Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

Anatomy of a perfect courtroom drama
Anatomy of a Murder (Otto Preminger, 1957)

To call Anatomy of a Murder the definitive courtroom film is, perhaps, not going quite far enough. Sure, there had been others, and there are certainly other classic courtroom dramas, but Anatomy of a Murder seems to be the basis for the outpouring of courtroom films and TV shows we have today; the bickering of the lawyers, the badgering of the witnesses, the bamboozling of the jury.

The plot is very straightforward, compared to Law and Order or CSI: a man (Ben Gazzara) kills his wife (Lee Remick)'s rapist. A down-on-his-luck lawyer, Paul Biegler (James Stewart) is handed the case soon after he lost the county prosecutor election to Claude Dancer (George C. Scott). Biegler takes the case, as much to get one up on Dancer as for the case itself, but while things, as Biegler believed, are not as open-and-shut as they seem, there's far more to the case than he originally thought, and none of it seems to be on his side.

It should go without saying that courtroom-drama-TV-show fans should consider this a must-see, but even if you never once watch Jerry Orbach flip a badge or William Petersen crack wise, this is a bang-up movie. The bast are phenomenal, every last one of them, and Wendell Mayes' script (adapted from Robert Traver's novel) is top-notch. Nowadays, the direction looks very familiar; that's because it's been done so much since. Despite that, however, the film still looks fresh and exciting. (My hypothesis is that this is because the film is in black and white, and we're used to seeing it in color with deodorant commercials interrupting it every fifteen minutes.) It's witty, it's intelligent, and it's got a cracking good mystery. Besides, how can you not like a film that was banned in Chicago? **** ½

Required Medium.
This movie (and book) have set the bar for contemporary thrillers to follow. Enough superlatives have been rightly bestowed upon this movie by previous reviewers. I will not attempt to trump them. Just know that this movie is one of my favorites and is required viewing in my introduction to criminal justice survey courses. Very well done. Obviously, a five star rating without hesitation or reservation. Please see the inspirational novel as well: [[ASIN:B000BHHB6S Anatomy of a Murder]].


--JP
[[ASIN:1420812610 Ports and Happy Havens]]

The greatest courtroom drama ever filmed
"Anatomy of a Murder" is an example of director Otto Preminger at his finest. Everything about the production is superb, including the script, actors, pace, photography, editing, and casting. What was particularly impressive was giving the part of the presiding judge in the trial to real life attorney Joseph Welch, from the infamous HUAC trials.
James Stewart's acting talents are well displayed, along with some wonderful parts played by Ben Gazarra,
Lee Remick, Arthur O'Connell and Eve Arden. The film is a rare treat for the younger generations who did
not see this 1959 classic--a must-see film for all.