The Man in the Glass Booth

The Man in the Glass Booth

DVD cover
Directed by Arthur Hiller
Produced by Ely Landau
Written by Edward Anhalt
Robert Shaw (novel & play)
Starring Maximilian Schell
Lois Nettleton
Lawrence Pressman
Cinematography Sam Leavitt
Edited by David Bretherton
Distributed by American Film Theatre
Release dates
  • January 27, 1975 (1975-01-27)
Running time
 117 minutes
Country United States
Language English

The Man in the Glass Booth is a 1975 American drama film directed by Arthur Hiller. The film was produced and released as part of the American Film Theatre, which adapted theatrical works for a subscription-driven cinema series. The screenplay was adapted from Robert Shaw's 1967 novel and 1968 stage play, both of the same name. The novel was the second in a trilogy of novels, preceded by The Flag (1965), and followed by A Card from Morocco (1969).

The plot was inspired by the kidnapping and trial of the German Nazi SS-Obersturmbannführer (lieutenant colonel) Adolf Eichmann, who was one of the major organizers of the Holocaust.[1]

Plot summary

Arthur Goldman is Jewish and a Nazi death camp survivor. Now a rich industrialist, he lives in luxury in a Manhattan high-rise. He banters with his assistant Charlie, often shocking him with his outrageousness and irreverence about aspects of Jewish life. One day, Israeli secret agents kidnap Goldman and take him to Israel for trial on charges of being a Nazi war criminal. Goldman's trial forces his accusers to face not only his presumed guilt, but their own as well.

At the end it appears that Goldman falsified the dental records which the Israelis used to identify him in order to bring about the trial. When the deception is revealed by the Israeli prosecutor, Goldman is left standing in the trial court's bulletproof glass box, a broken man. The stress shatters his mental health, and he becomes catatonic. He then relives in his mind a Nazi firing squad execution and dies.

Awards and honors

Maximillian Schell was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama for his performance. Edward Anhalt was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Drama Adapted from Another Medium for his screenplay.

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Man In The Glass Booth, in: TV Guide


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