Trial (1955)
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73% of users liked it
(145 ratings)
Adapted by Don M. Mankiewicz from his own novel, Trial is a surprisingly timely story of how justice can sometimes be compromised by "special interests". It all begins when Mexican youth Angelo Chavez (Rafael Campos) is placed on trial for the murder of a white teenaged girl. Battling the… More Adapted by Don M. Mankiewicz from his own novel, Trial is a surprisingly timely story of how justice can sometimes be compromised by "special interests". It all begins when Mexican youth Angelo Chavez (Rafael Campos) is placed on trial for the murder of a white teenaged girl. Battling the lynch-mob mentality in and out of the courtroom is relatively inexperienced defense attorney David Blake (Glenn Ford). Believing that anything done on behalf of his client is for the common good, Blake approves the organization of an "Angelo Chavez Society" to pay the boy's court costs and ostensibly see that justice is done in the face of small-town prejudice. Soon, however, Blake discovers that both he and his client are being used as dupes by a Communist lawyer, who hopes that Chavez will be found guilty and executed, thereby creating a martyr for the Red cause. Much was made in 1955 of the fact that the presiding judge is a black man, played by Juano Hernandez. A bit creaky at times, Trial nonetheless still packs a wallop when shown today. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Mark Robson
- Genres
- Drama, Classics
- In Theaters
- Oct 7, 1955 Wide
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Cast
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Glenn Ford
as David Blake
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Dorothy McGuire
as Abbe Nyle
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Arthur Kennedy
as Barney Castle
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John Hodiak
as John J. Armstrong
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Katy Jurado
as Consuela Chavez
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Rafael Campos
as Angel Chavez
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Juano Hernandez
as Judge Theodore Motley
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Catherine Neilson
as Washerwoman
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Robert Middleton
as A.S. "Fats" Sanders
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Rodney Bell
as Lew Bardman
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Robert Bice
as Abbott
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Whit Bissell
as Sam Wiltse
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Frank Cady
as Canford
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Elisha Cook Jr.
as Finn
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Frank Ferguson
as Kiley
- Robert Forrest
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Richard Gaines
as Dr. Schacter
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Everett Glass
as Dean
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Paul Guilfoyle
as Cap Grant
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Percy Helton
as Youval
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John Hoyt
as Ralph Castillo
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Barry Kelley
as Jim Backett
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David Leonard
as County Clerk
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Mitchell Lewis
as Jury Foreman
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Mort Mills
as Reporter
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Grandon Rhodes
as Terry Bliss
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Charles Tannen
as Bailiff
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James Todd
as Minister
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Vince Townsend Jr.
as Dr. Abraham Tenfold
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Frank Wilcox
as Lawyer No. 2
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Wilson Wood
as Checker
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Sheb Wooley
as Butteridge
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Michael Dugan
as Pine
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John Maxwell
as Benedict
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Richard Tyler
as Johnson
- John Lyons
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Charlotte Lawrence
as Mrs. Webson
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Ann Lee
as Gail Wiltse
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John Rosser
as Assistant District Attorney
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Charles Evans
as Lawyer No. 1
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Dorothy Green
as Mrs. Ackerman