Anatomy of a Murder

Nominated for seven Academy Awards® including Best Picture, Director and Actor, this riveting courtroom drama is memorable both for Jimmy Stewart's performance as Paul Biegler, a humble, small town lawyer, and its striking black and white cinematography. Lee Remick portrays Laura, a rape victim whose husband, Ben Gazzara, is accused of murdering her attacker. Biegler reluctantly agrees to come out of early retirement to handle the defense, and finds himself up against city-slicker prosecutor, George C. Scott, whose stirring performance earned him a Best Supporting Actor nomination. Famed producer/director Otto Preminger shot the film entirely on location in Michigan, the locale of the best-selling novel on which the movie is based, which was written by Robert Traver (pseudonym of Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Voelker, who had a small role in the film). The enigmatic characters and intricate plot filled with subtle twists and turns make this a favorite still. As if this all wasn't enough, the film's jazz score was composed by the great Duke Ellington.