law firms in the world with over $4 billion in revenue and over 2500 lawyers. A very prominent case they were involved in was the 60 Minutes/Jeffrey Weigand/ big tobacco corporations in the late 1990’s when they threatened litigation against CBS Corporate, who caved and refused to air his interview, which implicated the CEO’S of big tobacco companies and their knowledge that smoking was hazardous to ones health.
Almost every scene has something blue in it, especially the colors turquoise/teal. From Denzel’s suit to a pen Darby uses, there is teal everywhere: walls, cars, calendars,and clothing of people walking by in the background. Even the furniture in some scenes is a shade of teal. No way is it a coincidence. Sometimes it’s very obvious and other times it’s subtle: like at the end of the film, when the police car pulls out of the airplane hangar and the turquoise light reflects on the floor.
