The Court-Martial Of Billy Mitchell

1955, Movie, NR, 100 mins

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Yup, low-key and earnest but slow like molasses. Courtroom drama features Coop as the visionary and much-maligned Billy Mitchell who, in 1925, was placed on secret military trial for accusing the Army of being unprepared for invasion and predicting a US bombing by the Japanese. There's not much action aside from the courtroom antics, but the Oscar-nominated Milton Sperling-Emmet Lavery screenplay and the powerful and dignified performance of Cooper might hold you until Steiger's late entrance as a hateful prosecutor sparks proceedings. The many real-life figures--General Douglas MacArthur, Fiorello La Guardia, Admiral William S. Sims, Major Carl Spaatz, President Calvin Coolidge, Major Hap Arnold, General John J. Pershing--are portrayed as walking monuments. Curiously, the film was photographed in CinemaScope, presumably to make the static visuals somehow more cinematic. leave a comment
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The Court-Martial Of Billy Mitchell
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