''The Dock Brief'' (US title ''Trial and Error'') is a 1962 black-and-white British legal satire directed by James Hill, starring Peter Sellers and

Richard Attenborough Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Academy of Film and Televisio ...

, and based on the play of the same name written by

John Mortimer Sir John Clifford Mortimer (21 April 1923 – 16 January 2009) was a British barrister, dramatist, screenwriter and author. He is best known for novels about a barrister named Horace Rumpole. Early life Mortimer was born in Hampstead, London, ...

(creator of

Horace Rumpole ''Rumpole of the Bailey'' is a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer. It starred Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, a middle-aged London barrister who defended a broad variety of clients, ...

). The film had its world premiere on 20 September 1962 at the Plaza Theatre in London's West End. Richard Attenborough was nominated for the 1963 BAFTA Award for best British actor for his role.

Plot

In a cell under the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

, two men meet. One is Wilfred Morgenhall, a single

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

who never gets any cases and is overjoyed to have won this ''dock brief'', the defence of an accused individual with no lawyer (at public expense). The other is his client Herbert Fowle, an insignificant man who just wants to plead guilty to murdering his wife and get it all over. Flashbacks show that the wife was impossible to live with and Fowle, who avoided her as much as possible, hatched a plot to get rid of her by taking in a male lodger. The lodger found her amusing and attractive, until one day he went too far and Mrs Fowle threw him out of the house. In despair at his plot having failed, Fowle killed her. Morgenhall role plays various defences, in the process raising Fowle's will to fight. But when the case is called, he botches it and Fowle is found guilty. Morgenhall goes to visit him in prison, where he learns that Fowle has been reprieved because his defence was so poor. The two leave together, two lonely and inadequate men who have become friends.

Cast

* Peter Sellers as Wilfred Morgenhall, barrister *

as Herbert Fowle, the accused murderer * Beryl Reid as Doris Fowle, his late wife * David Lodge as Frank Bateson, the lodger *

Frank Pettingell Frank Edmund George Pettingell (1 January 1891 – 17 February 1966) was an English actor. Pettingell was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, and educated at Manchester University. During the First World War he served with the King's Liverpool Re ...

as Tuppy Morgan, solicitor * Audrey Nicholson as Morgenhall's girl (in flashback) * Tristram Jellinek as Mr. Perkins, the prosecutor * Eric Woodburn as Judge Banter * John Waite as clerk of the court * Patrick Newell as 1st warder * Henry Kay as 2nd warder * Frank Thornton as photographer at the Fowle wedding *

Eric Dodson Eric Norman Dodson (1 December 1920 – 13 January 2000) was an English actor born in Peterborough, Northamptonshire, who played many roles in films and on television. After amateur acting he joined the Royal Air Force in 1941. Following trai ...

as examiner

Production

Pierre Rouve wrote the script. He opened up the play for cinema by using flashbacks. Filming took place in March and April 1962 at Shepperton Studios in London. John Mortimer said that Peter Sellers wanted to play the role in a north county accent and the director James Hill had to coax him back "to what I felt were undoubtedly... southern origins" of his character.

Reception

Box Office

According to MGM records, the film made a profit of $141,000..

Critical

The MFB called it "refreshingly original". The ''Guardian'' called it "excellent". The ''new York Times'' called it "a good second hand excursion into the realm of character comedy."Screen: 'Trial and Error' at Beekman: Sellers Plays Lawyer in British Comedy Attenborough Portrays Cheerful-Wife Killer By BOSLEY CROWTHER. New York Times 17 Nov 1962: 17.

Quotes

Morgenhall: "Now you're the only case I've got, and the most difficult." ''The New York Times'': "Charming, comic...robustly amusing." (quoted from the DVD cover)

References

External links

* *
The Dock Brief
at BFI {{DEFAULTSORT:Dock Brief 1962 films British black-and-white films Films set in London Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1962 comedy films Works by John Mortimer Films directed by James Hill (British director) Films produced by Dimitri de Grunwald 1960s English-language films