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{{Infobox character |
{{Infobox character |
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| name |
| name = Mitch McDeere |
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| series |
| series = [[The Firm (novel)|The Firm]] |
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| caption |
| caption = [[Tom Cruise]] as McDeere as seen for the poster of the film |
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| first |
| first = [[The Firm (novel)|''The Firm'']] |
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| creator |
| creator = [[John Grisham]] |
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| portrayer |
| portrayer = [[Tom Cruise]] <br />(1993 film)<br />[[Josh Lucas]]<br />(2012 TV series) |
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| ⚫ | |||
| nickname = Mitch |
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| spouse = Abby Sutherland |
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| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| spouse = [[Abby McDeere]] (1988-present) |
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| family = |
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| ⚫ | |||
| relatives = |
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| family = Mr. McDeere<br />(father, deceased)<br />Eva Ainsworth<br />(mother)<br />Ray McDeere<br />(brother)<br>Rusty McDeere<br />(brother, deceased) |
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| ⚫ | |||
| relatives = Harold Sutherland<br />(father-in-law)<br />Maxine Sutherland<br />(mother-in-law) |
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| full_name = Mitchell Y. McDeere |
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| ⚫ | |||
| lbl21 = Alma mater |
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| data21 = [[Western Kentucky University]] (1988)<br>[[Harvard Law School]] (1991) |
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}} |
}} |
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'''Mitchell Y. |
'''Mitchell Y. McDeere''' is a fictional character and the [[protagonist]] of [[John Grisham]]'s 1991 novel ''[[The Firm (novel)|The Firm]]''. Mitch McDeere is a [[Harvard Law School|Harvard]]-educated [[tax lawyer]] who has a [[certified public accountant]] credential.<ref name=TFE/> He is also the husband of Abby McDeere, a [[Western Kentucky University]]–educated [[elementary school]] teacher. The character was portrayed by [[Tom Cruise]] in the [[The Firm (1993 film)|1993 film adaptation of the novel]], and most recently by [[Josh Lucas]] for [[E1 Television|Entertainment One Television]]'s show also named ''[[The Firm (2012 TV series)|The Firm]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Lynette|last=Rice|url=http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/06/08/josh-lucas-the-firm/|title=Done deal: Josh Lucas will do 'The Firm' for NBC|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|publisher=[[Meredith Corporation]]|location=New York City|date=June 9, 2011|accessdate=June 10, 2011}}</ref> |
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Mitch McDeere’s story picks up in Grisham’s 2023 novel, “The Exchange”, which is set 15 years after the events in “The Firm”. |
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==General background== |
==General background== |
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He is regarded as "an old-school, self-made hero" by ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' critic Melissa Maerz.<ref name=TRTF/> The novel sold 7 million copies and the movie, which starred [[Tom Cruise]],<ref name="CNN-20110429">{{cite news|first=James|last=Hibberd|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/28/the.firm.tv.series.ew/index.html |title=NBC in talks for John Grisham's 'The Firm' TV series |website=[[CNN]] |publisher=[[Turner Broadcasting Systems]]|location=Atlanta, Georgia|accessdate=May 21, 2011 |date=April 29, 2011|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501054819/http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/28/the.firm.tv.series.ew/index.html|archivedate=May 1, 2011}}</ref> grossed over $158 million (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|158|1993}}}} million in 2013 dollars{{inflation-fn|US}}) domestically and $111 million internationally ($270<!--158+111--> million worldwide in 1993 dollars).<ref>{{cite news|first=David J.|last=Fox|url= |
He is regarded as "an old-school, self-made hero" by ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' critic Melissa Maerz.<ref name=TRTF/> The novel sold 7 million copies and the movie, which starred [[Tom Cruise]],<ref name="CNN-20110429">{{cite news|first=James|last=Hibberd|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/28/the.firm.tv.series.ew/index.html |title=NBC in talks for John Grisham's 'The Firm' TV series |website=[[CNN]] |publisher=[[Turner Broadcasting Systems]]|location=Atlanta, Georgia|accessdate=May 21, 2011 |date=April 29, 2011|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501054819/http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/28/the.firm.tv.series.ew/index.html|archivedate=May 1, 2011}}</ref> grossed over $158 million (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|158|1993}}}} million in 2013 dollars{{inflation-fn|US}}) domestically and $111 million internationally ($270<!