Review of The Rainmaker (1997) by Dawdlingpoet — 22 Nov 2021

This is one of the better John Grisham book adaptations I've seen. I liked it in terms of the human drama angle - there is certainly suffering shown, different forms of it via different characters. I felt the film lacked clear direction at the start, although I did feel more engrossed in it mid way through and indeed I found myself quite keen to see what the outcome would be for a number of characters who are in less than ideal situations its fair to say.

I also noticed there are some fairly amusing things that happen from time to time, to the young, newly qualified laywer, Rudy Baylor (played by a fresh faced Matt Damon) - his nerves are made very clear and I imagine many people could picture themselves in his shoes, wanting to fight his corner etc.

This film is well cast, with Jon Voight, Danny DeVito and Claire Danes present. I certainly found Voights character someone easy to think badly of, to look down your nose at.

I think this film stands out a bit more than other film adaptations of John Grisham novels as its not a crime action film, its not the formulaic sort of film that some of the other ones are, its more about peoples individual stories, rather than focussing on special effects and constant action. Of course there are courtroom scenes but these don't make up the majority of the film and I thought they were pretty watchable and thus not entirely bland.

Ok there is an element of predictability and even cheesiness present but its better than some similar films, so I'd say its worth a watch if it sounds of interest to you - its not perfect but it is good.