Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb were two intellectually gifted, extremely wealthy young men of 1920s Chicago--but they were also highly neurotic. In 1924 their twisted relationship exploded into one of the most infamous crimes of the era: largely in order to demonstrate their supposed intellectual superiority, they kidnapped and murdered fourteen year old Bobby Franks. But their "perfect crime" was not quite as perfect as they had thought: it quickly unraveled, and with the celebrated Clarence Darrow appearing for the defense the court case became as legendary as the crime.
The 1959 film COMPULSION, based on the Leopold-Loeb case, had a great deal going for it. The cast was superior and included a Hollywood legend; director Richard Fleischer was a rock-solid craftsman; production values from cinematography to composer to costumer were in experienced and capable hands. But the film ran afoul of two issues: censorship codes of the day, which effectively prevented a no-holds-barred re-telling of the case, and the fact that Nathan Leopold was still very much alive.
The result was a script that transformed Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb into characters named 'Judd Steiner' and 'Artie Straus' and which renamed Clarence Darrow 'Jonathan Wilk'--and which can only imply in vaguest possible terms aspects of the case that most find particularly fascinating. With so much detail thrown out, the result is a film that divides into two rather awkwardly joined parts.
The first half of the film focuses on Steiner and Straus. The cast is indeed exceptional, with Dean Stockwell and Bradford Dillman extremely effective and receiving memorable support from the likes of Diane Varsi and Martin Milner. Still, it is more a matter of implication rather than specification, and even the crime itself is somewhat glossed over. The second half of the film brings in Orson Wells as attorney Wilk and unexpectedly shifts focus away from the killers and their crime, leaving Wells to dominate the screen with a series of powerful speeches. The ending of the film is remarkably abrupt and fails to tie the film together.
When all is said and done, COMPULSION never quite manages to live up to its potential. The memorable performances and stylish look of the film make it more than worth seeing, but any one who is familiar with the Leopold-Loeb case will be disappointed--and even those who aren't will likely consider that one viewing is enough. At present the film is only available to the homemarket on video in a pan-and-scan version that doesn't help it along. Recommended--but only just.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
The 1959 film COMPULSION, based on the Leopold-Loeb case, had a great deal going for it. The cast was superior and included a Hollywood legend; director Richard Fleischer was a rock-solid craftsman; production values from cinematography to composer to costumer were in experienced and capable hands. But the film ran afoul of two issues: censorship codes of the day, which effectively prevented a no-holds-barred re-telling of the case, and the fact that Nathan Leopold was still very much alive.
The result was a script that transformed Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb into characters named 'Judd Steiner' and 'Artie Straus' and which renamed Clarence Darrow 'Jonathan Wilk'--and which can only imply in vaguest possible terms aspects of the case that most find particularly fascinating. With so much detail thrown out, the result is a film that divides into two rather awkwardly joined parts.
The first half of the film focuses on Steiner and Straus. The cast is indeed exceptional, with Dean Stockwell and Bradford Dillman extremely effective and receiving memorable support from the likes of Diane Varsi and Martin Milner. Still, it is more a matter of implication rather than specification, and even the crime itself is somewhat glossed over. The second half of the film brings in Orson Wells as attorney Wilk and unexpectedly shifts focus away from the killers and their crime, leaving Wells to dominate the screen with a series of powerful speeches. The ending of the film is remarkably abrupt and fails to tie the film together.
When all is said and done, COMPULSION never quite manages to live up to its potential. The memorable performances and stylish look of the film make it more than worth seeing, but any one who is familiar with the Leopold-Loeb case will be disappointed--and even those who aren't will likely consider that one viewing is enough. At present the film is only available to the homemarket on video in a pan-and-scan version that doesn't help it along. Recommended--but only just.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer