Anatomy of a Murder
Tags: murder

Plot synopsis:
In the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, small-town lawyer Paul Biegler (Stewart), a former district attorney who lost his re-election bid, spends most of his time fishing, playing the piano, and hanging out with his alcoholic friend and colleague Parnell McCarthy (O'Connell) and sardonic secretary Maida Rutledge (Arden).
One day, Biegler is contacted by Laura Manion (Remick), the wife of US Army Lieutenant Frederick "Manny" Manion (Gazzara), who has been arrested for the first-degree murder of innkeeper Bernard "Barney" Quill. Manion does not deny the murder, but claims that Quill raped his wife. Even with such a motivation, getting Manion cleared of murder would be difficult, but Manion claims to have no memory of the event, suggesting that he may be eligible for a defense of irresistible impulse—a version of a temporary insanity defense. Biegler's folksy speech and laid-back demeanor hide a sharp legal mind and a propensity for courtroom theatrics that has the judge busy keeping things under control. However, the case for the defense does not go well, especially since the local district attorney (Brooks West) is assisted by high-powered prosecutor Claude Dancer (Scott) from the Attorney General's office.
Furthermore, the prosecution tries at every instance to block any mention of Manion's motive for killing Quill. Biegler eventually manages to get Laura Manion's rape into the record and Judge Weaver (Joseph N. Welch) agrees to allow the matter to be part of the deliberations. However, during cross-examination, Dancer insinuates that Laura openly flirted with other men, including the man she claimed raped her. Psychiatrists give conflicting testimony to Manion's state of mind at the time that he killed Quill. Dancer says that Manion may have suspected Laura of cheating on him because he asked his wife, a Catholic, to swear on a rosary that Quill raped her. This raises doubt as to whether the act was nonconsensual.
Quill's estate is to be inherited by Mary Pilant (Kathryn Grant), whom Dancer accuses of being Quill's mistress. McCarthy learns that she is in fact Quill's daughter, a fact she is anxious to keep secret since she was born out of wedlock. Biegler, who is losing the case, tries to persuade Pilant that Al Paquette, (Murray Hamilton) the bartender who witnessed the murder, may know that Quill admitted to raping Laura, but Paquette is covering this up, either because he loves Pilant or out of loyalty to Quill. Through Pilant, Biegler tries to persuade Paquette to testify for the defense, but Paquette refuses.
During the trial, Laura claims that Quill tore off her panties while raping her; these panties were not found in the crime scene, where she alleges the rape took place. Pilant, unaware of any details of the case, voluntarily returns to the courtroom to testify that she found the panties in the inn's laundry room. Biegler suggests Quill may have dropped the panties down the laundry chute, located next to his room, to avoid suspicion. Dancer tries to establish that Pilant's answers are founded on her jealousy. When Dancer asserts forcibly that Quill was Pilant's lover and that Pilant lied to cover this fact, Pilant shocks everyone by stating that Quill was her father. Manion is found "not guilty by reason of insanity". After the trial, Biegler decides to open a new practice, with a newly sober McCarthy as his partner.
The next day, Biegler and McCarthy travel to the Manions' trailer park home to get Manion's signature on a promissory note which they hope will suffice as collateral for a desperately needed loan. It turns out the Manions have vacated the trailer park, however, with the trailer park superintendent commenting that Laura Manion had been crying. Manion left a note for Biegler, indicating that his flight was "an irresistible impulse"—the same terminology Biegler used during the trial. Biegler states that Mary Pilant has retained him to execute Quill's estate. McCarthy says that working for her will be "poetic justice".

Review: Welch turns in a very good and a very believable performance.With the collision of those elements, a great script and a great cast, adding Otto Preminger as director, an overseer who knew exactly what to do with it all, you then have a very fine film.More than any other movie or play, including modern day presentations like the television series Law & Order, this 1959 movie, Anatomy of a Murder, even though it is now 46 years old, is by far the most realistic and technically accurate courtroom drama ever produced.
Anatomy of a Murder captures all of these and more.I've read the criticism that Lee Remick was not believable, that as an actress she failed at nailing the portrayal of how a true rape victim would appear and behave, and that her character, Laura Manion, just didn't seem to have the proper affect nor strike the right emotional chord of a woman who had been raped.
I would have been quite happy to have spent much more time in lawyer Biegler's house and study, with its books, old furniture and broken typewriter, but alas this is a murder case so one has to get down to businss.The question of whether the defendant, an army officer, was temporarily insane, is in fact insane, or is merely putting on a good show, is never fully resolved.
