TRIAL, THE (1962)

(December 1962, U.S.)

Those of us who may worship CITIZEN KANE as not only one of the best films ever made, as well as the best of Orson Welles's distinguished career, may be surprised to learn that Welles himself declared his version of Franz Kafka's THE TRIAL the best film he ever made. Film fans who don't follow Welles too closely may easily dismiss THE TRIAL as a less important example of his work. The film itself has fallen into the public domain over the years, so it's one of those films that could really stand a good digital remastering, as even the best copy available on DVD is still grainy (on the other, that may be part of the appeal that makes it so visually special).

The film begins with Welles narrating Kafka's own words of "Before the Law" to scenes of artistic pinscreen. The story's protaganist, Josef K., is played by Anthony Perkins in what's surely his most nervous role since Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO. Josef K. is an office bureaucrat who is awakened in his apartment bed one morning by a mysterious man in a suit, who accuses him of a crime that's never specified. Josef assumes the glib man is a police officer, but the intruder never clearly identifies himself and ignores Josef's demand to produce any proper identification. Additional detectives enter the room and inform Josef that he's under arrest; again, no specific charges are described. Three of Josef's co-workers are also discovered on the scene collecting evidence regarding the unstated crime. Despite his repeated please, Josef is not informed of or charged with any specific crime, nor is he formally taken into custody.

At his office, which is visually depicted as an endless and mindless factory of desks placed in perfect symmetry, Josef's supervisor suspects he has been having an improper affair with his teenage female cousin. At the opera that night, Josef is abducted by the police inspector and brought to a courtroom, where he continues to attempt (in vain) to confront the still-unspecified charges against him. He eventually consults with law advocate Albert Hastler (played by Orson Welles himself). The interview proves ineffective, and Josef is soon brought before a room filled with condemned men awaiting trial. All attempts at discovering what is happening to Josef and why prove useless. Seeking refuse in a cathedral, he learns from a priest that he's (Josef) been condemned to death (Hastler appears again to confirm the priest's news). Josef is apprehended by two executioners and brought to an abandoned quarry pit, where he's forced to remove his clothing. A knife is passed back and forth to decide who will execute Josef, before handing it to Josef himself, who refuses to take his own life. He's left alone in the quarry and is finally killed when dynamite is thrown into the pit. The final shot is an explosion heard from a distance as smoke fills the air.

Despite the age and available picture quality of THE TRIAL, it is nonetheless an important piece of work for its black and white cinematography and scenic design, often including disorienting camera angles and an unconventional use of camera focus and inventive lighting. While it may be regarded as an incomprehensible piece of work, it remains, in my opinion, a lasting effect to Welles's filmmaking genius, including his trademark use of overlapping dialogue and use of multiple perspectives with foreground and background elements. It's confusing, yes, and perhaps not for all cinematic tastes, but if cinema were always that simple, it wouldn't be interesting, and it wouldn't be fun (just goes to show you what I personally consider interesting and fun).

Favorite line or dialogue"

Albert Hastler: "It's true, you know. Accused men are attractive. Not that being accused makes any immediate change in a man's personal appearance. But if you've got the right eye for these things, you can pick out an accused man in the largest crowd. It's just something about them, something attractive."