The Client
Encyclopedia
The Client is a legal thriller
written by American author John Grisham
, set mostly in Memphis, Tennessee
and New Orleans, Louisiana
. It is a mix with various legal elements and suspense
.
Brougham in the film) arrives, and soon W. Jerome "Romey" Clifford, a 44-year old lawyer
from New Orleans, Louisiana, gets out of the car. His only client at the moment is Barry "The Blade" Muldanno, and now here in the woods of northeast Memphis, Tennessee, he is attempting to commit suicide
. Mark and Ricky Sway sit hidden from Clifford and watching him from behind the shiny black car. Clifford, noticeably drunk, puts one end of a garden hose in the exhaust pipe of the car and the other end into a rear passenger window, and rolls up the window, trying to kill himself with carbon monoxide poisoning
. Mark, sneaks up, crawling on his stomach, and pulls the hose from the exhaust trying to stop him. After some time Clifford gets out of the car, cursing, and puts the hose back in. Mark repeats pulling the hose from the tailpipe. On the third attempt, Clifford sees the grass moving in the rear view mirror, leaps from the car grabs Mark and pushes him into the car. Jerome then tells Mark why he wants to kill himself, he is convinced that Muldanno is going to murder him anyway and wants to die on his own terms. Clifford is defending Muldanno for the murder of U.S. Senator
Boyd Boyette. But the prosecutors, led by the "Reverend" (for his preaching style in court) Roy Foltrigg, don't have a body. Muldanno had previously told Clifford that the he buried the body in concrete in Clifford's detached garage, under a boat, while Clifford was on vacation, skiing in Colorado. In the car, Clifford keeps drinking Jack Daniels
, and taking dalmane and codeine
. After a while, the effects of the booze and pills start to make Clifford pass out and Mark manages to escape. After Clifford realizes this and attempts to go after Mark, he looks around but soon gives up and slides up on the trunk of the car, puts a .38 Special
caliber pistol in his mouth, and shoots himself.
Upon witnessing the suicide, Ricky, Mark's younger brother, goes into shock. Mark calls the police and is later found at the scene. Police and the FBI discover that Mark was in the car and may have spoken with Jerome Clifford. Clifford knew where the body was buried and the FBI needs this information. The FBI is now after Mark because they believe he knows where the body is. Mark hires a lawyer named Reggie Love (a woman, despite the name) to help him. Barry Blade's people burn Mark's house. Mark is reluctant to tell the FBI what he knows because the Mafia
has threatened him that if he tells anyone, they will kill him and his family.
Mark is placed in juvenile lock-up (partly to protect him, partly to make him talk) but escapes and runs away to New Orleans and decides to look for the body with Reggie. If the body is not where he knows it should be, he will no longer be in danger of being killed by the Mafia. He decides to travel to New Orleans to search for it. It's very early in the morning when they arrive and while approaching the area of the corpse, the boy and his lawyer observe some Mafia henchmen trying to relocate the body. The henchmen see Mark trying to escape from the boathouse where the body is buried. After a struggle, Mark is able to retrieve a gun that the men were carrying. One of the henchman is trying to convince Mark to shoot him, but Reggie is able to convince him that if he does shoot, he would be just like the henchmen. Mark gives Reggie the gun, which makes the henchman laugh saying, "You should've never taken the gun, you'll never have the guts to shoot." To which she replies, "Wanna bet?" and shoots the neighbor's alarm. The neighbor then comes out with a shotgun and the henchmen run away. Mark and Reggie hide in the woods until they are sure the neighbor is back asleep. They then re-approach the corpse and run away when they see the decaying face of Senator Boyette. Reggie later tells the FBI where the body is, but only after Mark and his family are entered into the United States Federal Witness Protection Program
. The Sway family retreats to a revered hospital in Phoenix to tend to Ricky's severe condition and Mark never sees Reggie again.
is slightly younger.
Barry Muldanno: Mafia
member who is accused of killing a senator. A cold-blooded man, he plans on killing eleven-year old Mark.
