MovieChat Forums > Anatomy of a Murder (1959) Discussion > Bad actor: The Judge

Bad actor: The Judge

posted 17 years ago by rios_119
64 replies | jump to latest

I enjoyed this movie immensely -- especially, Jimmy Stewart's character. But, the character of the judge did not seem right. At first I thought they had chosen a really bad actor to play the judge because he seemed to be reading his lines. But, then I concluded that they had probably chosen a real judge to play the judge, in the mistaken belief that the real judge's quirky, humorous, folksy self would translate well to the screen -- but it did not. I was close. According to IMDb, the part of the judge was played by the real attorney who represented the Army during the Army-McCarthy hearings. They should have hired a real actor.

Did anyone catch Jimmy Stewart's "I'm only a humble country lawyer" remark? I believe this remark was later stolen -- and made famous -- by Senator Sam Ervin, the Chairperson of the Watergate Hearings.

[–] GuyOnTheLeft 10 years ago

This is insane. That judge is one of the most awesome aspects of this movie!

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[–] pittgal49 10 years ago

Jimmy Stewart was the worst character in this movie. How could anyone enjoy this slimeball that sets a murderer free. Loved the judge and he was a real judge.

[–] pilarinhavana 10 years ago

Worst character is not the same as worst actor...Stewart can never be on any "worst" actor list.

[–] thomas-begen-194-976045 10 years ago

I think Welch did a fine job and I'm certainly glad Spencer Tracy didn't take the part.

[–] ipeedaily 9 years ago

Anyone who thinks that old fool Welch acted well or thought he deserved an Oscar nod (hahaha!) is proof of the general idiocy of the movie watching public.

This guy was terrible....an obvious non-actor who is badly attempting to act and it becomes so jarringly noticeable that it throws off all of the court scenes and any other scene he's in.....ANY half assed actor would have been better in the role.....and Tracy, Ives, etc. could have done this role better in their sleep.

[–] Roy_Batty_Nexus6 9 years ago

I thought he played his part brilliantly, and at times he stole the show.

All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain .... Time to die

[–] tango09212 9 years ago

that was a perfect performance of a real judge , the writer who wrote the script nailed the how judges behave , uncanny , you won't find many movie this authentic to real life , including the DA and his xe of the witnesses , his cocky assuredness although most great lawyers are in private practice , if they are any good you move to the defense , the prosecutor was way too good to be a real prosecutor thats my only complaint

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] noveltylibrary 9 years ago

I figured he had to be a real judge too, he was that bad!

[–] Nobody-27 8 years ago

I must admit I am baffled how people manage to see something that was not there... as much as I am late to this party, I was actually quite impressed by the judges performance and am really surprised how anyone could dislike it! He was perfectly relaxed, and believable, and had that great charm that only someone who is either a great actor or perfectly at home in a courtroom could project.

Hiring a person who is not an actor but does the job required for the part in real life is never a mistake. You get a person who has been doing something for so long that they could do it with their eyes closed. You may not get the type of performance you expect, but you will get a true performance only they know how to do. I love that type of authenticity. I can think of many such examples and they all worked wonderfully well:

- Chief of police in "Beverly Hills Cop" - his first role and in real life he was actually chief of police. He nailed that role in BHC

- The karate instructor in "La Femme Nikita". Perfectly believable. He was brought to the set as a consultant, but ended up in the very role he was consulted for.

- George C. Scott. OK, not exactly a newcomer, but prior to acting, he was actually an officer in the army, and that gave him that powerful presence on screen in films where he was an officer (mind you, he was great in any film). Dr. Strangelove comes to mind as my favorite...

And then, there are many films where only amateurs performed in roles which are very close to their real life roles: "Himalaya" where everyone was perfect and where no one was an actor, "Chacun Cherche Son Chat" and so on.

[–] CalibMcBolts 8 years ago

The Judge was a decent enough actor, he didnt need to be an extremely good actor. For what he had to do, he did a fine job

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