Top 50 Actresses, #18 - Marlene Dietrich: "Witness for the Prosecution" (1957)

Movie Stats:
Released 1957 (USA)
American, in English
Director - Billy Wilder
Stars - Charles Laughton, Marlene Dietrich, Tyrone Power

Plot Summary:
Recently returned to work after a heart attack, barrister Sir Wilfrid Roberts (Laughton) takes on a criminal case against the wishes of his doctors, that of accused murderer Leonard Vole (Power), whose wife Christine (Dietrich) is playing an angle Roberts doesn’t quite understand.

Warnings:
Sexual harassment; minor violence.

Bad Stuff:
I’m not a big fan of courtroom dramas. I usually find them simultaneously boring and histrionic/overblown.

I didn’t care for the soundtrack. It didn’t fit the film.

Good Stuff:
The acting is out of this world. Everyone is so good that it’s impossible to single any one person out.

I loved the “big twist.” Quite frankly, it makes the film.

I enjoyed that none of the main characters are who they seem to be on the surface. They all have depth that is slowly revealed through the course of the film.

About the Performance:
Dietrich is so good that it’s impossible to understand how good she is until the twist is revealed. For most of the film, I resented her representation. It seemed such a standard, BS portrayal of a German woman in the wake of WWII: the aloof, unfeeling ice queen. Then the twist happened and it was like, “Ohhhh, that’s exactly how I was supposed to feel!” There is no amount of praise I could heap on her that would be enough. This is a truly excellent performance.

Other performances of Dietrich’s I’ve reviewed: Judgment at Nuremberg.

The Verdict:
Truthfully, I spent most of the film feeling so-so about it. I really liked the beginning, which showcases powerhouse performances by Laughton and Power, but then it got to the trial part. As I said above, I don’t really care for courtroom dramas. They often rehash details that were discussed earlier in the film/show/book, hence making them boring, while at the same time featuring a bunch of grandstanding, which doesn’t happen in real-life trials, hence making them both overblown and unrealistic. So I was suffering through that part of the film. And then came the twist and everything clicked into place and I thought to myself, “This is one of the most masterful stories I’ve ever seen.” I was completely snowed; never saw the ending coming, and that’s a rare feat. The trial portion of the film is Dietrich’s time to shine, and shine she does. This is one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time.

I give it 4.5 stars.