Inherit the Wind Page #12

Synopsis: Teacher B.T. Cates is arrested for teaching Darwin's theories. Famous lawyer Henry Drummond defends him; fundamentalist politician Matthew Brady prosecutes. This is a very thinly disguised rendition of the 1925 "Scopes monkey trial" with debates between Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan taken largely from the transcripts.
Director(s): Stanley Kramer
Production: MGM Home Entertainment
  Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 7 nominations.
 
IMDB:
8.2
Rotten Tomatoes:
92%
NOT RATED
Year:
1960
128 min
5,191 Views


The lord... the lord is my strength!

suppose that a lesser human being...

suppose a Cates or a Darwin

had the audacity to think that

God might whisper to him,

that an un-Brady thought might still be holy

must a man go to prison because he differs

with the self-appointed prophet

extend the testaments.

Let us have a book of Brady.

We shall hex the Pentateuch

and slip you in neatly

between Numbers and Deuteronomy!

N- now, my friends...

Your honor, my followers..

ladies and gentlemen...

The witness is excused!

All of you know what I stand for.

What I believe...

I believe in the truth

of the book of Genesis...

Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy,

Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1st Samuel,

2nd Samuel, 1st Kings, 2nd Kings,

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel...

Court is adjourned until

10:
00 tomorrow morning.

Matt

Matt, dear

let's go home.

Home

Back to the hotel.

Uh.

Who is it

Where is he

I've got to talk to him.

Not now, Rachel. He isn't feeling well.

Yes, now.

He's got to tell Bert it wasn't my fault

Rachel, please be quiet. He's sleeping.

Why should I be quiet

I want the whole world to know

that Matthew Harrison Brady's a fake.

Rachel!

I'm sorry.

I found myself in bed today,

in the middle of the day.

I- I was dreaming

I was in the witness chair...

chained to it.

I kept begging him to let me go.

Oh, Rachel, Rachel, it's been

a nightmare for all of us.

But mine was real.

I turned to your husband for help.

he encouraged me to open up my heart to him,

and then he twisted my words.

He tricked me.

Why why did he do it

I don't know.

I don't know why he did it.

Maybe it meant too much to him.

Maybe he was tired or afraid.

I taught my pupils

that Matthew Harrison Brady

was a great man...

next to God, almost.

What do you want me to teach them now

He's still the same man.

No, if he could do such an evil thing,

then he must be an evil man,

and everything he stands for

must be evil, too.

Oh, stop it! stop it!

Youth can be so pure.

What do you know of good or evil

what do you understand

of the sum of a man's life

He betrayed me.

You betrayed yourself.

You see my husband as a saint,

and so he must be right in everything

he says and does.

and then you see him as a devil,

and everything he says and

does must be wrong.

Well, my husband's neither

a saint nor a devil.

He's just a human being...

and he makes mistakes.

How can you defend him

it's not he I'm defending.

I'm defending the 40 years

I've lived with this man

and watched him carry the burdens

of people like you.

If he's been wrong,

at least he stood for something.

What do you stand for

do you believe in Bertram Cates

I believe in my husband.

What do you believe in

Matt.

I was asleep, but...

What can I do for you, child

I'm not your child any longer,

Mr. Brady...

yours...

or anyone else's.

What...

What did she want, Sarah

Whe's been hurt, Matt.

You hurt her.

Oh, Matt,

you were always a good man.

that's why I loved you,

even from the very beginning.

people said you made mistakes,

wrong decisions.

you could have been president 3 times over,

but I never doubted you, Matt,

because your decisions were honest.

You never sacrificed your

principles just to win.

I didn't mean to hurt her.

Sarah...

Sarah, a victory here

would be a monument to God

that would last a 1,000 years!

but Matt,

every man has to build his own monument.

You can't do it for them, Matt.

If you do, it becomes your monument,

not theirs,

and they'll topple it the minute

they find a flaw in it.

you mean a flaw in me, don't you, Sarah

they turned away from you

this afternoon, Matt.

Ah, they didn't understand.

I'll make them understand.

They'll have to understand.

My speech. Where's my speech

Matt...

I'll make them listen.

Matt!

Where's my speech I must have it!

I'll make them understand!

Matt, please don't get excited.

Here... here it is. I have it all down

on paper here.

Sarah.

It isn't just this case.

It's god himself that's on trial.

They'll... they'll have to listen to me.

They will listen to me.

They'll listen, dear.

Mother, they laughed at me.

Hush, baby.

I can't stand it when they laugh at me.

It's all right, baby.

It's all right.

They laughed.

Baby...

Baby...

Ahem.

Testing, testing,

1, 2, 3, 4.

1, 2, 3, 4,

testing.

Testing, 1, 2, 3, 4.

1, 2, 3, 4

You brought me some more clean shirts

Bert, I left my father.

I messed things up pretty badly

for us, didn't I

It wasn't your fault, Rach.

I know how Brady can twist things...

It wasn't his fault.

I should have done this from the beginning.

I- I want...

Rach...

You don't have to say it.

I'm just glad you're here.

Come on, you sit down.

Well, welcome back to our side, Miss Brown.

What's that

Enunciator

doing a broadcast

got a direct wire to WGN, chicago.

as soon as the jury returns,

we'll broadcast the verdict.

Mmm, radio.

God, that's going to break down

a lot of walls.

You're not supposed to say

"God" on the radio.

Why the hell not

You're not supposed to say "hell," either

This is going to be a barren

source of amusement.

Well, Colonel...

There's a little toy you'll never

have any use for,

not with your lungs.

Uh, the radio.

You whisper into it,

and it shouts at a million people

through loudspeakers.

What do you think

Can you tell from their faces

Everybody rise.

Hear ye, hear ye. court will reconvene

in the case of the State v. Bertram Cates.

All right. Go ahead

Ladies and gentlemen,

this is Harry Esterbrook

speaking to you from the courthouse

here in Hillsboro,

where the jury has returned

to render its verdict

in the historic Hillsboro monkey trial case.

The judge has taken the bench,

in a few moments, we will know

whether Bertram Cates

will be found innocent or guilty.

I wish I could describe the tension,

in this courtroom today,

The verbal and legal elements...

one moment, please.

Please stand by.

I've been on the phone

with the lieutenant governor all morning.

The newspapers haven't been very kind to us.

The boys in the capital seem to think

it wouldn't do any harm

if you was to let this whole

thing kind of... simmer down.

Well now, wait a minute, Jason,

I have an obligation to the law.

Of course you have, Merle,

but... but don't forget,

November's not too far off.

Gentlemen of the jury,

have you reached a verdict

Yes, sir... er, your honor... w-we have.

The, uh, verdi ct of the jury

is unanimous...

Bertram Cates is found guilty as charged.

And so, ladies and gentleman,

you have heard the verdict

as read by presiding Judge Coffey.

Bertram Cates, schoolteacher,

keystone, and defendant

in one of the greatest ethical contests

known to our country,

Bertram Cates has been found guilty.

The law has been satisfied.

But what profound repercussions

of what has happened in this courtroom

will be known only to the future.

Quiet, please.

Order.

Stand by, please.

This court is still in session

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Nedrick Young

Nedrick Young (March 23, 1914 – September 16, 1968), also known by the pseudonym Nathan E. Douglas, was an actor and screenwriter often blacklisted during the 1950s and 1960s. He is credited with writing the screenplay for Jailhouse Rock in 1957, which starred Elvis Presley. Young was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition to screenwriting, he also took on an acting role in various feature-length films during the period 1943–1966. He was married to actress Elizabeth MacRae.Young died from a heart attack at the age of 54. more…

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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