The Trial

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Alec B Welles stages this beautifully and despite the fact that it's a Kafka adaptation, the movie feels totally accessible while not betraying the source material. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/05/25 Full Review Hugh J Although slow at times Orson Welles does well enough to bring Kafka's most arguably real dystopian novel to the silver screen. He took an appropriate amount of liberties to make the movie his own while staying true to the source material to make a great adaptation. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/08/24 Full Review Camero W It was kinda hard to watch at certain points because I thought it would never end like a nightmare. The acting was spot on. Shots were crazy. The way that the film made things look very large and very small reminded me of Alice in Wonderland. Great film. Not for the faint of heart or people with short attention spans. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/08/24 Full Review Teddy B Franz Kafka's story may be slightly abstracted (to put it lightly), but his ideas and views on the futility and stupidity of society are translated effortlessly through Orson Welle's carefully crafted visuals and tone as well as a fittingly befuddled performance from Anthony Perkins. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/16/24 Full Review Leaburn O Starts well, staying faithful to the book and depicting many of the scenes very impressively. Loses its way further along sadly. Worth a watch though given the legendary status of the novel. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 10/29/23 Full Review Matthew D Justice is impossible within a dream. Director Orson Welles' surrealist legal drama The Trial (1962) is bizarre, hard to follow, and entertaining. The Trial is truly absurd and intense with a dreamlike quality. Welles' strange direction captures the dreamy quality of surrealist author Franz Kafka's odd writing. His film noir aesthetics create a dark mood, but the constantly changing scenario makes this wrong man legal drama into a surrealist nightmare. You are unlikely to receive justice in your life, but are certainly barred from justice within a dream. Welles' direction uses weird low angles and shifting perspectives for a truly unusual tone. The Trial is funny, gripping, and ever confusing, but it is what you make of it. Orson Welles paves the way for other dreamy surrealist directors David Lynch and David Cronenberg. I kept thinking of Lynch's Eraserhead, Cronenberg's Naked Lunch, or even Martin Scorsese's After Hours. Writer Orson Welles adapts Franz Kafka's novel with a crazy delight. He throws out facts to portray the oppressive government and legal system that drags people down in the courts. The philosophical concepts are dense and highly interpretative, but the jokes of how strange everything is in every scene is entertaining. Editors Orson Welles, Frederick Muller, and Yvonne Martin use careful cuts to craft long takes and shocking dream sequence after dream sequence. You can never tell what's real at the office or the courtroom. Furthermore, I love the long panning shots from cinematographer Edmond Richard. Under Orson Welles' sterling command the camera shifts angles and does the sweeping movements. The shadowy black and white shots are striking. Few films are as ambitious in the filmmaking for the typewriters crackling in the office or strange apartments. The low camera following Perkins all over is really engaging. American actor Anthony Perkins is so strange as the odd hero Josef K. He's obviously named after Kafka for the K. I like Perkins' performance that ranges from straight laced seriousness to hysterical indignation at these strange, surrealist events. You see how he's gradually bothered to madness by these mysterious accusations. His accusations of bribes and corruption to false allegations is funny. French actress Jeanne Moreau is alluring and amusing as Perkins' sultry neighbor Marika Bürstner. Her outraged attitude and tired flirting is fun opposite Perkins. German actress Romy Schneider is pretty as Orson's caring and attentive nurse Leni. She is seductive and alluring like Moreau in The Trial. Italian actor Arnoldo Foà's forlorn and blunt Inspector A is really engaging. His morbid attitude places fear and doubt in Perkins' mind. American icon Orson Welles himself is hilarious as the imposing figure of Albert Hastler the Advocate. His booming voice is intimidating as his fierce exclamations in the courts. Russian actor Akim Tamiroff is fun as the portly Bloch. French actress Madeleine Robinson is enjoyable as the landlady Mrs. Grubach. Production designer Jean Mandaroux makes a huge warehouse office, tight courtroom, and strange sets to feel even more overbearing. Composer Jean Ledrut's melancholic organ music for The Trial's film score is excellent. The sorrowful string symphony fits The Trial's hopeless atmosphere. Sound designers Jacques Lebreton, Guy Villette, and Julien Coutelier keep everything quiet except footsteps and voices. You can only hear ambient typing and machines in the backdrop. Costume designer Helen Thibault creates fitted suits, designer coats for the actresses, and courtroom uniforms for the lawyers. Makeup artist Louis Dor does a great job of doing up faces. In conclusion, The Trial is erratic and amusing for 119 minutes of strange surrealism from the master director Orson Welles. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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