Inherit the Wind (1960)

Director:

Stanley Kramer

Writers (WGA):

Jerome Lawrence (play) and
Robert E. Lee (play) ...

Release Date:

1 November 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History

Tagline:

It's all about the monkey trial that rocked America.

Plot:

Based on a real-life case in 1925, two great lawyers argue the case for and against a science teacher accused of the crime of teaching evolution.

Plot Keywords:

Heavenly Hills | Reporter | Engagement | Politician | Street Vendor

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Spencer Tracy	...	Henry Drummond
Fredric March	...	Matthew Harrison Brady
Gene Kelly	...	E. K. Hornbeck
Dick York	...	Bertram T. Cates
Donna Anderson	...	Rachel Brown
Harry Morgan	...	Judge Mel Coffey
Claude Akins	...	Rev. Jeremiah Brown
Elliott Reid	...	Prosecutor Tom Davenport
Paul Hartman	...	Deputy Horace Meeker - Bailiff
Philip Coolidge	...	Mayor Jason Carter
Jimmy Boyd	...	Howard - Biology Student
Noah Beery Jr.	...	John Stebbins
Norman Fell	...	WGN Radio Technician
Gordon Polk	...	George Sillers - Juror Accepted
Hope Summers	...	Mrs. Krebs - Righteous Townswoman

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Approved | USA:PG (re-rating) | UK:U | Australia:G | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:11

Company:

Stanley Kramer Productions

Trivia:

Fredric March and Spencer Tracy both played the dual roles of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 1931 (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931)) and 1941 (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)) respectively. March received an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: As Matthew Brady ends his arrival speech to a crowd of supporters on the street, the 'old time religion' song is sung by the throng, but their lips are completely out of sync with the soundtrack.

Quotes:

Judge: [after Drummond asks the judge for permission to withdraw form the case] Colonel Drummond, what reasons can you possibly have?
Henry Drummond: [Indicates the crowd] Well, there are two hundred of them.
[Crowd reacts angrily]
Henry Drummond: And if that's not enough there's one more. I think my client has already been found guilty.
Matthew Harrison Brady: [Rises] Is Mr. Drummond saying that this expression of an honest emotion will in any way influence the court's impartial administration of the law?
Henry Drummond: I say that you cannot administer a wicked law impartially. You can only destroy, you can only punish. And I warn you, that a wicked law, like cholera, destroys every one it touches. Its upholders as well as its defiers.
Judge: Colonel Drummond...
Henry Drummond: Can't you understand? That if you take a law like evolution and you make it a crime to teach it in the public schools, tomorrow you can make it a crime to teach it in the private schools? And tomorrow you may make it a crime to read about it. And soon you may ban books and newspapers. And then you may turn Catholic against Protestant, and Protestant against Protestant, and try to foist your own religion upon the mind of man. If you can do one, you can do the other. Because fanaticism and ignorance is forever busy, and needs feeding. And soon, your Honor, with banners flying and with drums beating we'll be marching backward, BACKWARD, through the glorious ages of that Sixteenth Century when bigots burned the man who dared bring enlightenment and intelligence to the human mind!
Judge: I hope counsel does not mean to imply that this court is bigoted.
Henry Drummond: Well, your honor has the right to hope.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Goodbye Girl (2004) (TV)

Soundtrack:

(Give Me That) Old Time Religion

A Towering Masterpiece of American Cinema

To see brilliant acting at by well-seasoned professionals at their very peak, rent or buy this great American film classic. Timing that is impeccable, nuance as subtle as could be, bravura declamations that are almost stunning in their power and intensity--this film has it all. It should be studied and analyzed by any serious actor in the profession. (It should also be studied and analyzed by any trial attorney as well!) Who'da thought that Fredric March's raging bull

personality could at times be so touching and tragic--or that Spencer Tracy's character should show such emotional and heartfelt depth when he is simply

grilling witnesses on the stand. The trial is the very heart of the movie--and yet it is supported by a wealth of early 20th century Americana--the fire-and- brimstone preacher, the look and feel of that hot Tennessee Summer, the

boistrous singing of "Gimme that Ole Time Religion" that makes the audience

want to join right in, these are all terrific details that add to the keen enjoyment of this film. But the trial's the thing. And it is riveting!