The Rainmaker (1997)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 135 minuten
Alternative title: John Grisham's The Rainmaker
Country:
United States
Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Stars: Matt Damon, Claire Danes and Jon Voight
IMDb score:
7,2 (91.774)
Releasedate: 18 November 1997
The Rainmaker plot
"They were totally unqualified to try the case of a lifetime... but every underdog has his day."
Rudy Baylor is a budding lawyer who finds himself in a high-profile, tough lawsuit. His opponents: an army of seasoned, sharp lawyers. His associates: Deck Shifflet, a hot-tempered media lawyer who keeps failing his court exam. Rudy's chances are slim until he discovers a trail of corruption that could lead him to his only chance at winning this case: the truth.
Actors and actresses
Rudy Baylor
Kelly Riker
Deck Shifflet
Leo F. Drummond
Dot Black
Judge Harvey Hale
Bruiser Stone
Richter Tyrone Kipler
Jackie Lemancyzk
Billy Porter
Reviews & comments
Arnie
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- 1082 messages
- 1889 votes
Entertaining crime/drama film by Coppola, but at the same time not very surprising and a bit too much of a book adaptation, visible, for example, in a few minimally elaborated storylines. Coppola once again shows his cynical side about law and justice in the world (or specifically in America), and this scenario by Grisham lends itself perfectly to that. Furthermore, the print relies quite heavily on big names (O'Rourke, DeVito), but Matt Damon and the beautiful Claire Danes naturally shine in this for both of their first big films.
Translated from Dutch · View original
mjk87 (moderator films)
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- 14760 messages
- 4630 votes
The film mainly suffers from a weak script, with a weak direction and little great acting. Many side plots are superfluous and take the level and tempo out of it, especially that plot with that love interest makes no sense. The direction is solid, with strikingly often shots from below, but not at all uplifting. As a whole this is a tame beast. And the actors know little about it. Damon lacks the power for a leading role here and Voigt and DeVito mainly overact too much and are therefore not really credible. Some parts in the court are still nice and the film just looks away, but that's about it. 2.0*.
Translated from Dutch · View original
Sergio Leone
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- 4461 messages
- 3142 votes
Boring.
Francis Ford Coppola, who is responsible for some of my favorite movies ever, is also responsible for boring movies like this one. It's almost impossible to grasp. The Rainmaker seems really uninspired, without real focus and without any tension. The lawyers don't even get the blood from under your fingernails.
A young Matt Damon tries to pull himself together and doesn't really do much wrong. The same can be said of his colleagues. Danny Glover is the perfect example of a character head who goes for bacon and beans. I can hardly imagine that this was the intention. One would almost think that Coppola wanted to make his own court drama, following films like A Few Good Men and Philadelphia. Just to make one too.
1,5
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