PRESUMED INNOCENT, of course, had a lot more riding on it than having Ford in the movie. It's based on the best-selling novel by Scott Turow, and was one of the most eagerly awaited adaptations of the year. It was a summer release, unusual for a movie intended for adults. And it was a courtroom movie, a longtime anchor for primetime television, but more hit-and-miss in movies. Still, it's likely as many people went to see it for Ford as for the other reasons listed above. He was still early in his hot streak of summer film successes (starting in 1989 with INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE), but he was also still one of our biggest stars. After doing the action hero thing again with the Indiana Jones movie, PRESUMED INNOCENT represented a chance to still play the hero, but in a more adult setting, which he had done successfully in WITNESS, and unsuccessfully in FRANTIC. And in the role of Rusty Sabich, it also offered him a chance to play a VERTIGO-like obsessive, which he hadn't done before. This would be a test for audience sympathies, but judging by the box office, they weren't turned off. More importantly, it was a creative triumph as well; PRESUMED INNOCENT was my favorite movie of the year.
Turow's plot is quite convoluted, but here's a quick synopsis; Sabich, the chief prosecutor of Kindle County (the fictional suburb of Detroit that's the setting in Turow's novel), comes across the biggest case of his career. Carolyn Pohemus (Greta Scacchi), another prosecutor in the DA's office, has been found brutally murdered. Since it's a big case, and since Sabich's boss, Raymond Horgan (Brian Dennehy), the DA, is in the midst of a re-election campaign, Sabich is put in charge of finding her killer. Problem is, Sabich and Polhemus were once involved in a passionate affair (she broke it off, and he's still obsessed with her), which they managed to keep mostly a secret. But it does mean he's less than forthcoming about certain details in the investigation (he tells investigating detective Dan Lipranzer (John Spencer), a friend of his, not to pull telephone records, for example). After Horgan loses the election to Nico Della Guardia (Tom Mardirosian), Della Guardia and his new chief prosecutor, Tommy Molto (Joe Grifasi) decide that reluctance, plus some physical evidence (Sabich's fingerprints are found on a glass at the apartment), are enough to finger Sabich as the prime suspect in the murder. Sabich, of course, maintains his innocence, and for his trial, hires an old foe, Sandy Stern (Raul Julia) to defend him. But as the trial goes on, Sabich finds there's a lot more going on than first meets the eye.
