Where was The Rainmaker filmed?
1997
City Locations
Northern California: Alameda, Oakland, San Francisco; Memphis, Tennessee
Location Types
American, House, Contemporary, Buildings/Offices, Hotels/Motels
Location Styles
Americana/Anywhere America, Federal Building, Hotel/Motel Style, Industrial
About The Rainmaker
In the opening The Rainmaker film scene, Rudy Baylor has just graduated from the University of Memphis Law School and has an uncertain future. He begins applying for part-time law positions while working as a bartender in a local pub. He is hired as a legal associate by the pub’s owner J. Lyman “Bruiser” Stone.
Bruiser only pays his associates if they can find and secure their own clients. Rudy informs him he has some clients already, one of which is an insurance case that he feels could land them a hefty payday. Bruiser connects him to his paralegal Deck Shifflet, a man of questionable morality.
Rudy successfully completes the Tennessee bar exam but still requires a license to work as an attorney. He attempts to obtain his license after Bruiser misses a court case. He is scolded by the judge for being unlicensed and is told to return when he has done so. Leo F. Drummond, the defense attorney, vouches for Rudy as he is sworn in. Rudy finds out that Stone’s office was searched by the FBI, and Stone is now missing.
Rudy and Deck put together their resources and create their own legal practice. They immediately file a suit representing Dot and Buddy Black, a couple whose adult son is now at the end of his battle with leukemia and whose life could have been spared with a bone marrow transplant that was denied by their insurance company.
Arguing his very first case, Rudy stands before a team of lawyers spearheaded by Drummond. The judge tells both lawyers he is prepared to throw out the case. The judge passes away before achieving the petition to dismiss. A prominent civil rights attorney, Tyrone Kipler, is appointed in his place. Kipler dislikes Drummond’s firm and denies the insurance carrier’s permission to dismiss. He grants a rush trial to allow for the inclusion of Donny Ray’s testimony at trial before his passing.
Rudy is introduced to Kelly Riker, an abused wife who has suffered several hospital stays at the hands of her husband. Rudy becomes friends with Kelly and encourages her to seek a divorce. Cliff, angry at Rudy, attacks him and nearly beats him to death. Kelly murders Cliff and informs the police she was acting in self-defense. The case is dropped.
Following a video deposition, Donny Ray passes away. The case proceeds and Drummond succeeds in having testimony from Rudy’s most important witness thrown out of court. Rudy’s perseverance and assistance from Bruiser get the evidence readmitted.
Great Benefit is found liable to pay Donny Ray’s family legal and punitive damages. Keeley is arrested, and the insurance company is forced into bankruptcy. Neither Rudy nor Donny Ray’s family receives any money. Rudy makes the decision to close his practice and begin teaching law. He and Kelly move to another town to begin a new life together.
The Rainmaker Locations
Filmed in 1997, The Rainmaker is a legal drama shot in the United States with a screenplay adapted from the novel of the same name written by John Grisham and published in 1995. The Rainmaker has an all-star cast that includes such well-known actors as Danny Glover, Danny DeVito, Mickey Roarke, and Mary Kay Place as well as Jon Voight, Claire Danes, and Matt Damon.
The filming locations for The Rainmaker are primarily situated in Northern California and include such cities as San Francisco, Alameda, and Oakland. Are legal dramas among your favorite movie genres? If so, why not plan a trip to visit the filming locations for The Rainmaker? You’re sure to have a memorable time!
Fun Fact:
In the deposition scene with Jon Voight, Matt Damon placed rocks in his shoes to help him convey a more realistic depiction of discomfort.
Rudy convinces Kelly to file for divorce scene in The Rainmaker
Regional Medical Center of Memphis, 877 Jefferson Ave, Memphis, TN
In this The Rainmaker scene, Rudy meets Kelly in the hospital. Kelly is confined to her bed and has bandages covering her right arm and her face. Rudy reaches to take her hand in his. The following conversation takes place between the two.
Rudy: Kelly, I’ll try to help you any way I can, but you have to file for divorce. Do it now while you’re in the hospital being treated for the last beating. It’ll sail through. What better proof is there than that?
Kelly: Right. I can’t file for a divorce.
Rudy: Why not?
Kelly: Because he’ll kill me. He tells me so all the time.
You will have no difficulty reaching this former film set by taking bus lines 2, 36, 42, or 50. Or you can drive yourself, call a taxicab, or use a rideshare app.
Rudy is reprimanded for not having a license scene in The Rainmaker
Alameda Naval Air Station, 94 Saratoga St, Alameda, CA
Rudy and Deck are in the courtroom waiting for Bruiser’s arrival. When he does not come, Rudy is addressed by the judge in the following conversation, one of the best scenes in The Rainmaker.
Judge Hale: And who are you?
Rudy: Rudy Baylor, I work for J. Lyman Stone.
Judge Hale: Oh, you work for J. Lyman.
Deck: Staunch supporter of tobacco lobby.
Judge Hale: Where is Mr. Stone?
Rudy: Uh…honestly, Your Honor, I don’t know. He was supposed to meet me here, and I don’t know where he is.
Judge Hale: Well, why doesn’t that surprise me? So, what you do want? You want a continuance?
Rudy: No, Your Honor, I-I’m prepared to argue this motion.
Judge Hale: Are you a lawyer?
