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Inherit the Wind
1960 128 min United States of America 16+
★8.3
Drama
Director: Stanley Kramer
Trailers
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Description
Schoolteacher Bertram Cates is arrested for teaching his students Darwin's theory of evolution. The case receives national attention and one of the newspaper reporters, E.K. Hornbeck, arranges to bring in renowned defense attorney and atheist Henry Drummond to defend Cates. The prosecutor, Matthew Brady is a former presidential candidate, famous evangelist, and old adversary of Drummond.
Budget:
$2M
Worldwide:
$2M
Starring
Spencer Tracy
Actor
Fredric March
Actor
Gene Kelly
Actor
Awards
Berlin International Film Festival 1960
— Silver Bear – Best Actor
Berlin International Film Festival 1960
— Youth Cinema Award – Best Feature Film
BAFTA 1961
— Best International Actor
Academy Awards 1961
— Best Adapted Screenplay
Academy Awards 1961
— Best Cinematography (Black and White)
Golden Globe 1961
— Best Picture (Drama)
Academy Awards 1961
— Best Film Editing
Berlin International Film Festival 1960
— Silver Bear – Best Actor
Berlin International Film Festival 1960
— Youth Cinema Award – Best Feature Film
Berlin International Film Festival 1960
— Golden Bear
Golden Globe 1961
— Best Actor (Drama)
Key opinion
Inherit the Wind is a classic courtroom drama that effectively dramatizes the historical Scopes Monkey Trial through a compelling clash of intellectual and religious ideologies. While the film serves as a historical account, it remains highly relevant, provoking ongoing debates about the intersection of faith, education, and societal progress.
| Acting | The performances by leads Spencer Tracy and Frederic March are standout, anchoring the film's intense legal and philosophical conflict. | |
| Theme | The film offers profound thematic depth by exploring faith as both a personal conviction and a catalyst for societal intolerance. | |
| Culture | The narrative remains strikingly relevant, with its exploration of science versus religious doctrine continuing to mirror modern controversies in education. | |
| Ending | The ending is deliberately ambiguous, placing the Bible and Darwin’s text together to leave the viewer to draw their own conclusions. | |
| Theme | The film's portrayal of the conflict between evolution and creationism is viewed differently depending on the audience's own religious or secular values, with some interpreting the film as a critique of blind faith and others seeing it as a study of moral decay. |