The Andersonville Trial

TV Movie
1970
2h 30m

IMDb RATING

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A dramatization of the 1865 war-crimes trial of Henry Wirz, commandant of the notorious Confederate POW camp at Andersonville, Georgia.A dramatization of the 1865 war-crimes trial of Henry Wirz, commandant of the notorious Confederate POW camp at Andersonville, Georgia.A dramatization of the 1865 war-crimes trial of Henry Wirz, commandant of the notorious Confederate POW camp at Andersonville, Georgia.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.8/10

518

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Won 3 Primetime Emmys
- 4 wins & 2 nominations total

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
All of the witnesses as portrayed in the film are the actual witnesses who testified at Wirz's trial, and their dialogue in many cases is taken almost verbatim from the trial transcript. The major change from history is that Wirz did not testify and the whole "moral issue", around which this film revolves, was never raised at the trial.

Goofs
Early on, a captain played by Martin Sheen comes into the court to tell Gen. Wallace that the defendant tried to hurt himself. The crossed sabers insignia of the cavalry on Sheen's cap is upside down.

Connections
Featured in The 23rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1971)

User reviews16

Featured review

a great, great film

I only wish they would put this film out on video because it is one that truly deserves to be called a classic. Forget The Caine Mutiny and A Few Good Men. This is the best and most riveting courtroom thriller ever made. I always thought of William Shatner as a blowhard who couldn't act his way out of a paper bag, but here maybe for the only time, he gives an excellent performance as the prosecutor with a heart determined to bring this man to justice. Andersonville really was a hell on earth and the descriptions of it they give here will give you chills. The best scene is the one where Shatner cross examines Richard Basehart and keeps asking him why he didn't disobey orders if it could have saved so many innocent lives. What gets me is that Basehart's character (Captain Wirz) keeps insisting that he was only obeying orders. This is the same excuse that the Nazis and the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials used. You keep wondering if this man really has no soul. George C. Scott played the prosecutor in the Broadway version and does a wonderful job of directing it. This was made at about the same time that he made Patton I believe. This is a great film with a first rate cast. I only wish it could be seen more often.