--158+111--> million worldwide in 1993 dollars).<ref>{{cite news|first=David J.|last=Fox|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-07-06-ca-10413-story.html|title= Movies: 'The Firm,' with $31.5 million for the weekend, leads the way. Total movie receipts for the four-day holiday are an estimated $120 million.|newspaper=[[The Los Angeles Times]]|publisher=[[Tronc]]|location=Los Angeles, California|date=July 6, 1993|access-date=October 26, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=David J.|last=Fox|url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-07-20-ca-14806-story.html|title= Weekend Box Office : So Far, This Is Summer to Beat |newspaper=[[The Los Angeles Times]]|date=July 20, 1993|access-date=January 10, 2011}}</ref> Additionally, it was the largest grossing [[Motion Picture Association of America film rating system|R-rated]] movie of 1993 and of any film based on a Grisham novel.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=firm.htm|title=The Firm|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]|publisher=[[Fandango Media]]|location=Los Angeles, California|accessdate=March 20, 2019}}</ref> The film was released while Grisham was at the height of his popularity. That week, Grisham and [[Michael Crichton]] evenly divided the top six [[paperback]] spots on [[The New York Times Best Seller list]].<ref name="washingtonpost1">{{cite news|first=Joe|last=Brown|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/thefirmrbrown_a0adf4.htm|title='The Firm' (R)|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|publisher=Nash Holdings LLC|location=Washington DC|date=July 2, 1993|accessdate=January 8, 2012}}</ref> |
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Both the novel and the film recount the story of an upstart [[Lawyer|attorney]] who was hired out of college by Bendini, Lambert & Locke, a small tax firm in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]] that is really part of the [[white-collar crime]] division of an [[organized crime]] [[crime family|family]]'s enterprise.<ref name="CNN-20110429"/> After graduating third in his [[Harvard Law School]] class,<ref name=TFE>{{cite web|url=http://www.jgrisham.com/the-firm-excerpt/|title=The Firm Excerpt|accessdate=May 20, 2011|publisher=Doubleday, [[Random House, Inc.]]}}</ref> he became a [[whistleblower]] to the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] and brought down both the firm and the crime family. The TV series begins as the McDeere family emerges from [[witness protection]] to encounter old and new challenges.<ref>{{cite web|first=Sarah|last=Cahill|url=http://www.wordandfilm.com/2011/04/john-grishams-mich-mcdeere-is-back-on-the-run/|title=John |
Both the novel and the film recount the story of an upstart [[Lawyer|attorney]] who was hired out of college by Bendini, Lambert & Locke, a small tax firm in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]] that is really part of the [[white-collar crime]] division of an [[organized crime]] [[crime family|family]]'s enterprise.<ref name="CNN-20110429"/> After graduating third in his [[Harvard Law School]] class,<ref name="TFE">{{cite web|url=http://www.jgrisham.com/the-firm-excerpt/|title=The Firm Excerpt|date=December 7, 2008 |accessdate=May 20, 2011|publisher=Doubleday, [[Random House, Inc.]]}}</ref> he became a [[whistleblower]] to the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] and brought down both the firm and the crime family. The TV series begins as the McDeere family emerges from [[witness protection]] to encounter old and new challenges.<ref>{{cite web|first=Sarah|last=Cahill|url=http://www.wordandfilm.com/2011/04/john-grishams-mich-mcdeere-is-back-on-the-run/|title=John Grisham's Mitch McDeere Is Back On the Run|website=Word & Film|publisher=[[Random House, Inc.]]|location=New York City|date=April 29, 2011|accessdate=May 30, 2011}}</ref> The television show picks up on the story of McDeere and his family ten years after the events of the novel.<ref name="NTFTBSIT">{{cite magazine|first=Etan|last=Vlessing|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/nbcs-firm-be-shot-toronto-188617|title=NBC's The Firm To Be Shot In Toronto|magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|publisher=[[Eldridge Industries]]|location=Los Angeles, California|date=May 16, 2011|accessdate=May 21, 2011}}</ref> |
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His father had been a [[coal miner]] and his mother was a waitress.<ref name=TRTF>{{cite |
