Did you like Anatomy of the Fall? Take a look at this experimental masterpiece starring James Stewart

The huge success of Justin Triet’s Anatomy, which has won awards around the world and recently won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, is to remind us of the obvious: movies Courtroom dramasIn other words, films that fall under the sub-genre of experimental films can be absolutely fascinating works, given their precise staging.

Static in nature, beyond a sequence that can be, for example, a flashback, this type of work relies primarily on the dramatic power of its performers. Fortunately, The 7th Art is full of great works related to this subgenre: Billy Wilder’s Witness for the Prosecution with Charles Laughton.

Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men is arguably the best experimental film ever made. Richard Fleischer’s evil genius tells an authentic and brutal story (which provided material for the film Hitchcock’s Rope) in which Orson Welles mounts an extraordinary appeal against the death penalty imposed by his clients.

Homicide autopsy

This very short list would not be complete without another absolute American classic published in 1959: Autopsy of a Murder, by veteran Otto Preminger.

Story ? It’s that of Paul Bigler (the excellent James Stewart), a jaded lawyer who spends more time fishing than in court. One day he received a call from a woman who asked to protect her husband. The latter, Lieutenant Frederick Mannion, killed a man who had raped his wife. The trial begins, but things quickly get complicated.

On the one hand, the testimony does not agree with the facts. Lt. Mannion, on the other hand, is uncooperative… Faced with this uncertainty, Bigler struggles to uncover the true motives of the killer, his wife, and the victim…

Homicide autopsy Shows a court world where the truth is not always what we believe. This is a cynical conception of human justice. The fate of the accused is not really important; The real issue in this case is a brilliant oratorical duel between two lawyers. James Stewart is facing George Scott, who is off to a great start in his acting career.

We can point out that the elements provided by the two sides do not lead us to really know the truth, which is gradually impossible to find out because we are confused by the facts. Also mentioned is the power of the lawyer and the prosecutor to manipulate the jury: it is actually a real game of chess being played.

Beyond this fascinating dissection of the facts (even if, to be honest, a little too long, almost 3 hours) Homicide autopsy is the quintessential film of the genre, both virtuoso and brutal in its satire of the American justice system.

The film is available on VOD as well as DVD/Blu-ray.