The Firm (1993) on Netflix
R19932h 34mDramaMysteryThriller
Mitch McDeere, a Harvard Law graduate, takes a lucrative offer from a small Memphis firm and moves there with his wife Abby. The firm demands loyalty and confidentiality from its lawyers.
- Netflix3.7/5
- IMDb6.9/10164,438 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes76%
Trailer
Plot summary
Courted by firms in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, Mitch McDeere instead chooses a small but prosperous practice, Bendini, Lambert & Locke, in Memphis, Tennessee, and moves there with his wife Abby. He studies for the Tennessee bar exam while senior partner Avery Tolar mentors him in the firm's insistence on loyalty and confidentiality, and in the high fees it charges its wealthy clients. The benefits sway Mitch, among them a house, a Mercedes-Benz and the clearing of his student loans. Abby resents the firm's interest in its employees' private lives, and once Mitch passes the bar and starts working grueling hours, the marriage strains.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Firm (1993)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Gene Hackman's name did not appear on the release poster. He joined late, because the producers had wanted to change the character's gender and cast Meryl Streep until John Grisham objected; Tom Cruise's deal meant only his name could appear above the title, so Hackman asked for his to be removed.
- With the release date at risk, the producers were given one week to sign a director and signed John Badham for $3 million. John McTiernan then wanted to direct with Cruise, but demanded Rudin be removed as producer; the studio kept Rudin, so McTiernan went off to make Last Action Hero.
- The Firm grossed $270.2 million against a budget of $42 million, making it the highest-grossing film adapted from a Grisham novel and the highest-grossing R-rated film of 1993.
- Grisham enjoyed the film, remarking of its star: "I thought [Tom Cruise] did a good job. He played the innocent young associate very well."
- The Firm turned out to be the final film for two members of its cast, the actors Steven Hill and John Beal.
