When "The Firm" came out was - believe it or not - the first time that I had ever heard of Tom Cruise (although I didn't see the movie until several years later). And let me tell you, this was a great introduction. Cruise plays novice lawyer Mitch McDeere, who goes to work for a Memphis firm. With this firm, he has everything that anyone could want. But there's the question: why does everything seem so perfect? The answer lies in the firm's unseemly other side. And they're not just going to let Mitch blow their cover.

Sydney Pollack pulled off everything perfectly here. It's sort of like an Ira Levin novel how everything plays out. You may be suspicious of everything after seeing this movie. Above all, it shows that Tom Cruise can actually do a good job when he tries. Also starring Jeanne Tripplehorn, Gene Hackman, Hal Holbrook, Wilford Brimley, Ed Harris, Holly Hunter, David Strathairn and Gary Busey.

It's hard to believe that this was the first movie adaptation of a John Grisham novel.

Mitch McDeere (Tom Cruise) is a young hot shot Harvard law graduate. Everybody is vying for him, but a small Memphis makes him an offer he couldn't refuse. His wife Abby (Jeanne Tripplehorn) is suspicious but Mitch comes from a poor family and is seduced by the money. Soon, he finds troubling evidence that his firm is corrupt, and some of their lawyers are dying in suspicious circumstances.

It's a tight little thriller based on a John Grisham novel. Tom Cruise is perfect as the young go getter. There are great acting talents in Jeanne Tripplehorn, Gene Hackman, Hal Holbrook, Wilford Brimley, and Ed Harris. On the other hand, Holly Hunter isn't wild enough in her role.

Everything is going great. The last third is a bit too sloppy. Sydney Pollack isn't the greatest action director. The chases and the guns aren't good enough. For a third act, there is a lot of exposition. When it should be exploding, the movie is giving us an exam.

Tom Cruise has the look of a young hot-shot lawyer so he fills the Bill as a new graduate who is sought after by some of the biggest firms in the country. He ends up joining a small but very successful firm. He does this because he feels this is a path to great success in the future. When a couple young lawyers are killed, it leads to the discovery that something is amiss. Soon Cruise gets in the middle of two forces, either of which could destroy his career. One is the FBI and the other is the firm itself. The key to this is how he can separate himself from the firm without disastrous results. John Grisham is a master storyteller and his books really translate well into films. This is no exception. There are times when I really find Cruise annoying, but mostly I think he is quite a good actor.