His father had been a [[coal miner]] and his mother was a waitress.<ref name="TRTF">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20555795,00.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130103030649/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20555795,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 3, 2013|title=TV Review: The Firm|accessdate=January 3, 2012|date=December 28, 2011|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|author=Maerz, Melissa}}</ref> In high school, Mitch had been a star [[quarterback]] with several scholarship offers. He injured his knee in his last high school game, and the only school that upheld its scholarship offer was [[Western Kentucky University]]. He matriculated and played quarterback as an infrequent starter, while making straight A's and earning a degree in [[accounting]]. He and his wife [[Abby McDeere|Abby]] were high school sweethearts who got married after they graduated from Western Kentucky. While Mitch was in law school, she taught kindergarten. They are [[Methodist]].<ref name=TFE/> In the novel, he had driven a [[Mazda]] [[hatchback]] prior to being offered a [[BMW]] to work at Bendini.<ref name=TFE/> In the novel, his remarried mother lived in a [[trailer park]] in [[Panama City Beach]], but he had been raised by his brother Ray.<ref name=TFE/> |
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==Critical response== |
==Critical response== |
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===Film=== |
===Film=== |
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{{quote box|width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|align=right|quote="The [[Tyrone Power]] of his generation, Cruise hits notes of determination, all-nighter energy and gradually developing standards and smarts that he has hit before, particularly in most recent role, but one couldn't imagine anyone better for this sort of star turn except for [[Robert Redford]] 25 years ago."|source=—[[Todd McCarthy]], ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]''<ref name=TFV/>}} |
{{quote box|width=30em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7|align=right|quote="The [[Tyrone Power]] of his generation, Cruise hits notes of determination, all-nighter energy and gradually developing standards and smarts that he has hit before, particularly in most recent role, but one couldn't imagine anyone better for this sort of star turn except for [[Robert Redford]] 25 years ago."|source=—[[Todd McCarthy]], ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]''<ref name=TFV/>}} |
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The movie role is described as a highly sought-after, cocky, ambitious young Harvard law school grad by Joe Brown of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' that is not "just another variation on Cruise's patented young hot-shot roles of the past decade".<ref name=washingtonpost1/> However, [[Todd McCarthy]] of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' says that Cruise's McDeere "could be a brother to his character in '[[A Few Good Men]]'", which had been released six months before.<ref name=TFV/> He also describes the character as sought-after.<ref name=TFV>{{cite web|first=Todd|last=McCarthy|authorlink=Todd McCarthy|url= |
The movie role is described as a highly sought-after, cocky, ambitious young Harvard law school grad by Joe Brown of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' that is not "just another variation on Cruise's patented young hot-shot roles of the past decade".<ref name=washingtonpost1/> However, [[Todd McCarthy]] of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' says that Cruise's McDeere "could be a brother to his character in '[[A Few Good Men]]'", which had been released six months before.<ref name=TFV/> He also describes the character as sought-after.<ref name="TFV">{{cite web|first=Todd|last=McCarthy|authorlink=Todd McCarthy|url=https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117900989/|title=The Firm|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|publisher=[[Penske Media Corporation]]|location=Los Angeles, California|date=June 27, 1993|accessdate=January 8, 2012}}</ref> [[Owen Gleiberman]] of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' notes that McDeere is "a brilliant, financially strapped Harvard Law School senior who dreams of working on [[Wall Street]]."<ref name="TFEW">{{cite magazine|first=Owen|last=Gleiberman|authorlink=Owen Gleiberman|url=https://ew.com/article/1993/07/09/firm/|title=The Firm (1993)|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|publisher=[[Meredith Corporation]]|location=New York City|date=July 9, 1993|access-date=January 8, 2012}}</ref> [[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' describes the character as "a bright young man, born poor and deprived, [who] lusts for the good things in life" and notes that he "...plays each side against the other in a manner that becomes increasing mysterious..."<ref>{{cite news|first=Vincent|last=Canby|authorlink=Vincent Canby|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F0CE4D81139F933A05755C0A965958260|title=The Firm (1993): Review/Film: The Firm; A Mole in the Den of Corrupt Legal Lions|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|location=New York City|date=June 30, 1993|accessdate=January 8, 2012}}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' describes McDeere as "...a poor boy who is ashamed of his humble origins now that he has graduated from Harvard Law fifth in his class."<ref name="TFCST">{{cite news|first=Roger|last=Ebert|authorlink=Roger Ebert|url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19930630/REVIEWS/306300301/1023|title=The Firm|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|publisher=[[Sun-Times Media Group]]|location=Chicago, Illinois|date=June 30, 1993|accessdate=January 8, 2012}}</ref> ''[[Empire (film magazine)|Empire]]'''s Matt Mueller describes him as "brash, grin-flashing hotshot, top in his Harvard law class and Wall Street-bound".<ref name="empireonline">{{cite magazine|first=Matt|last=Mueller|url=https://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=14640|title=The Firm (1993)|magazine=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]|publisher=[[Bauer Media Group]]|location=London, England|date=January 1, 2000|accessdate=January 8, 2012}}</ref> |
