MovieChat Forums > Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) Discussion > The Irony of Maximilian Schell

The Irony of Maximilian Schell


He was in both the play and the movie and even though I haven't seen the play he must have been great because he was the only one used that was in the play. In the play he had the role that Burt Lancaster had in Janning. Of course we know he was the defense attorney in the movie and he was great in it.

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I double check again and he played Janning in the Broadway play but in the tv Playhouse 90 play he played the defense attorney. My guess is that in the play he must have been made to look older because he was only in his late 20s and of course he could be made to look older and get away with it since the audience didn't have close ups. But in the tv production they put him as the defense attorney probably because he would have appeared in close ups. Janning would have been probably in his late 50s or early 60s which is why Burt Lancaster was made to look older. Thank goodness for the change for Schell because he was great as the defense attorney. I sure would like to see that Playhouse 90 program though.

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I sure would like to see that Playhouse 90 program though.

Oh God, yes!
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"Maybe I should go alone"
- Quint, Jaws.

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I would like to see it too tonyhu. I also found out that in 2001 (40 years after the movie was made) that Abby Mann adopted the play for a production on Broadway and had Shell playing the lead judge (Judge Haywood). So over his lifetime Shell has played 3 different roles in the movie and plays.

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Man come to think of it I wish I could have seen the Broadway play before the movie came out. Of course I would hope we get to see the Playhouse 90 version. I also would have liked to have seen the play that came out in 2001.

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No Schell did not play Judge Heywood in the 2001 Broadway production. He played Ernst Janning. George Grizzard played Judge Heywood. There was never a Broadway version of Judgment at Nuremberg prior to this production in 2001. The TV Play on Playhouse 90 was it's premier production.

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You better check again. Maximilian Schell was about 70 years old when he performed the role of Janning on Broadway in 2001.

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It's him. Max was offered his choice of roles. He chose Janning. Here's a link to an article at playbill.com about the play, and his role as Janning. http://www.playbill.com/features/article/65056-Final-Judgment-Maximilian-Schell-Returns-to-Nuremberg-on-Broadway.

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You can buy the Playhouse 90 version for $6.99...I live in LA and shipping would be $6.00 for me.

http://classicmoviesdvd.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2477[url]





I had the chance to work with Michael Jackson who was as brilliant as they come.
Tommy Mottola

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Well, I think that Rolfe is much the more interesting role, though perhaps it was only Schell that made it so.

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That was probably Why He won for Best Actor, because He did the Stage Production. I didn't know that.

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[deleted]

No, he won for Best Actor because he gave a spectacular performance. 

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Nothing to see here, move along.

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