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| Gideon's Trumpet | 
 enlarge | Director: Robert E. Collins
Actors: Henry Fonda, Jose Ferrer, John Houseman, Fay Wray, Sam Jaffe
Studio: Acorn Media
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $11.55
You Save: $8.44 (42%)
New (36) Used (7) from $11.55
Avg. Customer Rating:  56 reviews
Sales Rank: 11944
Format: Color, Dvd-video, Full Screen, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 104
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: ACRDAMP9748D
UPC: 054961974894
EAN: 0054961974894
ASIN: B000QXDCXI
Theatrical Release Date: April 30, 1980
Release Date: August 28, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW AND FACTORY SEALED
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Product Description
Studio: Acorn Media Release Date: 08/28/2007 Run time: 104 minutes
Amazon.com
Anyone who's ever been arrested--or maybe just watched a cop show--knows that the right to representation by counsel is guaranteed by the Constitution, codified in the Miranda warning. But it wasn't until the early 1960s, when the events chronicled in Gideon's Trumpet unfolded, that this fundamental prerogative became law. As portrayed by Henry Fonda in this Emmy-nominated 1980 TV movie, Clarence Earl Gideon was neither a hero nor a crusader out to re-write history. He was in fact, a criminal recidivist, a poor drifter with four broken marriages and multiple prison terms in his past. Busted for breaking and entering and petty larceny in Panama City, Florida in 1961, Gideon proclaimed his innocence; but when his demand for a lawyer was rejected at trial (only defendants in capital cases were given court-appointed attorneys in Florida), he was forced to defend himself, resulting in a conviction and a five-year jail sentence. What followed was a matter of luck as well as persistence, as his appeal became one of the few that the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear. Chief Justice Earl Warren (John Houseman, who also executive-produced) assigned Abe Fortas (Jose Ferrer), himself a future Supreme Court justice, to handle the case, and Fortas' skillful work led to the overturning of Betts v. Brady, a 1942 decision in which the high court had ruled that even indigent defendants weren't entitled to counsel when prosecuted by a state; Gideon's second trial (his claim that double jeopardy applied was rejected), this time with proper representation, is depicted in the final sequences of the film. As befitting the decidedly un-glamorous details of the story, Fonda, who was 75 at the time (the real Gideon was 51) and nearing the end of his storied career, delivers a laconic, low-key performance, effectively depicting a crusty, world-weary, but dignified man who got a raw deal, saw a flaw in the legal system, and fought to correct it. The film, too, is remarkably matter-of-fact: no melodrama, no music to manipulate the viewer's emotions at key moments, just a top-notch cast and a straightforward depiction of the case as described in Anthony Lewis' book of the same name. --Sam Graham
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| Customer Reviews: Read 51 more reviews...
 A true story the teaches and entertains October 9, 2008
I've been teaching Political Science classes at various schools in the South for 24 years and I always try to show this film during my section on civil liberties. In a little over 90 minutes students learn how the right to a lawyer in all cases was established, how important this right is, and they are entertained at the same time. Wonderful acting from Fonda, Houseman, and Fay Wray also appeal to film buffs. I'm glad to be able to get it on DVD as my VHS copies are starting to show their age.
 Gideons Trumpet March 27, 2008
This is an excellent movie for use with case law readings (Gideon v Wainwright.)It is a bit slow. I think a condensed version would be good. The students might lose the significance of this case.
Professor Cavanaugh
 Disappointed January 20, 2008
As a review or account of an important historical event it was O.K., but I was disappointed in the performance of an Academy Award-winning actor in the person of Henry Fonda. Overall the movie was lackluster and had no screenplay or music score to thoroughly engage the viewer as you would look for in a motion picture. It is more of something you would see on public television....Certainly, not a blockbuster.
What's wrong with the actors in this movie? November 19, 2004
Is it me, or is everyone acting in slow motion in this movie? Horrible, horrible acting. From the initial interrogation, to the talk inside the prison yard, to the trial implicating Gideon, to the review by the Supreme Court. It pained me to see Clarence Gideon try to complete a sentence, and when he did it seemed that everyone hung on his every word. The only bright spots have to go to Tommy Lee Jones for referencing "Appalachicola" and frail Sam Jaffe for having a smaller chair than the other Supreme Court Justices. Other than that, I wanted to slit my wrists watching this movie.
Nice win for Gideon, though. 9-0. Uuuuunanimous!
Landmark Film on Land Mark Case March 16, 2002
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
Fonda's performance is perfect, and the film covers all the issues without missing a beat. I use it every year in my government class.
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