EugeniaH

*As for the ones that DON'T work for me, I've put them out of my mind so far I can't think of them. Maybe the courtroom footage in HENRY FONDA'S "ABE LINCOLN" movie.* Why that movie, Sepiatone? (Not to put you on the spot; I just thought it would be fun to talk more about the opposite point of view, as bundie did earlier in the thread.)

*I don't want us to do a spoiler for Eugenia since she'll be seeing the film for the first time tonite.* Lav - I've seen this film many times, but haven't seen it in years. Looking forward to seeing it again.

I haven't seen *Tootsie* in many years. My mom adored this film. I'll definitely be re-watching tonight.

Maybe just the "original" Groucho, where Marx got his name. Supposedly "Groucho" was taken from a comic strip called "Sherlocko the Monk".

*You can't handle the truth!* Yes, Jake, you can't think of a courtroom in movies without remembering Jack Nicholson. This quote was running through my mind now and then. I always saw this one short blip on TV but I've never seen all of "A Few Good Men", so I never knew what he said beyond this tag line... Thanks for the more complete version!

And speaking of Spencer Tracy "court" movies, there's also *Inherit the Wind*.

*There's always military trials- The Caine Mutiny when Bogey breaks down.* Thank you, Lav, this one completely slipped my mind. It's actually on my DVD wish list too, lol...

Bundie, really interesting post, thank you! **** I was debating whether or not to use *12 Angry Men* as a favorite, since the movie takes place in a jury room and not a courtroom, but I think it deserves a mention. The story is played out (mostly) in one room, but the character studies are so good that you're engaged from beginning to end.

"Oh, he's pixilated alright." Lol, I love that word "pixilated"! I think it was a common term back then because I remember hearing it somewhere else (The Little Rascals, maybe?).

Great answers, everyone. For the funniest courtroom scene, I vote for Carole Lombard and Fred MacMurray in *True Confession*. And of course, who can forget the sweet courtroom scene in *The Awful Truth*, with the Warriners fighting over the custody of Mr. Smith? Edited by: EugeniaH - Unbelievably, I had posted "The Whole Truth" instead of "The Awful Truth". I must be thinking of courtroom scenes - "Do you swear to tell... the whole truth..." Lol...

*I also like the twist in the court scene in Primal Fear (has Edward Norton ever been better?)* Wonderful, lzcutter! I was going to put that down but I thought it would be "too recent". Glad you mentioned it. That last scene with Edward Norton was terrifying...

Some further thoughts I had about the courtroom scene in "Each Dawn I Die": Cagney is convicted of being drunk while driving the car that killed 3 people. In truth, Cagney was knocked out and alcohol was poured over his head before they let him go in the moving car. Why wasn't this more fully investigated? The police just grab him and haul him off. They never even gave Cagney a breathalyzer test (that is, if they had those back then). With the superficial evidence they just throw him in jail... ?:|

This is a thread I've been thinking of starting for a while. As I'm sitting here tonight watching "Each Dawn I Die", at the point of Jimmy Cagney's trial I was once again struck by just how many movies feature courtroom scenes, in multiple genres. It's probably one of the most common plot devices in film. There are trial scenes as a small part of the storyline, and entire movies centered around trials. Some are great, others are unexciting or trite. Here are three that stand out to me as particularly good: 1) "A Place in the Sun": A terrified George Eastman sits on the stand. A passionate Assistant District Attorney Frank Marlowe stands inside the boat brought into the courtroom, angrily accusing Eastman of murdering his girlfriend, dramatizing how he might have killed her by strongly bringing an oar crashing down. Terrific! 2) "Witness for the Prosecution": Exciting and well acted, with surprising twists and turns. Love Charles Laughton, love Tyrone Power. Marlene Dietrich was great, too. 3) "To Kill a Mockingbird": So much has already been said about this movie - it's simply a classic. What are your favorites? Or which trial scenes "don't work"?

Though the role was minor I enjoyed Nancy Culp as Amy the maid in *Forever Darling*. At one point Natalie Schafer, as Lucille Ball's cousin, makes snooty remarks about Amy's behavior, and when the Desi Arnaz character defends her, Amy gives Natalie's character a "Hah!" nod that's hilarious. I wish I was more descriptive, but this short-term pairing of Schafer and Culp was great.

*Sort of like Woody Allen and Soon-Yi?* ;-) Lol! Poor choice of words on my part. :^0 Yes, Myrna Loy was a real you-know-what in that movie...

The film *Emma* is all about a maid (as played by Marie Dressler), who marries her boss and is turned on by his children. I was kind of touched by it.

I was going to mention Eric Blore too. I saw him again last night in *It's Love I'm After*, as Digges the valet. Basil Underwood: "Nobody loves me!" Digges: "I love you, sir!" :^0

I'm not sure if you mean to mention only butlers in this thread, but if we're talking also about maids, I want to give a big salute to the always-wonderful Hattie McDaniel, with her fiesty ripostes. Her famous quote was, "I'd rather play a maid than be one."

This was a familiar expression in my family (um... yeah). I looked up the definition for y'all: http://ask.yahoo.com/20060116.html

Funny, Dargo, one of mongo's pictures sort of inspired me, too. David Lean: Edward Binns:

I don't want to say that I immediately recognized Katharine Hepburn's rear end, but I guess this was the case...

Is this from "Pat and Mike"?

Don't be wayward Vote for Susan Hayward (She gets my vote, too!)

*246* Ollie tried hard to hide the fact that he secretly enjoyed wearing women's furs.

*246*