Trial (1955)

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

Don Mankiewicz (novel)
Don Mankiewicz (writer)

Release Date:

7 October 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Tense! Timely! Thrilling!

Plot:

The story of a murder trial where a Mexican boy is accused of the death of a Caucasian girl. The two-faced...

Plot Keywords:

Courtroom | Based On Novel

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win

Cast

Glenn Ford	...	David Blake
Dorothy McGuire	...	Abbe Nyle
Arthur Kennedy	...	Bernard 'Barney' Castle
John Hodiak	...	District Attorney John J. 'Jack' Armstrong
Katy Jurado	...	Mrs. Consuela Chavez
Rafael Campos	...	Angel Chavez
Juano Hernandez	...	Judge Theodore 'Ted' Motley
Robert Middleton	...	Sheriff A.A. 'Fats' Sanders
John Hoyt	...	Ralph Castillo
Paul Guilfoyle	...	Cap Grant
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Finn - Process Server (as Elisha Cook)
Ann Lee	...	Gail Wiltse
Whit Bissell	...	Sam Wiltse
Richard Gaines	...	Dr. Johannes Albert Schacter
Barry Kelley	...	Jim Brackett

Runtime:

105 min | 109 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:Btl | Sweden:15 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Though the film was made in 1955, it takes place in 1947. However, in the scene where Abbe, Barney and David are driving through town after their first visit with Angel in prison, most of the cars visible in the background are 1950s or late 40s models, including brand new 1955 cars seen in an automobile dealership window.

Quotes:

David Blake: I learned a long time ago that when someone says 'decide right now' that that's the time to take your time.

A Pathological Case

This film fascinates precisely BECAUSE of its confused treatment of the theme of bigotry. It does not only refer, under a thin disguise of name, to Senator McCarthy - but also to the Ku Klux Klan. To me, its chief value is that it illustrates rather startlingly the ethical strangeness of a mid-fifties America apparently seeking a definition of justice while still beset with considerable self-doubt concerning its own institutions.

Few films of the period make so explicit the names of the antagonists; that is what sets it apart.

On the level of pure melodrama, it is entertaining, fast-paced and convincingly acted. The opening scene suggests an erotically-charged no man's land, namely the beach community of San Juno, anno 1947. This is the scene that I think will remain in my memory, because it precedes all the rhetoric, legalistic and otherwise, which never quite connects with the reality of spontaneous behaviour - simply, groping in the dark.