The Firm

Name: The Firm
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Released: June 30, 1993
Duration: 154 min
Rating: 58
Cast: Gene Hackman, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tom Cruise

1993

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 16 Critics

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 97 Ratings

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8.6

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8.6	User Score Universal acclaim based on 97 Ratings

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THE FIRM

Movie Details & Credits

Paramount Pictures | Release Date: June 30, 1993

Starring: Gene Hackman, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tom Cruise

Summary: John Grisham’s best selling novel comes to the big screen.

Director: Sydney Pollack

Genre(s): Drama, Thriller

Rating: R

Runtime: 154 min

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Awards & Rankings

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

The result is a top-drawer melodrama, a polished example of commercial movie-making that manages to improve on the original while retaining its best-selling spirit. [30 Jun 1993 Pg. F1]

Joe Brown

Cruise was born to play company man, and the role is an opportunity to sum up his old roles and transcend them with his most potently emotional work. Read full review

Owen Gleiberman

No one is going to confuse The Firm with art, but its high- cholesterol virtues-a story that keeps you guessing, a dozen meaty character turns-are enough to send you home sated. Read full review

Empire Matt Mueller

An average movie improved by Cruise's star appeal and accomplished supporting cast. Read full review

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

By the film's climax, following the plot movements has become merely complex rather than suspenseful. Read full review

Richard Corliss

Tom Cruise heads a tony cast in a best-seller movie that is firm at the start and infirm by the end. Read full review

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

By then, the lofty ambitions can't disguise the sad reality - it's long, it's cluttered, and it's trite. Read full review

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User Reviews

TylerDurden900

Jul 19, 2014

The Firm is an intense thriller with top notch acting and an intriguing plot. Tom Cruise gives a classic role
along with a talented supporting cast in this movie based on a John Grisham novel.

12 of 12 users found this helpful120

Lansdenrs

Jun 20, 2013

Nicely plotted film with high intensity and a tremendous script. Acting was superb. The film makes it so there's no way out. Minor Spoiler******* and Tom cruise gets out.

9 of 9 users found this helpful90

MovieGuys

Sep 29, 2013

A melodrama worth watching, The Firm is a very ironically correct title, as this movie is very sturdy and "firm", and it knows where it's going. It has a good foundation, benefitting from the great performances and intriguing story, and it's a very intelligent thriller that won't beA melodrama worth watching, The Firm is a very ironically correct title, as this movie is very sturdy and "firm", and it knows where it's going. It has a good foundation, benefitting from the great performances and intriguing story, and it's a very intelligent thriller that won't be forgotten anytime soon.… Expand

9 of 9 users found this helpful90

Compi24

Jan 31, 2014

Sydney Pollack's "The Firm" ultimately finds a home within its respective sub-genre, but it almost bites off more than it can proverbially chew with its insane length and a plot that may be far beyond the layman's grasp.

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

Tss5078

Apr 10, 2015

I am a huge John Grisham fan, but I never cared much for The Firm. I finally decided to watch it as part of a paper for my film class, because as the first adaptation of a Grisham novel, it was important to the paper, but I still can't explain why it was the first novel they decided to turnI am a huge John Grisham fan, but I never cared much for The Firm. I finally decided to watch it as part of a paper for my film class, because as the first adaptation of a Grisham novel, it was important to the paper, but I still can't explain why it was the first novel they decided to turn into a movie. The story follows a younger lawyer who is graduating at the top of his Harvard Law class. As the offers pour in, he has a tough decision to make, and finally settles on a small Nashville firm, that has made him an offer that is too good to be true. As he starts working for The Firm, Mitch McDeere (Tom Cruise) comes to realize that their only client is an organized crime syndicate and he's trapped inside. Eventually, the FBI comes to McDeere and tries to recruit him as a whistle blower, and his response is somewhat unorthodox. What I never understood about this story is why McDeere went to the lengths he did. He could have achieved the same outcome by simply complying with one side or the other. He jumps through all these hoops and does all these secretive things in order to achieve the same outcome. To me, this always made the second half of the book and film to be pretty much pointless. Tom Cruise stars and shines in the type of role that defined his early career. At this point in his career, if Tom Cruise is not starring as a dark loner or a sci-fi action hero, there isn't any point to watching his movies, but back in the early 90s he really had that special spark that has garnered him the reputation he has today. Cruise was paired with Gene Hackman, making the perfect dynamic of the old star, turning things over to the new. It was a bold move that didn't work out so well for the Indiana Jones franchise, but here it was one of the most interesting things about this film. The acting is terrific and a Grisham film is always very clever and well written, but as I said I've never been a fan of The Firm. The second half of the story just doesn't sit right with me and I'll continue to say it no matter how good the cast is.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Broyax