The supporting cast is strong, creating a human backdrop for the senior players, keeping the story in the real world,  effectively preventing this from becoming an exercise in legal theory.This film is noteworthy for a myriad of reasons, but most specifically because it addresses the still controversial issue of acquaintance rape, and presents us with a victim of questionable morals.
The point of all this historical information is that along with a hard hitting realistic style by director Otto Premenger, great score by Duke Ellington, plus top notch true to life performances by the excellent cast (Jimmy Stewart, Ben Gazara, Lee Remick, George C.
In the process it raises certain ethical issues re attorney behavior and the lengths to which an attorney might go to win a case.Paul Biegler (James Stewart) is a small-town lawyer who has recently lost a re-election for the position of District Attorney and who is down on his luck--when a headline-making case involving assault, alleged rape, and murder drops into his lap.
The two square off in a constantly shifting battle for the jury, a battle that often consists of underhanded tactics on both sides.The performances are impressive, with James Stewart ideally cast as the attorney for the defense, Ben Gazzara as his unsavory client, and a truly brilliant Lee Remick as the sexy and disreputable wife who screams rape where just possibly none occurred; O'Connell, Arden, and Scott also offer superior performances.
The script is sharp, cool, and meticulous, the direction and cinematography both effective and completely unobtrusive, and the famous jazz score adds quite a bit to the film as a whole.Although we can't help rooting for Stewart, as the film progresses it seems more and more likely that Remick is lying through her teeth and Gazzara is as guilty as sin--but the film balances its elements in such a way as to achieve a disturbing ambiguity that continues right through to the end.
It avoids the labored dramatics and contrived resolutions in which so many movies of the genre indulge, and it also declines to shy away from pointing out the more ill-conceived features of the legal system.From his first scene, James Stewart pulls the viewer right into the world of lawyer Paul Biegler.
Released on the heels of several other courtroom drama classics such as "Twelve Angry Men" and "Witness For The Prosecution", "Anatomy Of A Murder" tells the story of a small town Michigan lawyer (Stewart) who takes on the case of an army officer who is standing trial for murdering a man who he believes had raped his wife.
One day, he is called by a young woman (Lee Remick) to defend the case of her husband, an army lieutenant (Ben Gazzara), who is accused of murdering the rapist of his beautiful seductive wife.
Welch got most famous in real life, because he stood up against communist witch hunter senator McCarthy during the Army hearings and told him on live television, "Have you no sense of decency, sir?"Duke Ellington provided the score and also makes a brief appearance behind the piano in a nightly bar scene.This is as good as it gets, extremely well written, superbly acted, directed, scored, every minute of it is supremely entertaining.
All of this somehow made the characters seem very real as opposed to caricatures as these type of characters are in most films.When you see a court room drama revolving around a murder defense, you rarely expect humor or quirkiness but that is what made this movie special for me.
Biegler comes upon the case of Lt. Manion (Ben Gazzara), accused of murdering the man that raped his wife (Lee Remick), and Biegler, hesitant at first, decides to take it, defending Manion with an insanity plea.
Halfway through the movie, the script seems to forget that Stewart and Remick had such good chemistry and removes from our sight any juicy scenes with the two of them.The trial part of the movie is entertaining enough, even though it falls into the cliché of overly loud laughter from the court audience whenever the judge or attorney makes a joke, but it still left me longing for more.
The only similar movies that come close are To Kill A Mockingbird (1962) and Witness For The Prosecution (1957) and though while these have other great qualities neither matches Anatomy of a Murder for sheer courtroom realism and tension.
Otto Preminger directed this film which stars Jimmy Stewart as a small-town lawyer who takes on the case of Army Lt. Frederick Biegler(played by Ben Gazzara) who is accused of murdering a bartender named Barney Quill, whom he believed raped his wife Laura(played by Lee Remick) a woman who proves to be of disputed character, which makes her account of the attack questionable.
Reasonably interesting film has a good cast, though goes on too long, and its provocative nature(quite daring for its time) seems overly obvious now, but doesn't ruin this courtroom drama otherwise..
There's a lot of resentment against Scott in that maybe the locals don't like the inference their own prosecutor isn't up to the job.Anatomy of a Murder gets James Stewart into a courtroom for the only time in his film career though he did play lawyers in other films.
Stewart was named Best Actor for 1959 by the New York Film Critics though.Besides all those previously mentioned, kudos should go to Lee Remick as Gazzara's slatternly wife and Kathryn Crosby as the deceased's roadhouse manager who provides some key last minute evidence at the trial.Anatomy of a Murder is one of the best courtroom dramas ever put on film, catch it by all means..
