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Death Sentence

  • TV Movie
  • 1974
  • Unrated
  • 1h 14m
IMDb RATING
5.5/10
386
YOUR RATING
Nick Nolte in Death Sentence (1974)
CrimeMysteryThriller

A juror on a murder case begins to believe that the man on trial is innocent of the crime - and then discovers that the real killer is her own husband.A juror on a murder case begins to believe that the man on trial is innocent of the crime - and then discovers that the real killer is her own husband.A juror on a murder case begins to believe that the man on trial is innocent of the crime - and then discovers that the real killer is her own husband.

  • Director
    • E.W. Swackhamer
  • Writers
    • John Neufeld
    • Eric Roman
  • Stars
    • Cloris Leachman
    • Laurence Luckinbill
    • Nick Nolte
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.5/10
    386
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • E.W. Swackhamer
    • Writers
      • John Neufeld
      • Eric Roman
    • Stars
      • Cloris Leachman
      • Laurence Luckinbill
      • Nick Nolte
    • 14User reviews
    • 3Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos27

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    Top cast22

    Edit
    Cloris Leachman
    Cloris Leachman
    • Susan Davies
    Laurence Luckinbill
    Laurence Luckinbill
    • Don Davies
    Nick Nolte
    Nick Nolte
    • John Healy
    Alan Oppenheimer
    Alan Oppenheimer
    • Lubell
    William Schallert
    William Schallert
    • Tanner
    Yvonne Wilder
    Yvonne Wilder
    • Elaine Croft
    Herb Voland
    Herb Voland
    • Lowell Hayes
    Hope Summers
    Hope Summers
    • Emily Boylan
    Peter Hobbs
    Peter Hobbs
    • Judge
    Doreen Lang
    Doreen Lang
    • Mrs. Cottard
    Murray MacLeod
    Murray MacLeod
    • Martin Gorman
    Bing Russell
    Bing Russell
    • Trooper
    Meg Wyllie
    Meg Wyllie
    • Mae Sinclair
    Lew Brown
    Lew Brown
    • Mr. Bracken…
    C.J. Hincks
    C.J. Hincks
    • Marilyn Healy
    Vernon Weddle
    Vernon Weddle
    • Hayden
    Robert Cleaves
    • Dr. Braun
    Jack Collins
    Jack Collins
    • Willis Wright
    • Director
      • E.W. Swackhamer
    • Writers
      • John Neufeld
      • Eric Roman
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews14

    5.5386
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    Featured reviews

    6dglink

    Passable TV Mystery-Thriller

    A passably entertaining made-for-TV thriller, "Death Sentence" reveals the killer in the opening scene. Laurence Luckenbill strangles his annoying blonde mistress with his own yellow scarf, because she threatened to go public with their affair, which would have destroyed his cherished family. Cut to the courtroom, where Luckenbill's wife, Cloris Leachman, has been accepted as a juror in the trial of Nick Nolte, who is on trial for the murder of his wife, the woman that Luckenbill killed in the opening scene. If the premise sounds a bit far fetched, it is, not to mention the murdered woman preferring Luckenbill to the young Nolte. Based on the novel After the Trial, the film cuts back and forth between the courtroom testimony and Leachman's domestic scenes with her husband and children. As the testimony progresses and evidence is presented, Leachman slowly suspects her husband's involvement.

    The performances are uneven; Leachman is good as the wife, intently listening to witnesses, while slowly connecting the dots. However, Luckenbill, the family-values man, overacts at times, and poor Nolte sits looking at his hands for most of the movie, until he provides brief testimony in his own defense. Director E. W. Swackhamer keeps the proceedings moving fast enough to distract viewers from the inconsistencies and gaps in logic. Absolutely no motive or evidence are presented to implicate Nolte, other than the malicious dislike of his mother-in-law and unreliable claims from a nosy neighbor. Leachman's suspicions are all circumstantial, and some of her actions are completely implausible. However, for non-demanding viewers with an hour or so to kill, "Death Sentence" is decent entertainment, if they just go with the flow and do not ponder the details.
    3raypaquin

    Good actors,awful scenario.