May 31, 2018

Je ne m'y attendais assurément pas mais Sydney Pollack le branleur du vide et de l'ennui cinématochiatique a tiré quelque chose du bouquin (que je n'ai pas lu) de John Grisham... sans doute parce qu'il se passe quelque chose dans le livre et que le vieil endormi Sydney était obligé de suivreJe ne m'y attendais assurément pas mais Sydney Pollack le branleur du vide et de l'ennui cinématochiatique a tiré quelque chose du bouquin (que je n'ai pas lu) de John Grisham... sans doute parce qu'il se passe quelque chose dans le livre et que le vieil endormi Sydney était obligé de suivre un tant soit peu la trame d'origine. Sans doute.

En tout cas, on s'emmerde fort peu pendant ces deux plombes et demi, ce qui ne laisse pas de m'épater et pas qu'un peu... Et cela en dépit de Tom Cruise le petit connard qui s'agite et s'évertue (sans succès évidemment) à jouer l'avocaillon frais émoulu d'Harvard qui entre dans la Firme, ce gros cabinet d'avocats véreux qui travaille 24/7 à blanchir le fric de Cosa Nostra.

Heureusement, il n'y a pas que lui ! il y a aussi la jolie Jeanne Tripplehorn (dis klaxon... pouêt-pouêt !) et la charmante Holly Hunter recolorée en rouquine. Et il y a bien sûr l'excellent Gene Hackman, l'excellent Ed Harris et nombre de seconds rôles toujours plus brillants que le petit Tom. Tommy cela dit est mauvais (évidemment) mais demeure supportable et il court vite, même avec sa sacoche pleine de fausses factures.

Malgré le temps alloué, on s'étonne tout de même que vers la fin, le film devienne aussi brouillon, puis éventuellement grotesque puisqu'avec quelques tours de passe-passe, le petit con enfume tout le monde... mais ça, ça doit venir du bouquin dont l'auteur marche visiblement sur la tête et qui prend la Mafia pour des idiots. Et le FBI aussi pendant qu'on y est. Enfin, peut-être.

Toujours est-il que la Firme est donc regardable du début à la fin et que l'ambiance paranoïde est assez bien rendue. Ce vieux Syd garde toujours sa caméra bien dans l'axe et ne l'agite certainement pas en vain comme le font si souvent les jeunes de nos jours ; c'est bien sûr appréciable et en même temps logique, car Papy Syd est un calme.

Ce n'est pas bon pour autant, hélas ! mais pas mauvais non plus... ce qui pour l'habituel cancre Sydney qui dort au fond de la classe, tient d'une prouesse plus ou moins involontaire.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

amheretojudge

Sep 17, 2018

a misconceived amalgamation of the so called thrills..

The Firm The Firm is a character driven thriller drama depicting the inner politics that rots out the firm from the inside. Ticking for more than 150 minutes, the overkill sets in early and the primary reason to that is the overa misconceived amalgamation of the so called thrills..

The Firm

The Firm is a character driven thriller drama depicting the inner politics that rots out the firm from the inside. Ticking for more than 150 minutes, the overkill sets in early and the primary reason to that is the over chewing of its character's perspective that may offer a more personal experience and helps connect instantly, but it also grows wafer thin as the character doesn't have the anticipated wide range. The scrutiny doesn't hit up till the first hour is clocked, the first act is spent upon setting up the plots and characters that may be appreciative but not at this length, not at this price. The sound effects are sharp, the background score is mysterious, the cinematography isn't that impressive and neither is camera work along with editing. The pragmatic conversations, well spread out webs of lies and deceptions that are constructed and barred under law and the three dimensional characters that may not be intriguing but it surely is plausible for the effort invested. Cruise is complex and yet easy to read due to its performance with a support from mysterious Hackman and honest as Hunter has ever been delivering some of her best work. Pollock's execution might be bang on his bucks, but overcooking the wafer thin script where the heat from the soul is extracted brutally and to encounter it on screen is just painful. Addition to that, the adaptation too isn't that smart as the writers think, it may be adaptive and smarter, but it sure ain't gripping. The inner politics that is brewed with keen sense of awareness of the financial laws, the stakes that can easily be grasped and Cruise's heartbreaking performance are the high points of the feature. The Firm is a misconceived amalgamation of the so called thrills and ipso facto even its chase is shallow and benign.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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