Today, this would be like a Disney movie.It's a courtroom drama film that lasts almost three hours, but in its day did such a good job of entertaining and shocking people that time was not a problem.
You can nitpick this film to death with all the legal proceedings that would never be allowed, but are in here for dramatic reasons, but you can do that for almost any movie.One other reason this film gets rated so highly by Left Wing critics is that the man who played the judge in the film was Joseph Welch, who was the actual judge who asked Sen. Joseph McCarthy if "he had no shame," making him instantly a hero to all Hollywood Liberals and film critics forever, all of whom hate McCarthy and his anti-Communism stance.Believability and bias aside, it's still an entertaining film, especially for one so talky, and is recommended for people who love courtroom dramas and don't care how long it goes on, and appreciate acting at its best..
I would have preferred less courtroom bantering for a more satisfactory conclusion.I realize this was based on a true story, but I still think they could have adapted a better Hollywood ending to reward viewers for hanging through a LONG 2 1/2 hour movie.If I had to do over, I wouldn't have invested the time..
Indeed it's the inside look at the strategies of a defense and prosecuting attorney that gives the film its real strength, because we are never quite sure about the outcome of the trial.ANATOMY OF A MURDER is directed in stark, cold, clinical fashion by Otto Preminger with a jazz score background punctuating the sleazier aspects of the story.
Though it's dated now, this courtroom drama still has the capacity to tease the armchair sleuths and keep the casual viewer guessing not only to the verdict that will decide whether Army Officer Ben Gazzara will be convicted of murdering a bartender accused of raping his wife (Remick), but equally, whether her allegations have the substance to justify her jealous and possessive husband's extreme actions.Jimmy Stewart is thrust into the furnace as the small town counsel who finds himself unwittingly defending the indefensible when it's revealed that Remick is a flirtatious woman prone to provocative behaviour amid the stench of cheap liquor in seedy bars with anonymous strangers.
Stewart steers the boat well, guiding his troupe of cinema newcomers (who later gain distinction in their own right) that includes Gazzara, Remick, George C.Scott as the special adviser brought in to beef up the prosecution, while veterans Arthur O'Connell, Eve Arden and Murray Hamilton offer reliable support.Preminger's picture takes a very clinical view of proceedings, and in particular, the letter of the law which is often painstakingly explained in layman by the characters, so much so, that pacing is sometimes a distinct challenge.
Renowned film-noir director Otto Preminger tackles courtroom dramas in "Anatomy of a Murder." Paul Biegler (James Stewart) is a lawyer who mostly just wants to fish and play jazz.
Anatomy of a Murder-****-A Masterpiece- Directed by: Otto Preminger, Written by: Wendell Mayes, Robert Traver (Novel), Starring: James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell, Eve Arden, Kathryn Grant, George C.
Scott, Orson Bean, Murray Hamilton.Otto Preminger's challenging and provocative courtroom drama stars Stewart as a defense lawyer defending a man (Gazzara) who murdered another man after his wife accused the victim of raping her.
Scott and Gazzara are also great in early efforts, but it is real life judge Welch who gives the film the authenticity and credibility it desires.Preminger's storytelling is long, but thought-provoking and fascinating, with more insight into the murder trial than most courtroom dramas boast.
The movie's happens in a small city during the late 1950's, where a lieutenant kills a man for raping his wife and asks James Stewart in the role of Paul Beigler, a lawyer, to defend him.At first I didn't understand what was going on and that was for 10-15 mins maybe and then it became really interesting.
Otto Preminger's Anatomy of a Murder features a cast of some big stars (Jimmy Stewart, George C.
But unlike L&O, where any characterization is pretty much one-dimensional, Anatomy of a Murder is chock-full of development on the personalities, even for characters that appear on the witness stand for no more than five minutes.Preminger also has the daring to add some touches of comedy, or at least some (for the time) risqué humor and language that rises it not simply above other more standard pictures, but into a realm of truth that reflects what it's like to be in a court-room for a case such as this (i.e. when the judge addresses the courtroom about the use of the word "panties", he's also addressing the audience- don't giggle, it's a serious word...
The book and the movie really revolve around his working of a court case (the defendant murdered the man who raped his wife) and is not your typical "Law and Order" plot but rather a good look at how an attorney builds a case.
The prosecution ignores the rape and makes it a case of jealousy while Biegler finds out with the help of his alcoholic colleague (Arthur O'Connell) precedents of temporary insanity, he's still got to prove that it was Manion's state at the time of murder.All the irony of the film is that while we follow Biegler trying to convince the jury that Laura was raped and Manion avenged her, their attitudes push our minds into opposite intuititions.
