ANATOMY OF A MURDER (Criterion, 1959) D: Otto Preminger, w/ James Stewart, Lee Remick. Rating: NNNNN Blu-ray package: NNNNN Rating: NNNNN
Anatomy Of A Murder is on the short list of great legal dramas, up there with To Kill A Mockingbird, 12 Angry Men and Inherit The Wind. The case is plausible and ordinary – a guy murders the man who raped his wife – but has enough ambiguity and surprising turns to keep the outcome in doubt.
The characters make the show. Ben Gazzara, the defendant, is a creep. Lee Remick, his wife, is a drunk party girl. There are disturbing undercurrents all through their interactions. Neither can be trusted.
Defence lawyer James Stewart has a weak case at best, and so falls back on his folksy persona and courtroom theatrics. The prosecution has the brilliant, reptilian George C. Scott.
The minor characters get their moments to shine, too, and though the film runs almost three hours, Otto Preminger moves things along so smoothly that it feels much shorter.
Three new interviews effectively address the movie, title sequence and, in particular, Duke Ellington’s atmospheric score. There’s also a good unfinished doc containing much archival footage from the shoot.
EXTRAS Critical interviews on the movie, the score and titles, production doc, essay booklet. B&w. English audio and subtitles.
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