The read
It runs a compact 1h 30m.
Synopsis
A young man, Bert Cates, is arrested in a small Bible Belt town for teaching the theory of Evolution in the public school. Two of the finest legal minds in the U.S. are called to the trial: Henry Drummond for the defense, and Matthew Harrison Brady for the prosecution. The trial proceeds on three levels, the guilt or innocence of Cates, the issue of the Bible vs. Darwin, and finally, the personal confrontation between Drummond and Brady.
Ratings
IMDb8.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes93%
2 audience votes
Key crew
- Robert HartungScreenplay
- George SchaeferDirector
Cast
- Melvyn DouglasHenry Drummond
- Ed BegleyMatthew Harrison Brady
- Diane BakerRachel Brown
- Murray HamiltonE.K. Hornbeck
- John RandolphRev. Brown
- Adrienne KingMelinda
- Charles WhiteBollinger
- Burt BrinckerhoffBert Cates
- Norman WrightTownsman
- Robert BreenElijah
- Fred BurrellDavenport
- Doug ChapinHoward
Themes
courttheater playevolution