The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case

This is the sort of thing that TV does rather well sometimes, a more or less true story with competent (but either over-the-hill or just-beginning) performers, no expensive special effects, and time enough for attention to detail if not one thousand takes per shot.

It's quite well done, a good example of the form. The cast is particularly good: Walter Pigeon as the somewhat biased judge, Martin Balsam as the raffish but sloppy defense counsel, David Spielberg as the waspy headline-grabbing prosecutor, Dean Jagger as an expert witness on carpentry, Cliff De Young as a cool, composed, remote Lindbergh (true to life, that is), and equally talented performers in multiple smaller roles. Anthony Hopkins is superb. He captures Hauptmann's brittleness and anxiety perfectly in a fine performance.

Did he do it? The movie doesn't tell us, although the final impression we're left with is that he is in fact guilty. His story of how he came by the marked bills in the ransom payoff is about as implausible as anyone could imagine, the worst Fisch story you ever heard.

Yet the prosecution's case was full of gaping holes and minor to major weaknesses, although the film doesn't make this clear. For instance, Colonel Lindbergh is called to a Bronx police station to listen to the members of a lineup shout out the kidnapper's words and try to identify the criminal. Lindbergh does so promptly and positively. Yet of the five men in the lineup, Hauptman is the only one with a German accent, which the police already knew the kidnapper had. And Lindbergh must identify the voice from the other side of a closed door. And the voice is one that he heard only from a distance, and two years earlier. Martin Balsam as Riley, defending Hauptmann, mentions none of this in his cross examination. The same is true for Joseph Cotton, who has never seen the kidnappers and who has earlier refused to identify Hauptmann's voice as that of the criminal. Two years is a long time to identify a muffled voice heard speaking only a few sentences on a dark night two years ago. And Spielberg's treatment of Hopkins on the witness stand is inexcusable. There were newsreel cameras in the courtroom at the time and Spielberg uses every dramatic trick in the book to influence the jury. What a performance! And afterward he does everything except face the cameras, flourish his cape, and take a bow. It's impossible to believe that such shenanigans could take place in a courtroom today, even the most lenient.

This was the original "crime of the century." Lindbergh was an icon. There were songs written about him ("Lucky Lindy") and dances named after him (the "Lindy Hop"). Hopewell, New Jersey, the scene of the kidnapping must have been a small quiet town in 1932 because it was still a small quiet town in 1972 when I lived nearby. The Hunterdon County Courthouse in Flemington however is almost unrecognizable. The building is the same but any view of it from the street is blocked by the shade trees that have matured since the movie cameras of 1934 captured it on film. Those same movie cameras show us a mass of onlooking, souvenier hackers, and journalists, screaming and swaying back and forth, a herd of African wild dogs savaging its prety.

The movie leaves one wondering about things like this: Dean Jagger's carpentry expert testifies that a board found at the scene of the crime was once part of the same larger plank that yielded a board built into the attic of Hauptmann's garage. Our technology is now so advanced that almost certainly more information could be gleaned from those two boards. I wonder where that evidence is now?

I found this to be a reasonable telling of a true story that gripped America in the thirties but it was definitely overlong.I do usually enjoy courtroom dramas but must admit that this isn't at the top of the tree for me.For some reason I found it to be less than gripping and I also found the editing at times to be abrupt and a bit confusing.

On the plus side,the acting is pretty good and Anthony Hopkins did well in a role that made it difficult for anyone to have any sympathy for his character.You did get the feeling that some things were never discovered such as was the child murdered by just one person and this gave the movie a flat almost empty ending.

Not too bad I suppose but at least thirty minutes too long.

It can be disturbing sometimes, to see how some sides of our society have deteriorated in the 1990's. In the 1930's the kidnapping/killing of American hero aviator Charles Lindberg's baby represents a low point in our humanity.

Telling this story is tough, particularly since the evidence was all circumstantial. Whereas the 1996 film `Crime of the Century' approaches the after-the-fact investigation, with a perspective that Bruno Hauptmann (executed for the crime) indeed may have been wrongfully convicted, this film (from 1976) pursues a more clinical, step-wise, investigative approach. The dictum here seems to be to substantiate the verdict within the bounds of historical accuracy.

Nice turns by Cliff DeYoung as Charles Lindbergh, and Anthony Hopkins for his portrayal of Hauptmann (for which he won an EMMY). The presentation is a bit dry, confusing, and long (148mins). You might want to find a nice supplemental text to help you better understand the main players and the chronology of events.

But if you're unfamiliar with much of the circumstances you will definitely want to take a look.

Buz Kulik produced and directed this famous and still unsolved case over Lindbergh's kidnapping baby in early thirties, the American hero suffers too much with the press at your neck during the investigation and trial that ends up move on to England to have a peace for his family, this picture bring the audience since the night of kidnapping until the supposedly German kidnaper Bruno Richard Hauptmann (Anthony Hopkins) at last has been executed on electric chair.

Also bring step by step all investigation process, how was the modus operandi of "John" using a go-between Dr. Condon (Joseph Cotten) to send his message to Lindbergh (Cliff De Young) also by Bronx's newspaper and sneaking away to deliver the ramson and get his baby back at cemetery where Dr. Condon face-to-face the man self-called "John", sadly he didn't bring the baby as planned, thus Dr. Condon recedes letting at Lindbergh's hands the final decision if deliver the ramson or not, he just suggest hand over 50.000 dollar to got the baby in another place as "John" offers for security reasons.

Well the rest everybody knows the baby was found dead nearby the house, aftermaths the police's intelligence squad track down the marked money found some bills at Bronx area, reaching in the carpenter German immigrant Bruno Richard Hauptmann at your home, also finds out 14.000 dollars of ramson at your car garage, the reputable lawyer Edward J Reilly (Martin Balsan) is hired as defense attorney in the case, the Governor Hall Hoffman (Lawrence Luckinbill) assures by any means appointing a hard line Lawyer David Wilentz (David Spielberg) led the prosecution.

This case is far away to be solved, firstly is quite sure that Hauptmann didn't have a fair trial whatsoever, the press tries helping him hiring the Lawyer, therefore this man has a flamboyant life with many young women on those high society circle as the movie wants imply, worst the massive voice of streets on crowed people yelling in front of Courthouse had a pressure on the jury, the casting with veteran actors is noteworthy as Dean Jagger, Warter Pidgeon, Joseph Cotton, Keenan Wynn, Tony Roberts and the newbie Cliff De Young in very convincing portrait of Col. Lindbergh, a fabulous TV movie, hidden in the dust of past, hard to find really, just a good print at Youtube.

Thanks for reading

Resume:

First watch: 1986 / How many: 3 / Source: TV-Youtube / Rating: 8.

I was a teenager when I first saw this on TV and was blown away by this unknown actor who played the accused kidnapper. Hopkins performance is amazing. He also did fantastic work around the same time in the great mini-series QBVII. The film is a bit slow and meandering, but the subject matter is gripping, the acting is well done and again, a first rate piece of work by Sir Anthony Hopkins.