Inherit the Wind (1960) ****

I've always been partial to legal dramas, preferring the Order to the Law in the popular Dick Wolf franchise, and mixing that setting with engrossing philosophical concepts, such as science vs. religion, I was immensely looking forward to seeing this film for the first time. It certainly doesn't disappoint with its powerhouse casting of the three leads mixed with snappy, intelligent dialogue that permeates throughout the film. The controversial subject material, based on the real life Scopes Monkey Trial, is still relevant today except there has been a switch in more recent times. Now evolution is the only accepted theory for the creation of the human race in public schools and creationism, or intelligent design, is scrambling to be accepted and taught to the children as well. Viewing the film knowing that over forty years later the debate would be reversed in no way diminishes the film but rather enhances the significance and resonance of the debate. It all builds up to a courtroom showdown between Henry Drummond (Spencer Tracy) and Matthew Harrison Brady (Fredric March) over whether man has the right to question his origins as depicted in the Holy Bible.

Being a lapsed Catholic, I'm inclined to a scientific basis for the origins of the human species and the fanatical fervor of the religious town only serves to strengthen my favoritism for Bertram T. Cates (Dick York) and his defense team which is only comprised of Drummond, the greatest legal mind of our time, and newspaper reporter E.K. Hornbeck (Gene Kelly), an cynical atheist who gets enormous pleasure at poking fun at Heavenly Hillsboro's backward inhabitants and especially Brady, as their newly appointed ringleader. With almost the entire town under Brady's sway, the defense team is granted automatic underdog status which is always a favorite of viewing audiences. Drummond is able to secure several small victories in the courtroom before the trial and already starts to win over some of the townspeople. The prosecution's case is straightforward: Cates broke the law which expressly forbids teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution while the defense proclaims that such a law is against the natural law of man: a free-thinking individual who cannot be forced to repress his own personal beliefs in the face of religious dogma.

For such heady subject matter, the fervor and enthusiasm that the actors portray their roles with ensures that the film never drags or slows. The courtroom scenes are a highlight, with Brady's pomposity and grandstanding for the gallery being overdone by Drummond's low-key sarcasm and passion for justice. Tweaking history slightly, the two opponents have a history together and not one that was always so antagonistic. They were close friends and Drummond even campaigned for Brady's bids for the presidency. After years they have founds themselves on opposite sides of the law with Brady's belief that religion should be held in the highest regards by the populace as the law of the land while Drummond sees it to be the alienable right of every human to make up their own mind. The scene with the two of them talking on the porch, away from the press and the audiences, shows that their relationship is not entirely filled with animosity. The men try to reconcile their differences with Brady trying to win Drummond back over to his side. Drummond, however while not a religious man, only condemns its use for ignorance, bigotry and hate as prerequisites to the golden paradise Brady espouses. The two spend their conversation in rocking chairs which rock slightly out of sync just as the two of them now are.

The fanaticism of the small town people is both shocking and appalling. While it does drive Drummond harder to prove Cates's innocence, it's unfathomable how such a deeply religious community could also be so bloodthirsty. The mob scene with the burning stuffed man at the end of the noose is the best example of this hysteria. Cates is a man on trial for teaching evolution, a minor law considering some of the truly evil criminal acts that can be committed. They are calling for this man to be hanged, along with his legal counsel, for going against the word of God. It's unsettling that good people can be turned into such hostile creatures because ideological differences. I was much like Cates in his surprise when the bottle is thrown at his head. He cannot believe the severity of the response to his actions and how people he has known his entire life could turn so suddenly and viciously on him. Reverend Jeremiah Brown (Claude Akins) even damns Cates's soul to hell, along with his own daughter's, simply for associating and defending her own fiancé.

Brady's downfall ultimately comes from his own bravado and desperation following the exposure of religious hypocrisies by Drummond in the courtroom. Throughout the film he has fed off the love and adoration of the people of Hillsboro. He relishes the attention and spends his time on the stand making wisecracks and pausing for audience laughter. It kills him when they laugh at his expense and his shame drives him to make an impassioned speech following the end of the trial which leads to his own demise. While Brady saw Hillsboro as the final battle ground and buried himself in deep, Drummond was able to succeed by realizing it would never be resolved in Hillsboro. Once he accepts that he can never win, he is able to focus on the appeal which would be in a more favorable environment. It mirrors his statement that Brady has moved away from him by standing still. By seeing Hillsboro as the last stand in the war of religion vs. science, Brady pushes himself to the breaking point.

Favorite moment: Setting up the radio microphone in the courtroom so the verdict could be broadcast over the airwaves, Drummond accidentally says "God" and "Hell" which are prohibited from being spoken on the air. Drummond's incredulity at a tool which should increase human communication and knowledge and already being censored fits perfectly with his character and highlights his more laid back stance now that he has ensured an appeal. While an amusing scene it struck me because George Clooney obviously paid homage to it Leatherheads with a similar scene when a football game is being broadcast for the first time over the radio.