Witness for the prosecution

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Movie
German title Witness for the prosecution
Original title Witness for the Prosecution
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1957
length 113 minutes
Age rating FSK 12
Rod
Director Billy Wilder
script Larry Marcus ,
Billy Wilder,
Harry Kurnitz
production Arthur Hornblow Jr. ,
Edward Small
music Matty Malneck
camera Russell Harlan
cut Daniel Mandell
occupation
synchronization

Witness for the Prosecution (Original title: Witness for the Prosecution ) is an American turned to black and white feature film by director Billy Wilder from the year 1957 . The London -based court crime thriller is an adaptation of the 1953 play of the same name by the writer Agatha Christie . The film garnered six Academy Awards in 1958 and was named sixth in its 2008 American Film Institute's list of "Best Court Dramas of All Time".

action

London in 1952: the well-known London criminal defense attorney Sir Wilfrid Robarts - just released from hospital after a heart attack - takes on a seemingly hopeless case brought to him by solicitor Mayhew. His client, the friendly and somewhat naive-looking unemployed sales representative Leonard Vole, is accused of murdering the wealthy widow Emily French. Since the widow had previously changed her will in his favor due to a grown friendship and intended a considerable sum for him, he has a tangible motive. Leonard Vole, however, protests his innocence, he did not know anything about the will.

During the trial, Scotland Yard's Inspector Hearne and then Janet McKenzie, the widow's old and devoted housekeeper, will be heard as witnesses for the prosecution, represented by Prosecutor Myers. However, Sir Wilfrid manages to cast doubt on the credibility of both witnesses. Surprisingly, the prosecution then presented the defendant's wife Christine, who came from Germany, as the third and final witness. She appears under the name Christine Helm, proves that her marriage to Leonard Vole is not valid, refutes his alibi and burdens him heavily with her testimony. She appears as a cool, calculating woman who dumps her husband and ignores his passionate love for her.

Sir Wilfrid, his colleague Brogan-Moore and Mr. Mayhew try everything to make this witness unbelievable, but the mood in the courtroom and at the jury still tends to the guilt of the accused. As the only witness for the defense, Sir Wilfrid can only summon the defendant himself and then has to cross-examine the prosecution, which brings further incriminating aspects to light. Thereafter the situation seems hopeless for Leonard and his execution inevitable.

The evening before the verdict is announced, a strange woman who wants to take revenge on Christine plays Sir Wilfrid a bundle of letters that Christine wrote to a certain Max, in which she describes that she is planning a false testimony to get rid of Leonard and free him To be max. With this last minute new evidence presented, Sir Wilfrid Christine's credibility as a witness can be destroyed and an acquittal can be achieved. However, he had doubts that the matter was "too smooth".

Immediately after the verdict has been announced, there are several surprising twists and turns: Sir Wilfrid talks to Christine in the otherwise empty courtroom and learns that she really loves Leonard passionately and has only appeared as a cold-blooded witness for the prosecution to collapse the trial against him. It was she herself who disguised the evening before handing over the letters specially written to Sir Wilfrid. Sir Wilfrid admires this skillful approach. Immediately afterwards it turns out that Leonard is actually the killer and Christine wanted to cover up the crime. Since Leonard can not be charged a second time for the same act , she confesses everything to Sir Wilfrid. Shortly afterwards, Leonard also enters the courtroom and confesses the act. Then Leonard surprisingly introduces a young woman named Diana as his new fiancé and threatens Christine with a trial for an accessory to murder if she prevents him. He explains to Christine that he had saved her life in Germany and she now his, so they are even. Christine is deeply hurt, and when Sir Wilfrid throws a light reflex with his monocle on the bread knife still in the room, she takes it. She stabs Leonard and is arrested immediately. Sir Wilfrid, deeply moved, announces that he is canceling his planned vacation in order to take over her defense.