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Brown described the role as one that Cruise was born to play: "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."<ref name="washingtonpost1"/> Gleiberman notes that Cruise uses "the sneaky-minded agility of a true conspiracy-buster".<ref name=TFEW/> Ebert describes the natural fit of Cruise for this role: "One look at Cruise and we feel comfortable, because he embodies sincerity. He is also, in many of his roles, just a little slow to catch on; his characters seem to trust people too easily, and so it's convincing when he swallows the Firm's pitches and pep talks."<ref name=TFCST/> |
Brown described the role as one that Cruise was born to play: "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."<ref name="washingtonpost1"/> Gleiberman notes that Cruise uses "the sneaky-minded agility of a true conspiracy-buster".<ref name=TFEW/> Ebert describes the natural fit of Cruise for this role: "One look at Cruise and we feel comfortable, because he embodies sincerity. He is also, in many of his roles, just a little slow to catch on; his characters seem to trust people too easily, and so it's convincing when he swallows the Firm's pitches and pep talks."<ref name=TFCST/> |
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===Television=== |
===Television=== |
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The television character is consistently described as idealistic. ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]''{{'s}} Tim Goodman describes Lucas' take as "more idealistic than eager",<ref>{{cite web|url= |
The television character is consistently described as idealistic. ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]''{{'s}} Tim Goodman describes Lucas' take as "more idealistic than eager",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/bastard-machine/firm-review-josh-lucas-nbc-279248|title=Review: 'The Firm' Still Average 20 Years Later as a Television Series: NBC makes law procedural from old book, film.|accessdate=January 7, 2012|date=January 6, 2012|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|author=Goodman, Tim}}</ref> while Mike Hale of ''[[The New York Times]]'' also notes his "newfound storefront idealism".<ref name="ALLWPBEFNR">{{cite web|url=http://tv.nytimes.com/2012/01/07/arts/television/the-firm-on-nbc-with-josh-lucas-review.html|title=A Lawyer Leaves Witness Protection Because Everything's Fine Now. Right?|accessdate=January 7, 2012|date=January 6, 2012|work=[[The New York Times]]|author=Hale, Mike}}</ref> David Wiegand of the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'' also describes him as an "idealistic lawyer" who "is a good lawyer and a good man".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/01/04/DD411MJGA3.DTL|title='The Firm' review: good old-fashioned thrills|accessdate=January 7, 2012|date=January 5, 2012|work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]|author=Wiegand, David}}</ref> |
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Lucas' performance was repeatedly compared to Cruise's. Chris Lackner of ''[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]]'' describes Lucas as a "less artificial, more nuanced, more credible version" of McDeere than Cruise.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/movie-guide/Ideas+trends+2012/5931597/story.html|title=Old Ideas and new pop trends in 2012: Leonard Cohen releases album, Kiefer Sutherland has right Touch and Charlie Sheen takes on Anger Management|accessdate=January 3, 2012|date=January 2, 2012|author=Lackner, Chris|work=[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]]}}</ref> ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' television critic Mary McNamara opines that Lucas' "...McDeere has no edge, neither the overweening ambition of the Tom Cruise version nor the bitter weariness one might expect to rise in its place after a decade on the run."<ref name=TrTFinjalt>{{cite web|url= |
