Anatomy of a Murder

Anatomy of a Murder

1959 · 161 min · EN · NR · 7.8 (1,234 votes)
Dir. Otto Preminger · Starring James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell, Eve Arden, Kathryn Grant · Music Duke Ellington

“Last year's No. 1 best-seller...This year's No. 1 motion picture.”

CrimeDramaMystery

Semi-retired Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler takes the case of Army Lt. Manion, who murdered a local innkeeper after his wife claimed that he raped her. Over the course of an extensive trial, Biegler parries with District Attorney Lodwick and out-of-town prosecutor Claude Dancer to set his client free, but his case rests on the victim's mysterious business partner, who's hiding a dark secret.

VIBE

This is a cerebral, morally complex courtroom drama, unfolding with a cool, jazz-infused tension. It's a masterclass in legal strategy and sharp dialogue, exploring the elusive nature of truth and justice within a meticulously crafted, black-and-white world. The atmosphere is sophisticated and subtly unsettling.

tenseintellectualsophisticatedmorally ambiguoussharpsteadyclassic Hollywooddialogue-drivenblack-and-white cinematographyjazz-infusedprocedural realismjusticelegal ethicstruth's elusive naturehuman fallibilityperception
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adulteryjealousyrapebased on novel or bookcourt casemichiganjudgehays codejazzjurorstriallawyerblack and whitecourtroommurder trialcourtroom drama