Fresh out of law school and desperate for work, idealistic rookie Rudy Baylor takes on a powerful insurance company accused of denying a dying boy’s claim. Teaming up with a scrappy, unlicensed paralegal, he finds himself in a David-versus-Goliath courtroom battle that tests his ethics, courage, and belief in justice.
Acting
Danny DeVito's unlicensed paralegal steals every scene.
Direction
Coppola's last great studio film, surprisingly warm.
Writing
Grisham adaptation that actually improves the book.
Director
Francis Ford Coppola
Matt Damon
Rudy Baylor
Claire Danes
Kelly Riker
Danny DeVito
Deck Shifflet
Jon Voight
Leo F. Drummond
Mary Kay Place
Dot Black
Dean Stockwell
Judge Harvey Hale
Mickey Rourke
Bruiser Stone
Danny Glover
Richter Tyrone Kipler
Virginia Madsen
Jackie Lemancyzk
Randy Travis
Billy Porter
Roy Scheider
Wilfred Keeley
Red West
Buddy Black
Johnny Whitworth
Donny Ray Black
Andrew Shue
Cliff Riker
Teresa Wright
Colleen 'Miss Birdie' Birdsong
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Mickey Rourke plays Bruiser, a role Coppola expanded just to work with him again after Rumble Fish.
This was Coppola's return to 'small' filmmaking after the catastrophic failure of Jack—he financed it himself to maintain final cut.
US