Lucas' performance was repeatedly compared to Cruise's. Chris Lackner of ''[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]]'' describes Lucas as a "less artificial, more nuanced, more credible version" of McDeere than Cruise.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://montrealgazette.com/entertainment/movie-guide/Ideas+trends+2012/5931597/story.html|title=Old Ideas and new pop trends in 2012: Leonard Cohen releases album, Kiefer Sutherland has right Touch and Charlie Sheen takes on Anger Management|accessdate=January 3, 2012|date=January 2, 2012|author=Lackner, Chris|work=[[The Gazette (Montreal)|The Gazette]]}}</ref> ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' television critic Mary McNamara opines that Lucas' "...McDeere has no edge, neither the overweening ambition of the Tom Cruise version nor the bitter weariness one might expect to rise in its place after a decade on the run."<ref name="TrTFinjalt">{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/tv/la-et-the-firm-20120107,0,7810304.story|title=Television review: 'The Firm' is now just another legal thriller|accessdate=January 7, 2012|date=January 7, 2012|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|author=McNamara, Mary}}</ref> Robert Bianco of the ''[[USA Today]]'' notes that Lucas is "...lost in a role that helped cement Tom Cruise as a movie star".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/story/2012-01-06/the-firm-nbc-josh-lucas/52396926/1|title=New TV adaptation of 'The Firm': Legally bland|accessdate=January 7, 2012|date=January 5, 2012|work=[[USA Today]]|author=Bianco, Robert}}</ref> Hale notes that Lucas' performance is composed of "a bland competence but not much fire".<ref name=ALLWPBEFNR/> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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[[Category:Fictional American lawyers]] |
[[Category:Fictional American lawyers]] |
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[[Category:Fictional characters from Massachusetts]] |
[[Category:Fictional characters from Massachusetts]] |
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[[Category:Fictional Harvard University people]] |
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[[Category:Thriller film characters]] |
[[Category:Thriller film characters]] |
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Latest revision as of 08:18, 15 August 2024
| Mitch McDeere | |
|---|---|
| The Firm character | |
| First appearance | The Firm |
| Created by | John Grisham |
| Portrayed by | Tom Cruise (1993 film) Josh Lucas (2012 TV series) |
| In-universe information | |
| Full name | Mitchell Y. McDeere |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Spouse | Abby Sutherland |
| Religion | Methodist |
Mitchell Y. McDeere is a fictional character and the protagonist of John Grisham's 1991 novel The Firm. Mitch McDeere is a Harvard-educated tax lawyer who has a certified public accountant credential.[1] He is also the husband of Abby McDeere, a Western Kentucky University–educated elementary school teacher. The character was portrayed by Tom Cruise in the 1993 film adaptation of the novel, and most recently by Josh Lucas for Entertainment One Television's show also named The Firm.[2]
Mitch McDeere’s story picks up in Grisham’s 2023 novel, “The Exchange”, which is set 15 years after the events in “The Firm”.
General background
[edit]He is regarded as "an old-school, self-made hero" by Entertainment Weekly critic Melissa Maerz.[3] The novel sold 7 million copies and the movie, which starred Tom Cruise,[4] grossed over $158 million ($333 million in 2013 dollars[5]) domestically and $111 million internationally ($270 million worldwide in 1993 dollars).[6][7] Additionally, it was the largest grossing R-rated movie of 1993 and of any film based on a Grisham novel.[8] The film was released while Grisham was at the height of his popularity. That week, Grisham and Michael Crichton evenly divided the top six paperback spots on The New York Times Best Seller list.[9]
Both the novel and the film recount the story of an upstart attorney who was hired out of college by Bendini, Lambert & Locke, a small tax firm in Memphis that is really part of the white-collar crime division of an organized crime family's enterprise.[4] After graduating third in his Harvard Law School class,[1] he became a whistleblower to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and brought down both the firm and the crime family. The TV series begins as the McDeere family emerges from witness protection to encounter old and new challenges.[10] The television show picks up on the story of McDeere and his family ten years after the events of the novel.[11]
His father had been a coal miner and his mother was a waitress.[3] In high school, Mitch had been a star quarterback with several scholarship offers. He injured his knee in his last high school game, and the only school that upheld its scholarship offer was Western Kentucky University. He matriculated and played quarterback as an infrequent starter, while making straight A's and earning a degree in accounting. He and his wife Abby were high school sweethearts who got married after they graduated from Western Kentucky. While Mitch was in law school, she taught kindergarten. They are Methodist.[1] In the novel, he had driven a Mazda hatchback prior to being offered a BMW to work at Bendini.[1] In the novel, his remarried mother lived in a trailer park in Panama City Beach, but he had been raised by his brother Ray.[1]
Critical response
[edit]Book
[edit]The character has an ambitious, go-getting nature.[12] Marilyn Stasio of The New York Times describes him as 25 years old and fresh out of Harvard Law School.[13]
Film
[edit]"The Tyrone Power of his generation, Cruise hits notes of determination, all-nighter energy and gradually developing standards and smarts that he has hit before, particularly in most recent role, but one couldn't imagine anyone better for this sort of star turn except for Robert Redford 25 years ago."