Roy Foltrigg: US government lawyer whose job is to prove that Barry Muldanno killed the senator. He tries everything to make Mark talk and at the end he proposes to take Mark to court in New Orleans where he was sure that they could make him talk. He is the district attorney for the southern district of Louisiana.
Slick Moeller: A crime reporter who works on the Memphis Press. His real name is actually Alfred but nobody in the book knows this. He never names a person who trusted him with information and he knows everything about every crime committed, even before the cops.
Paul Gronke: A close associate of Barry Muldanno. He is a tough thug, but not a killer like Barry Muldanno.
Mac Bono: A close associate of the Sulari family. He is a convicted murderer and participates in the search for Mark Sway.
Gary Pirini: A close associate of the Sulari family. He participates in the search for Mark Sway.
Jack Nance and Calvin "Cal" Sisson: So-called "security specialists", they are actually thugs who do dirty work for the people who pay them. They are hired by Paul Gronke to help them for the search of Mark Sway.
Thomas Fink: An assistant US attorney of the southern district of Louisiana. He argued a case before the Tennessee juvenile court to have Mark placed on the juvenile detention center.
George Ord: US attorney for the western district of Tennessee. He helped Thomas Fink argue the case to have Mark placed on the juvenile detention center.
Dr. Greenway: The doctor that attempts to cure Ricky of his coma.
Clint Van Hooser: Secretary to Reggie Love, he was a former drug consumer.
Harry Roosevelt: The judge of the Tennessee youth court. He tries to protect children since he was a neglected child himself when he was a boy.
Johnny Sulari: Boss of the Sulari family. An aging gangster, yet rules with an iron fist. Uncle of Barry Muldanno
Jerome Clifford: A very important lawyer. His client was Barry Muldano. He committed suicide in the beginning.
film based on the novel was directed by Joel Schumacher
and starred Susan Sarandon
, Tommy Lee Jones
, Mary-Louise Parker
and Brad Renfro
. The film was released on July 20, 1994.
For her work in the film, Susan Sarandon was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress
and won a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
.
The film was so successful that it spawned a TV series of the same name, starring JoBeth Williams
and John Heard. It ran for one season (1995–1996).
Legal thriller
The legal thriller is a sub-genre of thriller and crime fiction in which the major characters are lawyers and their employees. The system of justice itself is always a major part of these works, at times almost functioning as one of the characters...
written by American author John Grisham
John Grisham
John Ray Grisham, Jr. is an American lawyer and author, best known for his popular legal thrillers.John Grisham graduated from Mississippi State University before attending the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1981 and practiced criminal law for about a decade...
, set mostly in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
and New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. It is a mix with various legal elements and suspense
Suspense
Suspense is a feeling of uncertainty and anxiety about the outcome of certain actions, most often referring to an audience's perceptions in a dramatic work. Suspense is not exclusive to fiction, though. Suspense may operate in any situation where there is a lead-up to a big event or dramatic...
.
Plot
The Client begins with a eleven-year old boy, Mark Sway and his younger brother Ricky, who is eight, going into the woods near the Tucker Wheel Estates, a mobile home park where they live with their mother, Dianne. Ricky had earlier caught Mark with some cigarettes and now to keep Ricky's silence, Mark is going to teach Ricky how to smoke. While they are in the woods, a shiny black 4-door Lincoln (a black 1993 Cadillac FleetwoodCadillac Fleetwood
Lawrence P. Fisher was the Fisher brother most closely involved with Cadillac in its early years. In 1916 he joined the Fisher Body Company which had been formed by two of his brothers in 1908. Larry was one of four of the seven Fisher brothers who brought Fisher Body Corporation under the General...
