A review of 'Anatomy of a Murder' starring Jimmy Stewart
Otto Preminger's 1959 courtroom drama Anatomy of a Murder has been called one of the most accurate films ever made on courtroom procedure. The film is based on a novel of the same name by Robert Traver who not only served on the Michigan Supreme Court but also based the story on an actual murder case in which he served as district attorney. The film stars Jimmy Stewart, George C. Scott, Lee Remick and Ben Gazzara and is one of the 1st films to deal with the subject of sex and rape explicitly.
Jimmy Stewart plays Paul Biegler, a former lawyer who has settled into retirement after losing his reelection for District Attorney but is coaxed back out of retirement by his alcoholic friend--played by Arthur McConnell--to defend an Army lieutenant (played by Ben Gazzara) accused of shooting and murdering an innkeeper accused of raping his very beautiful and freaky wife (played by Lee Remick). The only defense for the Army lieutenant is temporary insanity which Paul has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt and against the Attorney General's star prosecutor Joe Dancer. The courtroom battle is the centerpiece of the film and takes up most of its 2 hour and 40 minute running time!
But if you think to yourself "This is just a boring courtroom movie," you'll be sadly mistaken. This is Jake LaMotta vs Sugar Ray Robinson, Rocky vs Apollo Creed, the cab scene in On The Waterfront with Charlie the Gent and Terry Malloy! James Stewart and "The Dancer" George C. Scott are both at the peak of their powers and bring out the best in each other in this film. When you think of James Stewart's other films like Vertigo and Rear Window the last thing that comes to mind is fire, maybe a slow-burn. But in this film and his chess-match in the courtroom scenes with George C. Scott, James Stewart is a tiger. As handsome, sharp-dressing prosecutor Joe Dancer, George C. Scott reprises the sleazy role he played as Bert Gordon in The Hustler and plays this part with equal relish.
Anatomy of a Murder is one of my favorite films with great music--and also a cameo--by the great Duke Ellington. The film's title sequence was designed by Saul Bass who also worked on films such as John Frankenheimer's Gran Prix and Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Amazingly, the film was nominated for 7 Academy Awards including Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Picture but went home empty handed. Even though James Stewart and George C. Scott dominate this film, the supporting cast played their parts perfectly. I have this film on blu ray and the picture is great. Criterion did a great job with this one and it is a must-have if you are a fan of either Stewart or Scott.
No comments:
Post a Comment