The movie role is described as a highly sought-after, cocky, ambitious young Harvard law school grad by Joe Brown of The Washington Post that is not "just another variation on Cruise's patented young hot-shot roles of the past decade".[9] However, Todd McCarthy of Variety says that Cruise's McDeere "could be a brother to his character in 'A Few Good Men'", which had been released six months before.[12] He also describes the character as sought-after.[12] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly notes that McDeere is "a brilliant, financially strapped Harvard Law School senior who dreams of working on Wall Street."[14] Vincent Canby of The New York Times describes the character as "a bright young man, born poor and deprived, [who] lusts for the good things in life" and notes that he "...plays each side against the other in a manner that becomes increasing mysterious..."[15] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times describes McDeere as "...a poor boy who is ashamed of his humble origins now that he has graduated from Harvard Law fifth in his class."[16] Empire's Matt Mueller describes him as "brash, grin-flashing hotshot, top in his Harvard law class and Wall Street-bound".[17]
Brown described the role as one that Cruise was born to play: "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."[9] Gleiberman notes that Cruise uses "the sneaky-minded agility of a true conspiracy-buster".[14] Ebert describes the natural fit of Cruise for this role: "One look at Cruise and we feel comfortable, because he embodies sincerity. He is also, in many of his roles, just a little slow to catch on; his characters seem to trust people too easily, and so it's convincing when he swallows the Firm's pitches and pep talks."[16]
Television
[edit]The television character is consistently described as idealistic. The Hollywood Reporter's Tim Goodman describes Lucas' take as "more idealistic than eager",[18] while Mike Hale of The New York Times also notes his "newfound storefront idealism".[19] David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle also describes him as an "idealistic lawyer" who "is a good lawyer and a good man".[20]
Lucas' performance was repeatedly compared to Cruise's. Chris Lackner of The Gazette describes Lucas as a "less artificial, more nuanced, more credible version" of McDeere than Cruise.[21] Los Angeles Times television critic Mary McNamara opines that Lucas' "...McDeere has no edge, neither the overweening ambition of the Tom Cruise version nor the bitter weariness one might expect to rise in its place after a decade on the run."[22] Robert Bianco of the USA Today notes that Lucas is "...lost in a role that helped cement Tom Cruise as a movie star".[23] Hale notes that Lucas' performance is composed of "a bland competence but not much fire".[19]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e "The Firm Excerpt". Doubleday, Random House, Inc. December 7, 2008. Retrieved May 20, 2011.
- ^ Rice, Lynette (June 9, 2011). "Done deal: Josh Lucas will do 'The Firm' for NBC". Entertainment Weekly. New York City: Meredith Corporation. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
- ^ a b Maerz, Melissa (December 28, 2011). "TV Review: The Firm". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 3, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
- ^ a b Hibberd, James (April 29, 2011). "NBC in talks for John Grisham's 'The Firm' TV series". CNN. Atlanta, Georgia: Turner Broadcasting Systems. Archived from the original on May 1, 2011. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
- ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
- ^ Fox, David J. (July 6, 1993). "Movies: 'The Firm,' with $31.5 million for the weekend, leads the way. Total movie receipts for the four-day holiday are an estimated $120 million". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California: Tronc. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
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