– LEGAL NEWS PHOTOS BY CYNTHIA PRICE
By Cynthia Price
Legal News
Whether one knows the back story or not, Anatomy of a Murder is a fine film, showing famous director Otto Preminger and an all-star cast at their best.
But there is indeed a back story, one which has been told in these pages before.
Anatomy’s author was John D. Voelker, who took the pen name Robert Traver for all of his works.
Voelker lived in, and loved, the Upper Peninsula. After graduating from the University of Michigan Law School, he briefly practiced in Chicago, but could hardly wait to get back to his hometown of Ishpeming.
Since this was during the Great Depression, it was difficult for Voelker to find work, so he eventually ran for Marquette County Prosecutor, and won, in 1934. He served in that capacity, while also remaining in practice (which was possible at that time), until his defeat in 1950.
He went into private practice as a defense attorney, and turned one of his most intriguing cases into the book Anatomy of a Murder. The story has it that he was sitting around in the UP waiting to see if the book would be accepted for publication, not sure where his next case was coming from, when he found out that an interview he had with Gov. G. Mennen Williams had resulted in his being appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court.
He only served from 1956 to 1959, because in the meantime Anatomy of a Murder had become successful. His royalties amounted to almost $2 million in today’s dollars, and there was a movie underway.
The film was shot entirely on location in the U.P., and parts of the score were contributed by Duke Ellington. It was listed as one of the 12 best courtroom dramas of all time by the American Bar Association, among other accolades.
The story was pretty daring for its time, involving a rape, a lot of violence, and disturbing themes. Jimmy Stewart, who plays the lead, seems cut out for the part of a country lawyer who pretends to be naive but is actually as savvy as they come. Lee Remick is convincing as the wife of a soldier who kills the man who raped her. And George C. Scott, playing the defense attorney early in his career, is a worthy opponent for Stewart, both in acting and in his fictional lawyer role.
The Heartland Independent Film Forum, which showed the film last week at the Harbor Cinema, promotes both the production and distribution of independent films, and, through events such as the screening of Anatomy of a Murder, existing films that they feel need more attention. Founder Roger Rapoport notes that the non-profit also sponsors members-only events to enhance the skills of filmmakers who have joined the organization.
Rapoport is the producer of Waterwalk and Pilot Error, ?both of which have been included in Heartland’s events roster.
Part of what drew a crowd of about 50 out on a Wednesday night was the opportunity to hear the commentary, and ask questions of Muskegon County Prosecutor D.J. Hilson.
– LEGAL NEWS PHOTO BY CYNTHIA PRICE
After viewing the film, Hilson started out by commenting that he was disappointed the film did not show the closing arguments, and audience members nodded their agreement. “It’s all about the gut,” Hilson commented, adding that while he had occasionally misread juries as a whole, he was often able to hone in on the reaction of any one individual on the jury to help him focus his
argument.
There is a pivotal point in the movie where the defense puts a witness on the stand, knowing her very pertinent secret but refraining from asking her about it because it could ruin her reputation. The George C. Scott character, a “big-city” Lansing lawyer who is assisting the prosecutor, goes down the completely wrong path and winds up asking a question that requires her to reveal her secret — which is a severe blow to his case.
Hilson commented, “He broke one of the biggest rules for trial lawyers: never ask a question you don’t know the answer to.”
Audience members asked if Hilson felt the film was realistic. He responded that he thought it was for the most part. In particular, people wanted to know if it would be admissible to bring in a surprise witness (the one mentioned above) at the last minute. Hilson said that due to the right of discovery on both sides, that would be very rare. He recalled a case of his own where some fingerprint evidence did not arrive until the trial had started so he asked the judge to allow bringing it in to trial late. “Of course the defense attorneys can move to quell that, but whether they do or not just depends,” he said.
Event organizer Rebecca McCroskey, herself a paralegal at Warner Norcross and Judd, publicized the showing of Anatomy to lawyers in addition to those who love film, with a view to promoting discussion.
People interested in film can become Heartland Independent Film Forum members. Visit http://heartlandindependentfilmforum.weebly.com for more information.
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