The Rainmaker

Francis Ford Coppola did not just direct this Grisham adaptation, he wrote it. He read the novel while waiting for a flight, was struck by its inspirational streak, and went to the producer with Fred Fuchs of American Zoetrope; he reportedly worked with Grisham directly on the first cut. Rudy Baylor has passed the bar but is not yet licensed. A judge scolds him at his first appearance, and opposing counsel Leo Drummond steps up to stand for him while he is sworn in. His partner Deck Shifflet has failed that same exam 6 times. The case belongs to the family of Donny Ray Black, 22, dying because his insurer refused the bone marrow transplant. Winning is not the triumph here. The jury awards enormous punitive damages, the company files for bankruptcy, and neither the parents nor the lawyers see a cent. Teresa Wright made her final screen appearance here, and Danny Glover plays the judge without a credit. Jon Voight was nominated for supporting actor at the 55th Golden Globes; Burt Reynolds took it. Coppola then directed nothing for 10 years. A good fit if you want a courtroom story where the verdict opens the disappointment rather than closing it. Not for viewers expecting the scale of the director’s epics; the register stays flat on purpose.