Compulsion [Blu-ray]

Director: Richard Fleischer

Overview

Compulsion is a compelling, stylish thriller, loosely based on the famous 1924 murder trial of thrill-killers Loeb and Leopold, two homosexual students who murdered a young boy to demonstrate their intellectual superiority. Artie Straus (Bradford Dillman) is a sadistic, mother-dominated bully. Judd Steiner (Dean Stockwell) is a submissive, introverted sissy. Having been raised by wealthy, arrogant families, both Artie and Judd consider themselves above conventional morality. Unfeeling and conceited, the boys, after the killing, take delight in offering to aid in finding the culprits. It is this arrogance which leads to their capture and prosecution for the murders. Jonathan Wilk (Orson Welles), playing a Clarence Darrow-like criminal defense attorney, takes on the case, and puts on a defense, without the cooperation of his clients, who will offer no explanation for what they have done. Bradford Dillman gives an outstanding performance, as does Dean Stockwell as the utterly unsympathetic murderers. Orson Welles is flamboyantly imposing as Wilk, who must use all his wits to try to save the boys from execution. Compulsion is a suspenseful courtroom drama, even though most viewers will know the outcome. Tautly directed by Richard Fleischer, the film is an outstanding, believable courtroom drama.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/07/2017
UPC:	0738329207328
Original Release:	1959
Rating:	NR
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[B&W, Wide Screen]
Sound:	[DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	1:43:00
Sales rank:	20,705

Special Features

Audio commentary by film historian Tim Lucas; Trailers

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Orson Welles	Jonathan Wilk
Dean Stockwell	Judd Steiner
Bradford Dillman	Arthur A. Straus
Diane Varsi	Ruth Evans
E.G. Marshall	District Attorney Harold Horn
Martin Milner	Sid Brooks
Richard Anderson	Max Steiner
Robert F. Simon	Lt. Johnson,Actor
Edward Binns	Tom Daly
Robert Burton	Charles Straus
Louise Lorimer	Mrs. Straus
Wilton Graff	Mr. Steiner
Gavin MacLeod	Padua
Terry Becker	Benson
Russ Bender	Edgar Llewellyn
Gerry Lock	Emma
Harry Carter	Detective
Simon Scott	Detective
Voltaire Perkins	Judge
Jack Lomas	Medical Examiner
Peter Brocco	Albert, Steiner's Chauffeur
Alan Carney	Globe Newspaper Editor
Wendell Holmes	Jonas Kessler
Kenner G. Kemp	Juror
Ina Balin	Mike's Girlfriend
Frank Conroy	Actor
Henry Kulky	Waiter
Dayton Lummis	Doctor
Clarence Darrow	Actor
Lionel Newman	Composer

Technical Credits

Richard Murphy

Richard D. Zanuck	Producer
Richard Murphy	Screenwriter
Eugene Grossman	Sound/Sound Designer
Harry M. Leonard	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

The Leopold and Loeb trial of the 1920s captured the popular imagination of the American people for much of the 20th century. The sociopathic notion of two affluent young men committing murder just to prove they could get away with the crime has a nihilistic, modern feel to it, and in many ways it still influences the way we think about crime. It's no surprise, then, that the case has been the basis for three fine films: Alfred Hitchcock's Rope, Richard Fleischer's Compulsion and Tom Kalin's Swoon. Of the three, Compulsion is arguably the best, as it sticks closest to the facts of the case. Fleischer's emphasis is on the courtroom drama, and to that end, he's aided by the outstanding performances of Dean Stockwell and Bradford Dillman as the Leopold and Loeb-derived criminals and Orson Welles as their lawyer, modeled on Clarence Darrow. Welles' impassioned pleas to save the boys from the death penalty -- written by Richard Murphy, though the actor may have been responsible for much of his dialogue -- provide the film with some of its finest moments.