Judgment at Nuremberg

"One thing about Americans, we're not cut out to be occupiers." Who says that courtroom dramas can't be awesome? With an all-star cast that includes Spencer Tracy, Richard Widmark, Burt Lancaster, Marlene Dietrich, William Shatner, Judy Garland, Maximilian Schell (who won a Best Actor Oscar for his role), Montgomery Clift, and Werner Klemperer, Judgment at Nuremberg is at once thrilling, suspenseful, and highly moving, not to mention somewhat disturbing. After World War II, Nazi criminals were brought to trial for the atrocities committed during the Holocaust. Spencer Tracy plays an American judge who is sent to Germany to oversee one of these trials. Schell and the always excellent Widmark play the defense and prosecuting attorneys respectively, while Judy Garland and Montgomery Clift have small but vital roles as witnesses. Lancaster and Klemperer (ironically playing a non-funny Nazi for once) play defendants, and Dietrich and Shatner have moderately large supporting roles.
Although much of the action takes place in a courtroom, there is excellent camera work to be seen, especially as the whole courtroom seems to revolve around the attorneys as they speak. Everyone in the cast gives an incredible performance, and manages to completely make you forget that the men and women here are just actors and actresses (something which is extremely rare in the world of film, at least in my opinion). Although slightly over three hours long, Judgment at Nuremberg will keep you glued to your seat from the overture to the end credits.

Rating: 4/4