Another interpretation that has to be mentioned is Ben Gazzara's who played as Lt. Frederick Manion and he was really good at it.Finally I have to say that "Anatomy of a Murder" is a great movie to watch because it has plenty of scenes in which you can not expect what will come up and how this will change the whole plot of the movie.
(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon.)Otto Preminger, who produced and directed this fine courtroom drama starring James Stewart, Lee Remick, George C.
I was drawn to the movie by the wonderful cast; the great Jimmy Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara Eve Arden, of whom we don't see enough, and the great character actors Arthur O'Cpnnell and Murray Hamilton.
Or watch a slightly aging Jimmy Stewart as a down on his luck lawyer confront a new America, a modern age where girdles are being replaced with panties, much to the scandal of this quaint little Midwest city.Or catch the rather brilliant, slightly too taut, pitch perfect performances by three side characters, all of which are exaggerated into believable caricatures for good reason: Lee Remick as the modern liberated woman, Ben Gazzara as the last of that kind of WWII soldier used so often in film noirs (he served in Korea), and Arthur O'Connell as a throwback even earlier, the man saddled with a drinking problem, the original drug of addiction.
Jimmy Stewart plays Paul Biegler, a lawyer hired to defend Lt. Fred Manion (Ben Gazzara), charged with murdering a man who allegedly raped his wife Laura (Lee Remick).
This is one of those films to pop in when you have guests under age 35 in the house.What is so different from most courtroom dramas is the lack of empathy between lawyer Stewart and defendant Gazzara, and it's meant to be that way.After meeting the Army officer, and his loose wife Remick, the viewer will be rooting for the prosecution, and hoping Stewart drops this loser and gets back to fishing, but when Scott appears on the scene, the scales of justice for the watcher begin to shift back to the defense, not because we believe Gazzara is innocent, but because we want to see the Hot Dog Scott slip on a banana peel.
(Characters routinely take country detours with their dialogue.) Despite the lack of mystery in who killed who, "Anatomy" is one of cinema's greatest trial films.Everyone agrees that Army Lt. Frederick Manion (Ben Gazzara) shot and killed a barman because he believed the latter had raped and assaulted his flirtatious wife, Laura (Lee Remick).
The Late James(Jimmy) Stewart puts on a powerful performance in what I think is his best film to date.The director of the film, Otto Preminger, is in complete control of all the aspects of the film from the introduction of the main characters in the film and the eventual courtroom drama.Small-town lawyer Paul Biegler (James Stewart), a former district attorney, lands a case that involves the defense of US Army Lieutenant Manny Manion, who killed Quill, the alleged rapist of his wife Laura.Even with such a motivation, it would be difficult to get Manion cleared of murder, so Biegler pushes him into a position where he claims to have no memory of the event, thus giving them a chance of winning his freedom with a defense of irresistible impulse — a version of a temporary insanity defense.As he sets about preparing his case, Biegler catches Laura Manion flirting with other army officers during a roadhouse party.
Stewart, the shrewd folksy lawyer for the cucumber-cool defendant, Ben Garzarra, Scott as the "big-time" co-prosecutor from Lansing, Lee Remick as provocative sex symbol and rape victim, Eve Arden as the wise-cracking secretary all handle their parts with aplomb, and the score by Duke Ellington, who makes a cameo appearance, is also wonderful.
Now this is a classic courtroom dramas unlike the modern battles where there are professional law firms, team of lawyers ,big money involved, repeated rehearsal of the witness and the panache.The story is about a lawyer Paul Biegler played by James Stewart who on recommendation of his mentor and friend takes the case of an army man who has been convicted of killing a bar owner on the context of bar owner having raped his wife.
To see Stewart in action here will tell you why he won that Oscar and was nominated for four more.This is probably the best courtroom action you will ever see with Ben Gazzara on trial for murder after his wife (Lee Remick) was supposedly raped.
Don't think it's pretty.Director Otto Preminger and this ensemble were never better.********** Anatomy of a Murder (7/1/59) Otto Preminger ~ James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell.
To me Stewart & Scott both seem to work very hard acting like lawyers in this film.
This is one of the best courtroom dramas ever filmed, and one of Jimmy Stewart's best performances, including some jazz piano work with Duke Ellington's band.
Anatomy of a Murder can be considered very good even among today's standards.Jimmy Stewart plays one of his best roles in this movie, and probably the best that I've seen so far.