Rudy: Well, I just passed the bar, and these are my clients. Mr. Stone filed this on my behalf until I pass the bar.
Judge Hale: Well, you’ve got a h*ll of a lot of nerve walking into my courtroom without a license. Now get the h*ll out of here, get your license, then you come back!
Now closed to the public, this The Rainmaker film set can still be visited though only the outside can be viewed. To reach the site of this poignant The Rainmaker production scene, you can take bus lines 78, 96, or O or follow the trail route CC.
Deck informs Rudy Judge Hale is dead scene in The Rainmaker
Bruce Printing Company, 618 Sacramento Street, San Francisco, California
Rudy is hard at work in his office when his phone rings. He picks up the phone to hear the voice of Deck telling him, “Guess who died last night?” The two share this dialogue.
Rudy: Who? Do you ever sleep?
Deck: Harvey Hale, 62, quite a pedigree.
Rudy: Judge Hale?
Deck: Yep. Croaked with a heart attack. Dropped dead in his swimming pool.
Rudy: You gotta be kidding me! You gotta be kidding me…
Deck: Guess what newly made judge was assigned Great Benefit case in his place?
Rudy: How in the hell am I supposed to know that, Deck?
Deck: Tyrone Kipler. Black, Harvard, civil rights lawyer. Can’t stand Tinley Britt, and he’s tough on insurance companies. Sues them all the time. Great luck for us.
Rudy: Alright, alright, alright.
Deck: You know what a rainmaker is, kid? The bucks are gonna be falling from the sky!
An old printing house located in San Francisco, you can visit this former movie set by taking bus lines 1, 22, 38R or BART routes Red or Yellow.
Cliff breaks into Kelly’s house scene in The Rainmaker
Building 23, Alameda Naval Air Station, Alameda, California
Rudy and Kelly are in her apartment when Cliff approaches the door and starts rattling the door handle and yelling to see if anyone is home. In one of the most harrowing action scenes in The Rainmaker, this conversation ensues.
Kelly (looking out the window of the front door): Oh, no!
Cliff: Hey! Hello?????
Cliff kicks the door in, and it crashes to the floor. Kelly falls backwards with the force of the blow.
Cliff: Well, what do you know? What we have here? What have you two been doing in here, huh?
Rudy: Hey, take it easy, alright?
Cliff: Come on, tell me. I’m your husband, remember that, huh? (Speaking to Rudy) You shut up!
Rudy: Hey, listen, buddy, alright? Hey, listen…
Cliff No!
Cliff shoves Rudy out of the way
and grabs Kelly, yelling, “You hurt me, baby. You hurt me real bad.”
Located just down the road from where another scene in this film was shot, you will find this site, a former The Rainmaker film set. You can easily access this building on foot after arriving at the former air base by bus or train.
Rudy makes his closing argument scene in The Rainmaker
Shelby County Courthouse, 140 Adams Ave, Memphis, TN
In this The Rainmaker film scene, Donny Ray shares his testimony via video from his home. His father breaks down in tears as his son shares the reality that had he received a bone marrow transplant he would have had a 90% chance of being cured of his cancer. As the testimony winds to a close, Rudy addresses the court saying.
“I hope that you are astonished, as I am, at the lengths to which a wealthy insurance company, like the defendant, will go to take money from a low-income family and then keep it by denying a legitimate claim. It’s no wonder they spend so much money on their lawyers and their lobbyists and their public relations machine to convince us we need tort reform. That we need to put an end to punitive damages. I’m asking you, the jury, just…do what you think is right…in your hearts. If you don’t punish Great Benefit, you could be their next victim. That’s it.”
From downtown Memphis, you can reach The Rainmaker production site by following S B.B. King Boulevard towards Gayoso Avenue. Make a left-hand turn onto Adams Avenue, and you will find the courthouse on your right-hand side.
The deposition scene in The Rainmaker
Union Planters Bank (now Regions Bank), 7130 Goodlett Farms Parkway, Memphis, Tennessee
Rudy sits at a conference table with the attorneys and shareholders from Great Western to hold a deposition. Rudy asks to start with Jackie Lemancyzk, and Drummond tries to sway him towards first deposing another staff member. Rudy insists that he is the one setting the agenda for the meeting and reiterates that he would like to depose Jackie Lemancyzk. In one of only a few funny scenes in The Rainmaker, this dialogue continues.
Rudy: With all due respect, Mr. Drummond, this is my deposition. I am going to call these witnesses in the order in which I see fit. So, I’d like to start with Jackie Lemancyzk. Maybe we should just go call the judge, and…
Drummond: Oh, I don’t believe we have to get pugilistic this time of the morning.
Rudy: Oh, I’m not meaning to be pugilistic.
To visit this Rainmaker location, follow I-40 to Kirby Whitten Road, taking exit 14. Make the turn onto Goodlett Farms Parkway where you will discover your Union Planters Bank just ahead on the same road.
Conclusion
A classic John Grisham crime thriller, The Rainmaker has become one of the most beloved films of all time. Francis Ford Coppola, the director of this movie was dedicated to using film sets that were true to life for an authentic feel. With this in mind, the action found in The Rainmaker meanders through courtrooms, air force bases, houses, and hospitals that perfectly set the stage for each scene.
Do you consider yourself to be one of John Grisham’s biggest fans? If so, don’t miss your chance to visit The Rainmaker filming locations. It’s sure to be a trip to remember for a lifetime!