    Seeing the name 'Nick Nolte' prominently displayed on the DVD jacket made me buy this film. I am sorry I did. Nolte has no more than a few lines to say. The other actors are *all* great. The problem is the scenario, which is full of holes. This, in a judicial suspense drama, is fatal. I suspect that my DVD only has a shortened version (74 minutes) of a longer film (90 minutes according to your database) that might explain the glaring holes. On my DVD, the picture quality is *worse* that what you would expect from a standard-resolution TV picture. The scenario-writer is billed as 'John Nuefield' instead of 'John Neufeld'. Is this a spelling mistake ? The year in the copyright notice at the ending credits states '1972' instead of '1974'. In any case, it is certainly a Spelling mistake as Aaron Spelling produced this El-Cheapo picture. Avoid.
    4Robert-87

    Nolte has a very small role in this one.

    This is a TV movie that has Nick Nolte in a minor role. He does not have many lines in this one. If I remember right, Chloris Leachman is actually the star of this film which is a predictable court room drama and is not indicative of Nolte's acting talents at all.

    The box for this film has Nolte pictured on it but he is very seldom seen in this film.
    1RobinCook70

    Death Sentence adequate for title

    I bought this DVD for $.88 and has Nick Nolte larger on the cover than Cloris Leachman. The mistress' acting in this movie was so bad I was delighted she was offed quickly. During the court scenes I kept hoping to maybe see a flashback or two of Nolte and his relationship with the deceased, but nope .. then again as I said, her acting was so bad anyway, I gave up caring. What little lines they handed out for Nolte were disappointing. Cloris Leachman appeared pained in struggling to give each and every one of her lines as if to say, "Nobody could be this dimwitted."

    When Lawrence Luckinbill, Leachman's husband in the movie was preparing to strangle her, I was almost hoping the movie was going to improve. What little of Nolte was in this movie, the only thing that was on my mind was if he was wearing a wig or not since the hair didn't move when his forehead moved. Pass on this one folks .. it is so bad it qualifies for its' own death sentence.
    Poseidon-3

    Phyllis: Portrait of a Runaway Juror

    One out of dozens and dozens of tightly constructed TV movies of the 1970's (some hilariously bad, some unforgettably distinctive, most - sadly - missing in action!) Hincks is a clinging mistress, desperate to hang on to her married lover (Luckinbill) despite her own good-looking, but hard-drinking husband (Nolte.) When she pushes too far, Luckinbill does her in, but lets Nolte take the rap. Leachman plays a sincere and naive jurist at the trial who begins to doubt Nolte's guilt despite everyone else's sense that he killed her. When she begins to put the pieces together, she finds that she may have imposed a death sentence on herself! Made when Leachman was still knocking them dead on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and about to embark on "Phyllis", she clearly tries to downplay her glamor and attractiveness for this "serious" role. The result is high comedy almost as funny as what she did in her sitcoms! With mousy hair parted in the center, no make-up and some really ugly glasses, she spends the entire movie with the same pinched, unappealing expression on her face. Her character is dippy to begin with, but she adds extra hilarity through her wooden reactions to the events around her until she is forced to confront the killer personally, at which point the film soars into the comic stratosphere. Sopping wet, wearing ugly cream-colored heels and with her glasses all smeared, she creates the most abhorrent expressions paired with the zaniest physical manifestations. She flails around at the end like someone who's being zapped with a cattle prod! All this work and her name isn't even printed on the DVD case! Luckinbill gives a decent double-edged performance. Nolte, at the very start of his career, has almost nothing to do (and his case is never properly resolved.) Various familiar TV actors dot the cast such as Oppenheimer and Schallert as lawyers and Lang (famous for her hysterical turn in "The Birds") as the victim's devastated and opinionated mother. As loony as it is (and there is one twist to the tale not divulged here), it's great to see some of these old films turning up as they are too enjoyable (for either the right or the wrong reasons) to stay buried in a vault somewhere.

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    Related interests

    James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Sharon Angela, Max Casella, Dan Grimaldi, Joe Perrino, Donna Pescow, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Tony Sirico, and Michael Drayer in The Sopranos (1999)
    Crime
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
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    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      During the trial, before the jury has even begun to deliberate, Mrs. Davies refers to Mr. Bracken as the foreman, but they are normally not voted in as such until both the prosecution and defence have rested. It could be, however, that in some cases, the foreman or forewoman is chosen right from the start, or appointed by the judge.
    • Goofs
      In the courtroom scene during Mrs. Boylan's examination, masking tape can be seen on the floor of the set to mark where the actors should stand. The tape is not there in any other scenes.

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 2, 1974 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • After the Trial
    • Filming locations
      • South Pasadena Public Library - 1100 Oxley St, South Pasadena, California, USA(El Centro St entrance, as courthouse)
    • Production company
      • Spelling-Goldberg Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 14m(74 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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