Portia on Trial

This is a taut, well written, social drama. The performances are solid and the editing and direction are brisk.

I have waited over 50 years to see this, now finally in 2015 out on DVD from a TV print that is 20 minutes shorn of its full length, but at 52 minutes does not seem to be missing any of its core.

I won't try to describe the narrative other than to say this is the Madame X scenario, where the Madame wins and does not die to correct her moral lapses. There is even a dance shared with the son given up who does not know he is dancing with his mother, that made it into the 1946 Madame X take-off, To Each His Own, which finally won an Oscar for this female lead type (Olivia de Havilland in this case).

The decade between 1935 and 1945 allowed all studios to submit to the Academy their "best" in the four audio categories (song, sound, original score, scoring) and be guaranteed an Oscar nom, regardless of the quality of the film or the offering within the category. This, like most Republic offerings during the period, is one of those.

The score which won the nomination is mediocre and pedestrian, perfectly acceptable for a B film, but in no way remarkable. It only appears in the following scenes: Main Title and Intro; Remembrance of son; Portia prepares to go out; Clients; Home Visit; Before the Judge; Party; Murder; End Title.

To be commended are veteran character actress, Ruth Connelly, as Portia's assistant, and Frieda Inescourt herself in a stellar performance.

Now available on DVD for the first time. Worth a watch.

I was not expecting anything more than a B picture before sitting down to this 52 minute copy. Something has been removed from the original film, as I noted the truncated running time. However, this film and the players, especially Frieda Inescort, punches above its weight class.

Being cut down in length, apparently to fit into TV scheduling, makes the story tight and on point. Inescort carries the film but with good support from actors like Abel, Donnelly, Kolb and Hamilton. Do yourself a favor and don't read the story line, just take the time to watch this short, but very effective 1937 social drama.

If you do, you will likely wonder, as I do now, how Frieda Inescort did not become a bigger film star.

"Portia on Trial" has a lot of reasons to assume it's a stinker. First, the cast is made up of mostly unknown or supporting actors (the only really recognizable actors were all character actors...Walter Abel, Clarence Kolb, Neil Hamilton and Barbara Pepper...no big stars. Second, the film was originally 72 minutes long...but was hacked to 52 minutes in order to make the film fit into a TV time slot! Third, the plot is really tough to believe. Yet, oddly, it IS still well worth seeing and might even merit an 8 or 9 if you can find a complete version...if it's even available.

John Condon (Kolb) is a powerful newspaper owner. But he also is morally bankrupt...doing some very unethical things IF he thinks it's merited. For example, when his son, long ago, got a girl pregnant, instead of allowing the couple to marry, used extortion to force the girl to give up the child to his father. If she hadn't, Condon promised to destroy her...to trump up charges and get her sent to prison. And, he meant it...had she not agreed, she would have been sent to rot in prison.

Seventeen years later, this wronged woman (Frieda Inescort) has turned around her life. She's a defense attorney and is married to a prosecuting attorney. And, her life is looking good, as her old fiance has finally told his son about his mother and the attorney and her son are building a relationship.

HOWEVER, John Condon is about to rear his ugly head. His son (Neil Hamilton) is clearly a weakling who is bullied by his father...and his father hates the woman he is dating. So, he's arranged for immigration agents to arrest her for 'moral grounds' and they essentially say the new fiancee is a whore. She is also to be deported in order to prevent her from marrying Condon's son. And, the son, being a weakling, won't stand up to his father for the woman he loves. Soon after, this wronged woman kills her fiance...and her defense attorney is the woman Condon wronged seventeen years ago! And, she'll be defending the woman against the district attorney...her husband!

If all this sounds incredibly contrived and melodramatic, you're right...but it's also incredibly compelling and kept me on the edge of my seat. I chalk this up to great direction and some terrific acting...particularly by Kolb who plays the monstrous John Condon to perfection. It makes for a very strong story...melodrama and all. Well worth seeing.