Brougham in the film) arrives, and soon W. Jerome "Romey" Clifford, a 44-year old lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
from New Orleans, Louisiana, gets out of the car. His only client at the moment is Barry "The Blade" Muldanno, and now here in the woods of northeast Memphis, Tennessee, he is attempting to commit suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
. Mark and Ricky Sway sit hidden from Clifford and watching him from behind the shiny black car. Clifford, noticeably drunk, puts one end of a garden hose in the exhaust pipe of the car and the other end into a rear passenger window, and rolls up the window, trying to kill himself with carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning
Carbon monoxide poisoning occurs after enough inhalation of carbon monoxide . Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas, but, being colorless, odorless, tasteless, and initially non-irritating, it is very difficult for people to detect...
. Mark, sneaks up, crawling on his stomach, and pulls the hose from the exhaust trying to stop him. After some time Clifford gets out of the car, cursing, and puts the hose back in. Mark repeats pulling the hose from the tailpipe. On the third attempt, Clifford sees the grass moving in the rear view mirror, leaps from the car grabs Mark and pushes him into the car. Jerome then tells Mark why he wants to kill himself, he is convinced that Muldanno is going to murder him anyway and wants to die on his own terms. Clifford is defending Muldanno for the murder of U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Boyd Boyette. But the prosecutors, led by the "Reverend" (for his preaching style in court) Roy Foltrigg, don't have a body. Muldanno had previously told Clifford that the he buried the body in concrete in Clifford's detached garage, under a boat, while Clifford was on vacation, skiing in Colorado. In the car, Clifford keeps drinking Jack Daniels
Jack Daniel's
Jack Daniel's is a brand of sour mash Tennessee whiskey that is among the world's best-selling liquors. It is known for its square bottles and black label. As of November, 2007, one blogger was claiming that it was the best-selling whiskey in the world. It is produced in Lynchburg, Tennessee by...
, and taking dalmane and codeine
Codeine
Codeine or 3-methylmorphine is an opiate used for its analgesic, antitussive, and antidiarrheal properties...
. After a while, the effects of the booze and pills start to make Clifford pass out and Mark manages to escape. After Clifford realizes this and attempts to go after Mark, he looks around but soon gives up and slides up on the trunk of the car, puts a .38 Special
.38 Special
The .38 Smith & Wesson Special is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & Wesson. It is most commonly used in revolvers, although some semi-automatic pistols and carbines also use this round...
caliber pistol in his mouth, and shoots himself.
Upon witnessing the suicide, Ricky, Mark's younger brother, goes into shock. Mark calls the police and is later found at the scene. Police and the FBI discover that Mark was in the car and may have spoken with Jerome Clifford. Clifford knew where the body was buried and the FBI needs this information. The FBI is now after Mark because they believe he knows where the body is. Mark hires a lawyer named Reggie Love (a woman, despite the name) to help him. Barry Blade's people burn Mark's house. Mark is reluctant to tell the FBI what he knows because the Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
has threatened him that if he tells anyone, they will kill him and his family.
Mark is placed in juvenile lock-up (partly to protect him, partly to make him talk) but escapes and runs away to New Orleans and decides to look for the body with Reggie. If the body is not where he knows it should be, he will no longer be in danger of being killed by the Mafia. He decides to travel to New Orleans to search for it. It's very early in the morning when they arrive and while approaching the area of the corpse, the boy and his lawyer observe some Mafia henchmen trying to relocate the body. The henchmen see Mark trying to escape from the boathouse where the body is buried. After a struggle, Mark is able to retrieve a gun that the men were carrying. One of the henchman is trying to convince Mark to shoot him, but Reggie is able to convince him that if he does shoot, he would be just like the henchmen. Mark gives Reggie the gun, which makes the henchman laugh saying, "You should've never taken the gun, you'll never have the guts to shoot." To which she replies, "Wanna bet?" and shoots the neighbor's alarm. The neighbor then comes out with a shotgun and the henchmen run away. Mark and Reggie hide in the woods until they are sure the neighbor is back asleep. They then re-approach the corpse and run away when they see the decaying face of Senator Boyette. Reggie later tells the FBI where the body is, but only after Mark and his family are entered into the United States Federal Witness Protection Program
United States Federal Witness Protection Program
The United States Federal Witness Protection Program is a witness protection program administered by the United States Department of Justice and operated by the United States Marshals Service that is designed to protect threatened witnesses before, during, and after a trial.A few states, including...
