Paul Biegler is a small-town
lawyer, who has more talent than ambition. He takes on a new case after a
beautiful young woman comes to see him and asks him to defend her husband. The
circumstances of the case are as follows: Lt. Manion shot and killed another
man; there is no disputing this fact. He is, however, pleading temporary
insanity because the man he shot had previously that night raped Manion’s wife
sending him into a state when he discovered his wife beaten and crying. Biegler
now has the difficult task of proving that the defendant did indeed suffer from
temporary insanity in a court of law (even if the truth seems a bit murky).
Director Otto Preminger
wanted to make a film that strictly followed the rules, manners, and procedures
of real courtroom trials (when most films tend to be more fictionalized
recreations). He also wanted to make a film that spoke to his hatred of
censorship (which is why the details of the case include rape and sexually
material – like the intent of Mrs. Manion). This is Preminger’s finest film,
but he also made a few other great movies, including: Laura, The Man with the
Golden Arm, and Advise &
Consent. On Anatomy of a Murder, Preminger worked with jazz legend composer
Duke Ellington,
cinematographer Sam
Leavitt, and production designer Boris Leven.
The film stars James Stewart and
features Lee Remick,
Ben Gazzara, Arthur O’Connell, Eve Arden, Kathryn Grant, and
George C. Scott
in support.
Anatomy of a Murder is one of the
best courtroom dramas of all-time (and among my favorites), coming in a period
between 1957-1962 that yielded many of the greatest courtroom films to-date,
including: Witness
for the Prosecution, Paths
of Glory, Inherit
the Wind, Judgment
at Nuremberg, and To
Kill a Mockingbird. This is a must-see for fans of law dramas and fans of
Jimmy Stewart, as it features one of his best performances.
Trailer: Here
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