History of origin

Literature presentation and success as a play

The film is based on Agatha Christie's short story Traitor's Hands , which first appeared in Flynn’s British magazine on January 31, 1925 . In the 1930s and 1940s, Christie's work was republished several times in Great Britain and the United States under the title Witness for the Prosecution before it was produced as a play by Wallace Douglas in 1953 . However, Christie's story was changed for the theatrical version - while the short story ended with Leonard's wife confessing that she knew about the murder, the murder of Leonard was subsequently added.

The play was premiered in Nottingham on September 28, 1953, the London premiere of Witness for the Prosecution was on October 28, 1953 in the Winter Garden Theater with Derek Blomfield and Patricia Jessel as the couple Vole and David Horne , DA Clarke-Smith , Percy Marmont and Milton Rosmer . The piece was played there until November 1954.

The London performance was followed by the New York Broadway premiere on December 16, 1954 at the Henry Miller's Theater , which was produced by Gilbert Miller and Peter Saunders . The director took Robert Lewis . Only Patricia Jessel remained from the London occupation. The Briton Francis L. Sullivan took on the role of Sir Wilfrid, Gene Lyons the part of Leonard Vole. Christie's play became a hit with the public and was performed over 600 times by June 30, 1956. In April 1955, Witness for the Prosecution was awarded the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for best foreign play of the year. In the same year Patricia Jessel and Francis L. Sullivan received the prestigious Tony Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Play. Agatha Christie prevented the surprising twist at the end of the play from appearing in early printed text books on the play.

Movie version

The film rights to the play are said to have been set by Agatha Christie's agent Harold Ober at a sum of 450,000 US dollars. Originally, producer Louis B. Mayer was interested in a film adaptation of the material in England with Clarence Brown as director, but Gilbert Miller, co-producer of the Broadway version, secured the rights for US $ 325,000. This in turn sold it for $ 430,000 to Edward Small , who eventually directed the film with Arthur Hornblow Jr. and Billy Wilder (the Los Angeles Times wrote of the most expensive screenplay rights for a melodrama). Wilder had worked mainly as a director on light fabrics ( Sabrina , The 7th year itch , Ariane - Love in the Afternoon ) after serious films such as Woman without a Conscience , The Lost Weekend or Boulevard of Twilight , and opened it together with the authors Larry Marcus and Harry Kurnitz the theatrical presentation for other scenes outside the courtroom (including the flashback in post-war Germany, which is reminiscent of Wilder's An Foreign Affair - also with Marlene Dietrich ). Other changes included the replacement of the name of the female protagonist of Romaine in Christine and the addition of the figure of Sir Wilfrid stern nurse Miss Plimsoll, by Charles Laughton's wife Elsa Lanchester was acquired. Laughton received a fee of 75,000 US dollars for his appearance as Sir Wilfrid and is said to have been based primarily on the Englishman Florance Guedella - his and Marlene Dietrich's lawyer. Tyrone Power and Marlene Dietrich received $ 150,000 and $ 100,000, respectively. Only from the Broadway cast Una O'Connor was hired as the housekeeper of the murder victim, who made her last film appearance. In small roles not mentioned in the credits, Patrick Aherne , Franklyn Farnum , Bess Flowers and Norbert Schiller play as imagesetter in the German café.

Although Witness for the Prosecution was originally supposed to be filmed in London, the British capital was only used for a few background images. All interior shots took place in Samuel Goldwyn's film studios in Hollywood . Since the London authorities did not allow filming or photos to be taken in the Old Bailey courthouse , production designer Alexandre Trauner had to design the decorations using a few quickly made sketches. This film set also allowed Billy Wilder's request to use the camera flexibly. The imitation oak partitions could easily be removed so that the courtroom could be enlarged or reduced as needed. Cinematographer Russell Harlan based his work on Lee Garmes settings from Alfred Hitchcock's The Paradin Case (1947).

