The Client

Right now you can watch The Client in Australia on Netflix and Disney Plus, and in the UK on Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus — and it earns its twists rather than manufacturing them. It knows exactly what kind of film it is from the opening scene, and never loses that thread. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Watch Brad Renfro work — the performance is a masterclass in restraint. Available now on Netflix — press play and find out why people keep recommending it.

Part of the current wave of titles people are actually watching, The Client earns its spot. The plotting gives The Client its backbone, but it is the characters you come back for. A street-wise kid, Mark Sway, sees the suicide of Jerome Clifford, a prominent Louisiana lawyer, whose current client is Barry 'The Blade' Muldano, a Mafia hit-man. Before Jerome shoots himself, he tells Mark where the body of a Senator is buried. Clifford shoots himself and Mark is found at the scene, and both the FBI and the Mafia quickly realize that Mark probably knows more than he says. Brad Renfro and Susan Sarandon lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 1994. The plot mechanics of The Client never overwhelm the human cost underneath them. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

If you cannot walk away from a good mystery, The Client will keep you hooked. It does not lean on comparisons to make its case. A contained runtime means every scene is doing real work. Brad Renfro carries scenes that would sink a lesser production. The resolution feels inevitable rather than arbitrary, which is rarer than it sounds.