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Written by: John Grisham (novel), David Rabe and Robert Towne & David Rayfiel (screenplay)
Directed by: Sydney Pollack
Starring: Tom Cruise, Gene Hackman, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Ed Harris, Holly Hunter, Hal Holbrook, David Strathairn
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
A law school graduate uncovers a sinister secret about the Memphis firm that made him an offer he couldn't refuse.
Verdict
It's a legal thriller that never enters the courtroom. Mitch gets a job that's almost too good to be true, and and soon enough he figures out that it is. The firm quickly consumes his time and alienates his wife. Once the FBI plants a seed a doubt, Mitch keeps finding evidence that his firm is breaking the law. He's caught between the firm's partners and the life they've provided him and the FBI's legal repercussions with no easy way out. Mitch wants to do the right thing while keeping his license, playing both sides to protect himself. Can he get the evidence before anyone catches on?
It depends.
Review
This is the first film based on a John Grisham novel, using his second book.
A young lawyer soon to graduate Harvard weighs offers while working his way through school. He's not only smart, but hard working too. Mitch (Tom Cruise) receives an incredibly generous offer from a small firm in Memphis eager to land him. It's more than he and his wife could have hoped. They relocate and begin a new life.
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| Tom Cruise plays Mitch McDeere |
This firm puts him straight to work while Mitch tries to find time to study for the bar. Several lawyers tell him none of their associates have ever failed the bar, adding pressure to his busy schedule. The firm focuses on tax avoidance and Cayman Island accounts. He even gets a trip to the island.
Two guys that seem to be FBI show up at a diner late one night as Mitch studies, planting doubt about the firm. They ask Mitch why several of the firm's associates have died so young. That inclines Mitch to do some research, and now that he's looking, he keeps finding evidence that seems suspicious. He hires a private investigator, and that only raises more questions.
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| Tom Cruise plays Mitch McDeere |
The FBI wants tax fraud evidence on the firm and their clients, and they make a deal with Mitch. He realizes that the firm can find him anywhere and the FBI can't protect him. At the same time, he can't just ignore the FBI. His paranoia grows as he tries to gather evidence. Each day he's a afraid the firm will find out. The firm's head of security levels a veiled threat that he'll blackmail Mitch if he doesn't stay silent.
Mitch comes across the idea of prosecuting his firm for over billing. It's a federal crime, mail fraud, and his way to get them without violating his oath as a lawyer to protect his clients. He still has to gather evidence which is dangerous. He's trapped between a job that seemed too good to be true and doing the right thing. He has to pull all the strings to gather evidence as his freedom hangs in the balance. When a prominent mob family that uses the firm finds out Mitch is talking to the FBI, they grow concerned. That's when Mitch comes up with a new idea to make a deal that will keep him and his family safe while still exposing his firm.
Mitch's dream became a nightmare, and he spends his time trying to run from it. The law aspect adds a twist to what otherwise is a standard thriller. It also leverages the idea that lawyers are crooks as we root for Mitch, the only good one, to get out of trouble.
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