In recent years, the filmmaking efforts of former young Hollywood rebel Francis Ford Coppola have ranged in style from the operatic to the dull. He followed up 1992's screen adaptation of Bram Stoker's "Dracula" with four years off from directing, then returned in 1996 to the director's chair with the Robin Williams bomb "Jack." His directorial efforts have always been a mixed bag of brilliance and mediocrity, but the recent shakiness of Coppola's work must have made it seem like a good idea to get back to basics with something he knows how to do better than perhaps any other filmmaker: write and direct the film adaptation of a best-selling book. So he more than likely locked himself into a cabin somewhere for a weekend and cranked out the script for the adaptation of John Grisham's "The Rainmaker," which fortunately is the strongest film to come from Coppola since 1987's "Gardens of Stone."

Coppola's directing style on "The Rainmaker" is surprising and brilliant for its reserve. Like most other auteur filmmakers, Coppola has in the past lathered his filmmaking with plenty of overt camera angles and stylistic tricks. One need look no further back than "The Godfather, Part III," which featured a series of deaths almost comically synchronized to opera music, to see the stylistic lengths to which Coppola has gone to put his unique imprint on a film. With his adaptation of "The Rainmaker," Coppola backs off in a big way. The most striking shot of the film is the opening shot, which depicts a huge statue of justice holding her scale. That image of balances, of forces set in conflict with each other and supporting each other, is returned to time and again throughout the film, but in a very subtle way. Medium shots will place two characters on each side of the screen, often in conflict with each other as characters.

But images of balance are the only stylistic theme which Coppola allows himself in directing "The Rainmaker." Otherwise, it's very stately and quiet work, which allows the characters and story to shine through. The story is standard Grisham fare: an underdog young attorney pursues a civil court case against a huge insurance corporation, falling in love and learning a lot along the way. Sure, the story is littered with clichÇ, but this is a movie, not a novel. The screenwriting and direction of Coppola catapult the skeleton of the story onto a higher level, bringing the interest of the audience along for the ride.

It also doesn't hurt that the cast of actors appearing in "The Rainmaker" are among the strongest working in film today. Claire Danes and Danny DeVito are film veterans who can be counted on to deliver strong performances, and both do in this movie. Danes is especially affecting as an abused wife who gains strength to oppose her deadbeat husband through her relationship with the young attorney Rudy Baylor, portrayed by Matt Damon. For Damon, "The Rainmaker" is a breakthrough role, with the media already proclaiming him the flavor of the season and dedicating plenty of cover space and feature fluff to his life and career. But another "breakthrough" performance of sorts is delivered by Jon Voight, who does some brilliant work as Leo F. Drummond, the high-stakes civil attorney who represents the insurance company and uses all the courtroom tactics at his disposal to outwit Baylor and protect his client. Voight oozes southern charm and venom at the same time, strutting around the courtroom like an evil twin of Hank Hill, and it's to Damon's credit that he can hold his own against such raw acting power. Tremendous performances are peppered throughout the supporting cast as well, with even sleazeball Mickey Rourke avoiding any serious acting deficiencies.

Unlike Coppola's "Apocalypse Now" or "The Godfather," "The Rainmaker" is not a film that will change the way movies are viewed. It is not egocentric or flamboyantly creative. It is a compelling story brought to life by tremendous acting, a powerful screenplay, and quiet directing. It's not a tremendous achievement, but in today's world of shallow blockbuster movies and idiosyncratic filmmakers, it's a breath of fresh air.