Struggling over being rescued from killing himself on a tall building under construction, James Whitmore's life is spared, he hopes temporarily, determined to get the death penalty so his dream of dying will come to fruition. It's up to Chuck Connors once again to find a way to reduce the charge against him, convinced by arresting officer Ben Gazzara to take the case. Years before, Whitmore was wrongfully accused of a sex crime, and after that comes out when he's questioned in another sex crime, his will to live is zapped in spite of the fact that his wife Nina Foch believes in his innocence. The depressed Whitmore has no desire to be exonerated, making for a truly difficult case.
The amazing performance by the multi-Oscar nominated Whitmore is powerful and raw, and he gives every ounce of sweat in creating a very complex, disturbed character whom the viewer will root for to get out of this mess. The audience however is not the jury who doesn't see everything unfold, so this is where the tension comes in, and through great writing, the script paints a dire, realistic portrayal of a seemingly impossible case to prove. Location footage of Sunset Blvd. With a building being erected and utilized as the setting for what in retrospective is a tragedy but not a criminal act, added with tension through Whitmore and Foch's son (Richard Eyer) who is undergoing trauma of his own, adding more realistic drama to the complex plot.
The amazing performance by the multi-Oscar nominated Whitmore is powerful and raw, and he gives every ounce of sweat in creating a very complex, disturbed character whom the viewer will root for to get out of this mess. The audience however is not the jury who doesn't see everything unfold, so this is where the tension comes in, and through great writing, the script paints a dire, realistic portrayal of a seemingly impossible case to prove. Location footage of Sunset Blvd. With a building being erected and utilized as the setting for what in retrospective is a tragedy but not a criminal act, added with tension through Whitmore and Foch's son (Richard Eyer) who is undergoing trauma of his own, adding more realistic drama to the complex plot.