Preparing to adapt John Grisham's "Runaway Jury" to the screen, director Gary Fleder took a cue from veteran screenwriter William Goldman. The first time he read the novel, he highlighted crucial passages. He then repeated the task, using a different color. The material that emerged two-tone would constitute the skeleton of his film.
"By the end, I'd highlighted half of the book -- way too much," Fleder recalled. "Grisham creates a high-class problem: too many great characters, plots and subplots. Hitting each beat would have resulted in a six- to eight-hour movie."
By most accounts, a Grisham novel is an ace collaborator in film adaptations -- a leg up for writers and directors alike. "Runaway Jury," due out Oct. 17, is the eighth feature film based on Grisham's work -- placing the author ahead of Tom Clancy (four) but behind Michael Crichton (12) and the prodigious Stephen King (27). Between 1993 and 1996, "The Firm," "The Pelican Brief," "The Client" and "A Time to Kill" took in nearly $500 million in the U.S. and Canada and, for the most part, struck a chord with critics. Though "The Chamber," "The Rainmaker" and "The Gingerbread Man" fared less well commercially, problems with these pictures went beyond the source material.
"There was a feeding frenzy to make everything 'Grisham' -- not always wise, in retrospect," says David Gernert, the author's agent. "John took a deep breath and now he's back."
Why did Hollywood shell out $8 million for the rights to "Runaway Jury," in which a couple (John Cusack, Rachel Weisz) try to manipulate the jury in a gun company suit? What sets the Mississippi lawyer-turned-bestselling novelist apart? Creative folks who've worked on this and previous adaptations make their case.
A good yarn
Robert Towne (co-writer of "The Firm"): Grisham's books are laid out in ways that lend themselves to big American movies -- meaning they're full of plot and subplots. We learned long ago that you need a "meanwhile back on the ranch," something to cut to, such as the letters of transit in "Casablanca." Our movies are commercially successful because there's always something going on.
Akiva Goldsman (co-writer of "The Client," writer of "A Time to Kill"): John gives you a phenomenal story engine. His plots start with tremendous velocity -- a kid in a car watching a man kill himself or a little girl kidnapped by rednecks -- which carries you far. Then he creates a wide panorama -- life and death, good vs. evil, hope and redemption -- that attracts some wonderful performers. And once a studio lays out so much for a book, it's more likely to spend top dollar for a writer and stars.