The production company Theme Productions of the film producer Edward Small was responsible for the production of the feature film. With the film company United Artists Small had a distribution contract for the films he produced.

synchronization

The German dubbing was created in 1958 in the studio of Ultra Film Synchron GmbH in Berlin . Friedrich Luft took over the artistic direction , the Attorney General Gerhard Friedrich Kramer acted as legal advisor. The dialogue book came from Erika Streithorst and Johannes Szelinski , Josef Wolf was responsible for the dialogue direction.

role
Actress
Voice actor
Leonard Stephen Vole - the accused Tyrone Power Paul Klinger
Christine Helm Vole - Leonard's wife Marlene Dietrich Tilly Lauenstein
Sir Wilfrid Robarts - the defender Charles Laughton Eduard Wandrey
Miss Plimsoll - Robart's nurse Elsa Lanchester Elfie Beyer
Mr. Brogan-Moore - Robart's Barrister John Williams Siegfried Schürenberg
Mr. Mayhew - Leonard's Solicitor Henry Daniell Friedrich Joloff
Carter - Robart's house servant Ian Wolfe Hugo Schrader
Mr. Myers - the prosecutor Torin Thatcher Werner Peters
Emily Jane French - the murder victim Norma Varden Friedel Schuster
Janet McKenzie - Mrs. French 'housekeeper Una O'Connor Agnes Windeck
Judge in the murder trial Francis Compton Gerd Prager
Inspector Hearne - the investigator Philip Tonge Curt Ackermann
Diana - Leonard's lover Ruta Lee Lis Verhoeven
doctor Jack Raine Kurt Waitzmann

Reviews

Contemporary press reviews

The film was screened in New York and Los Angeles in December 1957 to qualify for the 1958 Academy Awards and opened regularly in US theaters in February 1958. Witness for the prosecution was successful with both critics and audiences, who particularly positively emphasized Billy Wilder's directorial work and the portrayal of Charles Laughton. The film grossed $ 8 million in the United States alone.

Bosley Crowther ( The New York Times ) particularly emphasized the “brilliant” direction by Billy Wilder and the performance of Charles Laughton and Elsa Lanchester. The Los Angeles Times agreed on the criticism of Laughton, who had "a lot of fun" in his role . The film should be seen mainly because of its "insincerity" and it is better than the theatrical version. The hidden allusions and running gags would remind of the work of Ernst Lubitsch and Wilder's previous film Ariane - Liebe am Afternoon . Marlene Dietrich delivers probably the best acting performance in her career. "Marlene is not a Magnani , but she can manage it, which practically amounts to a tour de force [...]" .

The British daily The Times wrote that the prosecution witness was “truly” Charles Laughton's film, which was portrayed in the tradition of the “old legal profession” . She also referred to the achievements of Marlene Dietrich ( "a femme fatale that reaches the top of femininity and doom" ), Una O'Connor ( "a wasp who is looking for a victim to sting in the Old Bailey" ) and Tyrone Power .

The contemporary criticism of the West German film service pointed to the “cunning” and “superbly worked out (e)” story as well as the “directing ability” of Billy Wilder and the achievements of the actors Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich and Charles Laughton. "The film receives an almost artistic status from its high-quality representation, although it is not fundamentally guided by any intellectual, psychological or judicial-critical interests, but only the criminalistic surprise effect."

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung praised Billy Wilder for having achieved “the perfection of crime film” with his “film-dramaturgical somersaults and bold flips” in the difficult setting of the court and drew comparisons to Henri-Georges Clouzot's Die Diabolical . The “mastery of directing” also manifests itself in the “small nuances of play and transformation that inspire the continuity of the plot” . The actors Charles Laughton, Marlene Dietrich, Tyrone Power and Elsa Lanchester also received praise. While Laughton's Sir Wilfrid recalled the figure of Falstaff and Dietrich had made the leap into the serious acting profession (the "change from blue to black angel is complete [...]" ), Lanchester's cheerful nurse Plimsoll was portrayed as "delightfully caricatured" and a compensation for the gloomy game.