. The Sway family retreats to a revered hospital in Phoenix to tend to Ricky's severe condition and Mark never sees Reggie again.
Characters
Reggie Love: A female lawyer who has been practicing for five years. Her original name is Regina Cardoni who divorced with her husband. She was a former alcoholic. She is an older woman in the novel, but the movie incarnation played by Susan SarandonSusan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
is slightly younger.
Barry Muldanno: Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
member who is accused of killing a senator. A cold-blooded man, he plans on killing eleven-year old Mark.
Roy Foltrigg: US government lawyer whose job is to prove that Barry Muldanno killed the senator. He tries everything to make Mark talk and at the end he proposes to take Mark to court in New Orleans where he was sure that they could make him talk. He is the district attorney for the southern district of Louisiana.
Slick Moeller: A crime reporter who works on the Memphis Press. His real name is actually Alfred but nobody in the book knows this. He never names a person who trusted him with information and he knows everything about every crime committed, even before the cops.
Paul Gronke: A close associate of Barry Muldanno. He is a tough thug, but not a killer like Barry Muldanno.
Mac Bono: A close associate of the Sulari family. He is a convicted murderer and participates in the search for Mark Sway.
Gary Pirini: A close associate of the Sulari family. He participates in the search for Mark Sway.
Jack Nance and Calvin "Cal" Sisson: So-called "security specialists", they are actually thugs who do dirty work for the people who pay them. They are hired by Paul Gronke to help them for the search of Mark Sway.
Thomas Fink: An assistant US attorney of the southern district of Louisiana. He argued a case before the Tennessee juvenile court to have Mark placed on the juvenile detention center.
George Ord: US attorney for the western district of Tennessee. He helped Thomas Fink argue the case to have Mark placed on the juvenile detention center.
Dr. Greenway: The doctor that attempts to cure Ricky of his coma.
Clint Van Hooser: Secretary to Reggie Love, he was a former drug consumer.
Harry Roosevelt: The judge of the Tennessee youth court. He tries to protect children since he was a neglected child himself when he was a boy.
Johnny Sulari: Boss of the Sulari family. An aging gangster, yet rules with an iron fist. Uncle of Barry Muldanno
Jerome Clifford: A very important lawyer. His client was Barry Muldano. He committed suicide in the beginning.
Adaptations
A 19941994 in film
1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time...
film based on the novel was directed by Joel Schumacher
Joel Schumacher
Joel T. Schumacher is an American film director, screenwriter and producer.-Early life:Schumacher was born in New York City, the son of Marian and Francis Schumacher. His mother was a Swedish Jew, and his father was a Baptist from Knoxville, Tennessee, who died when Joel was four years old...
and starred Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
, Tommy Lee Jones
Tommy Lee Jones
Tommy Lee Jones is an American actor and film director. He has received three Academy Award nominations, winning one as Best Supporting Actor for the 1993 thriller film The Fugitive....
, Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker is an American actress, known for her current lead role on Showtime's television series Weeds portraying Nancy Botwin, for which she has received several nominations and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in 2006...
and Brad Renfro
Brad Renfro
Brad Barron Renfro was an American actor. He made his film debut in 1994 at age 12 in the lead role of Joel Schumacher's The Client, going on to star in 21 feature films, several short films, and two television episodes during his career. Much of his later career was marred by a pattern of...
. The film was released on July 20, 1994.
For her work in the film, Susan Sarandon was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
and won a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Best Actress in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognise an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film.- Winners and nominees :...
.
The film was so successful that it spawned a TV series of the same name, starring JoBeth Williams
JoBeth Williams
JoBeth Williams is an American film and television actress and director, and current President of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation.-Early life:...
and John Heard. It ran for one season (1995–1996).