Some of John Grisham’s books have hit the big screen.

John Grisham exploded onto the literary scene in 1991 with his second novel, “The Firm,” and Hollywood quickly came a-knocking. Two years later, Grisham’s adaptations began to hit theaters and, for the next decade, he was the hottest novelist to base a film on.

To date, nine feature films have been produced based on Grisham’s published works (there’s also “The Gingerbread Man,” adapted from a discarded manuscript, and “Mickey” with a screenplay by Grisham himself — neither film is much of any good, so we’ll forego discussions of them to save space).

Twenty, even 30 years later: How do they hold up?

Christmas with the Kranks (2004)

Joe Roth’s attempt to offer audiences a new Christmas comedy classic is grating, unpleasant, unfunny, and grating. It’s easy to see why the studios lost faith after this — there wouldn’t be another Grisham adaptation until Netflix’s 2018 docuseries “The Innocent Man.”

The Chamber (1996)

While Grisham may be able to ride the line of humanizing a Klan member on death row by maintaining a bleak tone throughout his novel, James Foley succumbs to sentimentality and delivers a thuddingly unimpressive character study. Gene Hackman is great, sure, but that’s not nearly enough.

A Painted House (2003)

Alfonso Arau’s TV film is meticulously faithful to its source material, a nuts-and-bolts exploration of rural 1950s childhood. However, replacing Grisham’s prose with decent-to-wooden acting is a sizable step down, and I can’t help thinking I’m stuck doing high school English’s least engaging coursework again.

The Client (1994)

Joel Schumacher is clearly having a blast filming this tale of a kid caught up in an adult conspiracy. The final result is a mixed bag, with great performances surrounding a protagonist who trades the novel’s smart-alec film-lover characterization for a misogynistic little twirp.

Runaway Jury (2003)

In the hands of Gary Fleder, the story of a jury for sale contracts severe early-2000s-filmmaking syndrome — needless action is injected, ridiculous shot/editing choices abound, and almost all meaningful conversation is excised. Only its spectacular source material and the Hackman-led cast salvage the film from total mediocrity.

A Time to Kill (1996)

Grisham’s sensational debut novel about racial tensions in the South makes for straight-up exploitation cinema. With Schumacher once again at the helm, this star-studded courtroom drama is a handsome production, though its politics are a tad naive at best. At least the dog survives in this version.

The Rainmaker (1997)

Like most of Francis Ford Coppola’s work, this underdog legal drama about a destitute, driven rookie is a wildly cluttered panoply. And yet: a delightful ensemble cast and the best courtroom scenes of any film on this list not only protect the piece but endear you to its moxie.

The Pelican Brief (1993)

It’s only fitting that Grisham’s pulp-riff on “All the President’s Men” would be directed by Alan J. Pakula. Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington are fantastic as the on-the-run investigators, and so is the film (obligatory action climax notwithstanding).

The Firm (1993)

Sidney Pollack directed the first Grisham adaptation; it remains the best. This quiet thriller about a lawyer inadvertently working for the mob is impeccably produced and beautifully acted. More than that, it improves on the original novel by having its characters make smarter, more humane, and less predictable choices.