Despite the positive criticism of her performance, Marlene Dietrich was denied an Oscar nomination. In general, two reasons are given for this. In a column in the Hollywood Reporter on September 18, 1957 it was alleged that Dietrich had been dubbed in her portrayal as a mysterious, disfigured woman at the train station. In fact, her character had a heavy Cockney accent on the original soundtrack. Producer Arthur Hornblow Jr. and many of Dietrich's friends later stated that it was her voice. Another theory is that Billy Wilder intentionally did not publicly disclose Dietrich's double play in the film so as not to reveal the surprising ending. Maximilian Schell , who made the feature film documentary Marlene in 1984 , was an advocate of the second thesis.

Further

"One of the best and most sophisticated crime films ever made."

- Courier , Vienna

“Rousing and at the same time funny court crime [...]. A masterpiece of its kind thanks to the acting performances, especially by Charles Laughton and Marlene Dietrich, and Billy Wilder's cool, perfect production, which literally maintains the tension of the classic 'courtroom drama' until the last moment. "

- Lexicon of international film

“Beautiful, now bizarre, now ironic crime story. Intelligent, exciting puzzle game. "

- Frankfurter Rundschau , Frankfurt am Main

“Cinematically more conventional story about a subtle murder case with a bang. Atmospherically dense, excellently played, non-stop tension from the courtroom to the bedroom. (Rating 3: stars = very good) "

- Adolf Heinzlmeier , Berndt Schulz : Lexicon "Films on TV" (1990)

“After many surprises, a London murder trial ends in a startling revelation. This and, above all, the high artistry of its actors make the film a detective piece that is well worth seeing, despite its weightlessness. "

- 6000 films. Critical notes from the cinema years 1945 to 1958

"Clever script and brilliant actors."

- Süddeutsche Zeitung , Munich

For Neil Sinyard and Adrian Turner " the film is ultimately not a masterpiece ... because it is too rich in material and Wilder could not concentrate on a few points "

The greatest praise for the film, however, came from Agatha Christie herself: "I found everything that I saw in the film adaptations of my works extremely hideous, except for 'Witness for the Prosecution' by Billy Wilder."

Worth mentioning

  • In his first conversation with his lawyer Sir Wilfrid Robarts, Leonard Vole mentions one of England's most famous legal errors . It is the story of a man who was innocent in prison for years. This case, the case of Adolph Beck , actually did exist.
  • Elsa Lanchester, who plays the pesky nurse, was Laughton's wife in real life.
  • It was the last film Tyrone Power completed. He died while filming Solomon and the Queen of Sheba .
  • In the credits, a speaker asks not to reveal the outcome of the film to friends and acquaintances who do not yet know the film.
  • In a scene showing the first meeting of Leonard Vole and Christine in British-occupied post-war Germany, Marlene Dietrich sings an English version of the song Auf der Reeperbahn at half past twelve with the text I May Never Go Home Anymore by Jack Brooks . The melody comes from the German composer Ralph Arthur Roberts .

Awards

Witness for the prosecution won three awards and was nominated for eight more:

In 2008, the American Film Institute ranked Witness for the Prosecution # 6 in the Top 10 Court Dramas of All Time.

Remake

A remake for television was made in 1982 with Sir Ralph Richardson , Deborah Kerr , Beau Bridges , Donald Pleasence , Wendy Hiller , Diana Rigg and David Langton . The director took Alan Gibson .

Another film adaptation was made in 2016 as an American-British co-production, directed by Julian Jarrold . It stars Billy Howle , Kim Cattrall , Toby Jones and Robert East.

