SHADOWLAND
The emotional otherworlds of classic cinema. Unspooling the ribbon of dreams every Sunday afternoon.
Films in this Series
Sidney Lumet
96 minutes
Following closing arguments in a capital murder trial, 12 jurors—all men, all strangers—retreat to a sweltering deliberation room to determine the fate of a teenage boy. A guilty verdict means death. Eleven are ready to convict—until one juror (Henry Fonda, also the film’s producer) raises quiet, persistent doubts. As tempers flare and the clock ticks, the group is forced to reckon not just with the facts of the case, but with their own assumptions, biases, and buried grievances. Adapted from Reginald Rose’s teleplay, Sidney Lumet’s blistering debut feature transforms civic duty into a pressure cooker of ideological tension. It remains, nearly 70 years later, a master class in confined-space suspense and superbly performed drama.
Stanley Kubrick
88 minutes
Stanley Kubrick's PATHS OF GLORY is among the most powerful antiwar films ever made. A fiery Kirk Douglas stars as a World War I French colonel who goes head-to-head with the army’s ruthless top brass when his men are accused of cowardice after being unable to carry out an impossible mission. This haunting, exquisitely photographed dissection of the military machine in all its absurdity and capacity for dehumanization (a theme Kubrick would continue to explore throughout his career) is assembled with its legendary director’s customary precision, from its tense trench warfare sequences to its gripping courtroom climax to its ravaging final scene.
Billy Wilder
116 minutes
When a wealthy widow is found murdered, the curmudgeonly, brilliant barrister Wilfrid Robards (Charles Laughton), agrees to defend the suspect Leonard Vole. As the trial unfolds, Leonard’s wife, the inscrutable Christine (Marlene Dietrich) takes the stand, and the twists begin in an airy game of guile and deceit. Based on an Agatha Christie play - who called it the best adaptation for the cinema of any of her works - Billy Wilder’s WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION is a gripping courtroom drama, a pitch-perfect comedy, and an acting masterclass - the shocking ending is the cherry on top of a flawless film. As you catch your breath, over the credits, a friendly voice is heard, “The management of this theater suggests that for the greater entertainment of your friends who have not yet seen the picture you will not divulge to anyone the secret of the ending of WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION.” Case closed!
Otto Preminger
160 minutes
One of the best courtroom movies ever made. James Stewart plays an Upper Peninsula of Michigan lawyer drawn out of retirement to represent an Army Lieutenant charged with murder. The Lieutenant admits to the crime despite having no memory of committing it, and Stewart’s character is given the unenviable task of mounting an “irresistible impulse” defense. The contrast between the scandal and the wholesome, small-town setting in which it’s discussed is perfectly realized by director Otto Preminger. The director constantly pushed the boundaries of what could be depicted onscreen, and ANATOMY OF A MURDER represents the platonic ideal in terms of blending entertainment with social commentary. Stewart earned a fifth and final Oscar nomination for his work here, but he’s given stiff competition from George C. Scott, Ben Gazzara and jazz luminary Duke Ellington, who also composed the score.
