Montgomery’s performance as ‘Rudolph Petersen’ in ‘Judgement at Nuremberg’, directed by Stanley Krager, takes place in a court room where he is being questioned by the courts under suspicion of being mentally incompetent. It was the task if the health courts to sterilise the mentally incompetent under the nazi racism.
Petersen’s entrance into the court is very endearing. He is absolutely terrified, his hands lead the way, his body following. This action shows the audience how he is trying to put the moment off for as long as possible. He enters the witness box with his shoulders up high, he is so overcome with fear his body tenses up and he holds on to the witness box for support. The camera shot is focused closely on him throughout his entrance to highlight his fear, until it goes around the courtroom, to show the amount of people there, and the amount of pressure he is under.
Whilst in the witness box, Petersen is asked a series of questions by the judge to determine weather or not he is mentally incompetent and must therefore be sterilised. He is asked if he knows what he is there for. He replies, ‘They told me there was an examination there would have to be.’ This unskilled sentence phrasing shows he is highly nervous. At this point the audience become aware that he will not pass the sentence test that will follow, this gives the audience a sinking feeling, a premonition of defeat.
Peterson is then asked about the birth date of Hitler. He tells them, ‘I don’t know and don’t care’. The courtroom laughs at him, and he nervously laughs too. The audience would feel embarrassed for him at this point, and feel great empathy towards him.
Throughout these questions, Petersons hands are gnarled up, which shows how tense he is. He is constantly fidgeting, shaking and grabbing his forbid with his hands, this shows how uneasy he is feeling, how intimidated he is by the courtroom full of the people who will decide his future. He also often takes large grasps of breath which shows he is in such a state he is finding it hard to breathe normally. He breathes in and swallows between sentences; the audience would think he is doing this to give himself time to think about what to say. However, he could have been trying to remember his lines at such times like that as he suffered from infantile dementia. He uses this uncertainty of lines to contribute to Peterson’s awkwardness.
Throughout Petersons questioning he is told “You may take off your earphones now... if you want to”, this shows how the defence lawyer treats him like a child. Peterson keeps on the earphones which shows how little he understands. He is asked of his father’s occupation. He proudly tells them his dad worked on a railway. He sounds almost child-like as he says this, this shows the child-like aspect of the character, shows what a young innocent mind he has, and this evokes sympathy in the audience.
He is then asked about his mother. He is asked if his mother was mentally ill. He is very protective of his mother and this is the point he cracks, he raises his voice and is near to tears, which is a turn around and makes him look powerful for once. He answers the question with three shouts of the words ‘not true’. This shows how he loved his mother. He then pulls out a picture of his mother, this was unscripted and shows how Clift completely takes on the role of Peterson, and he really feels Peterson’s emotion. As he pulls pout the tattered photograph he asks three times ‘was she tievel minded?’ This shows the effect his mother has on him, as it seems his nervousness is forgotten and the tables have turned and he is the one asking the questions. The fact that he pulls out a photo of his mother, shows how he wants her to comfort him, this is a child-like feeling, and would evoke sympathy in the audience.
Throughout the questioning the camera is largely focused on two characters, Peterson, and occasionally the judge. Close ups of Petersons face highlight his emotions and facial features, they appear even more intense and powerful. Peterson’s body language constantly pointed to the judge, Spencer Tracy, Clift found a father figure in him both as an actor and as a friend. He is the person who helped him out when he was feeling low and persuaded him to play Peterson in the film.
Clift plays the part with incredible realism, like it is happening for the first time. The emotions and thoughts speed back and forth across the characters face. Petersons eyes are a very poignant feature, they are very big, and expressive, and tell a lot about the way he is feeling.
The lack of sound and music during this dramatic monologue enhances the tension and pressure Peterson is under, and consequently the emotions the audience feel for him. However, its only Clifts amazingly emotional portrayal of the character which lets this small proportion of the film remain a powerful memory within the film and one of the most memorable and haunting cameos in cinema history.
