Anatomy of a Murder is today probably the second most famous film by director Otto Preminger, following Laura (1944). It is an entertaining if lengthy courtroom drama, starring James Stewart as the clever country lawyer attempting to save Ben Gazzara from life imprisonment for committing a murder. George C. Scott and Lee Remick have early career supporting roles, respectively as the big city prosecutor and the flirtatious wife.
Stewart plays Paul Biegler, a former local prosecutor who has been voted out of office. He's content to go fishing and hang out with friendly, alcoholic, has-been lawyer McCarthy (Arthur O'Connell). He reluctantly takes the case of Army Lieutenant Manion (Gazzara). Manion is a cynical, violent man who seems clearly guilty of shooting a bartender whom he suspected of raping his outrageously sexy wife (Lee Remick). Eve Arden plays Biegler's secretary, Murray Hamilton is a hostile co-worker of the late barkeep, and Kathryn Grant is the bartender's illegitimate daughter. Grant had recently wed the much older Bing Crosby, and would make only one more film before retiring from acting.
Anatomy of a Murder has always been very highly regarded. The characters are realistic in that the defendant and his wife are not portrayed as saintly or even innocent, while the lawyers on both sides are more interested in winning than in serving justice.
However, no judge would allow Stewart to showboat as he does here. Stewart is always smarter and a step ahead of the slick city prosecutor. It seems unlikely that Grant would make a dramatic, last-minute courtroom entrance to incriminate her own father. Likewise, O'Connell seems to overcome his alcoholism with little trouble, while his late night drive and resulting accident is all melodrama. And what about Eve Arden? Does she ever get paid? While Anatomy of a Murder is a good movie, it may not live up to its reputation.
However, the film was groundbreaking in its use of previously taboo sexual language. The script tosses around almost casually such words as rape, penetration, contraceptive, panties and semen. Although the language can't really be compared with later films like Reservoir Dogs, it marked the beginning of the end for Hollywood self-censorship.
The courtroom judge was played by Joseph Welch. It was the only film role for Welch, whose performance is very good. Welch was the hero of the Army hearings of communist witch hunter Senator McCarthy. He was the man who told McCarthy on live television, "Have you no sense of decency, sir?"
The script was based on a top selling novel by Michigan Supreme Court justice John Voelker, who used the pseudonym Robert Traver.
Anatomy of a Murder features a score by Jazz great Duke Ellington, who also has a cameo appearance.
Anatomy of a Murder was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Stewart), Best Supporting Actor (O'Connell, Scott), Best Adapted Screenplay (Wendell Mayes), Best B & W Cinematography (Sam Leavitt) and Best Film Editing (Louir Loeffler). It lost in all categories, as 1959 was the year Ben-Hur won an unprecedented eleven Oscars. (60/100)
Director Preminger thrives in tense legal showdowns and this is perhaps his best mostly for Stewart's cagey performance as a deceptively wily small-to...More at Family Video
DVDS. Director Preminger thrives in tense legal showdowns and this is perhaps his best, mostly for Stewart's cagey performance as a deceptively wily s...More at DeepDiscount.com
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