DVD release

  • Witness for the prosecution. "Great film classics" series. MGM Home Entertainment 2007

literature

  • Agatha Christie : Prosecution witness. (Original title: Witness for the Prosecution ). In: crime pieces. Afterword by Friedrich Karl Kaul . 2nd Edition. Henschelverlag, Berlin 1972, OCLC 254651776 .
  • Agatha Christie: Prosecution witness. (Original title: Witness for the Prosecution ). In: dies .: Witness for the prosecution. Fischer-Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 2006, ISBN 3-596-17462-7 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Release certificate for the prosecution witness . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry (PDF). Template: FSK / maintenance / type not set and Par. 1 longer than 4 characters
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g Film profile in the AFI Catalog of Feature Films (English; accessed on December 26, 2011).
  3. ↑ Carl Zuckmayer's War Play "The Devil's General". In: The Times. No. 52732, September 21, 1953, p. 10.
  4. ↑ Winter Garden Theater: "Witness For The Prosecution". In: The Times. No. 52765, October 29, 1953, p. 7.
  5. ↑ The London performance was advertised for the last time in the daily newspaper The Times on November 20, 1954, p. 2.
  6. ^ Witness for the Prosecution in the Internet Broadway Database (accessed December 26, 2012).
  7. ^ New York Drama Critics' Circle Award . In: The Times. April 22, 1955, No. 53201, p. 17.
  8. ^ A b Philip K. Scheuer: 'Witness for the Prosecution'. In: Los Angeles Times. December 15, 1957, pp. E1-E2.
  9. ↑ a b Article by Rob Nixon & Deborah Looney at tcm.com (accessed December 26, 2012).
  10. ↑ a b cf. Witness for the prosecution. In: The large TV feature film lexicon. (CD-ROM). Directmedia Publ., 2006, ISBN 3-89853-036-1 .
  11. ^ Company credits in the Internet Movie Database (accessed December 26, 2011).
  12. ↑ Thomas Bräutigam : Lexicon of film and television synchronization. More than 2000 films and series with their German voice actors etc. Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-89602-289-X , p. 407.
  13. ^ Witness for the prosecution in the German synchronous file
  14. ^ Gene D. Phillips: Some like it Wilder: the life and controversial films of Billy Wilder. Univ. Press of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky. 2010, ISBN 978-0-8131-2570-1 , p. 208.
  15. ↑ Bosley Crowther: Screen: 'Witness for the Prosecution': Laughton Is Starred in Courtroom Drama. In: The New York Times. February 7, 1958, p. 16.
  16. ^ Witness For The Prosecution Mr. Laughton Leads For The Defense. In: The Times. No. 54061, January 29, 1958, p. 5.
  17. ^ Review in film-dienst 11/1958 (accessed via Munzinger Online ).
  18. ↑ Martin Ruppert: The black angel. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. March 1, 1958, p. 2.
  19. ^ Gene D. Phillips: Some like it Wilder: the life and controversial films of Billy Wilder. Univ. Press of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky. 2010, ISBN 978-0-8131-2570-1 , p. 209.
  20. ^ Lexicon of International Films . CD-ROM edition. Systhema, Munich 1997.
  21. ^ Adolf Heinzlmeier, Berndt Schulz: Lexicon "Films on TV" . Extended new edition. Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1990, ISBN 3-89136-392-3 , p. 953.
  22. ↑ 6000 films. Critical notes from the cinema years 1945 to 1958. (= Handbook of Catholic Film Critics. Volume 5). 3. Edition. Verlag Haus Altenberg, Düsseldorf 1963, p. 498.
  23. ↑ Neil Sinyard; Adrian Turner: Billy Wilder's Films. Berlin 1980; quoted here from Georg Seeßlen : Murder in the Cinema: History and Mythology of Detective Films. (= Basics of popular film. 8; Rororo non-fiction book. 7396). Rowohlt, Reinbek 1981, ISBN 3-499-17396-4 , p. 146. (Filmography: Georg Seeßlen; Bibliography: Jürgen Berger)
  24. ↑ defd, in: Prisma. August 1990.