Inherit the Wind (1960 film)

In the 1920s, in the town of Hillsboro in an unknown state, a female voice sings "Old-time Religion" as schoolteacher Bertram Cates is arrested for violating state law by conducting a lesson on Charles Darwin's Descent of Man. The event makes headlines around the world. Matthew Brady, statesman, three-time presidential candidate and Biblical scholar, volunteers to assist Prosecutor Tom Davenport.

A huge parade welcomes Brady, who asks Rev. Jeremiah Brown to stand beside him as he addresses the crowd. Witty and cynical E.K. Hornbeck of the Baltimore Herald, an influential newspaperman, seizes the opportunity to announce that Cates' defense attorney will be the equally well-known Henry Drummond, one of America's most controversial legal minds and a notorious agnostic.

Tourists begin to flood the town. Hornbeck welcomes Drummond and takes him on a tour of the circus Hillsboro has become. Meanwhile, in the courtroom, Judge Coffey deals with reporters, Hornbeck and photographers. Later, at the hotel Brady, his wife Sarah, and Drummond reminisce, regretting the loss of the close friendship he once had with the Bradys. That night, Rev. Brown rallies the townspeople, calling down God's vengeance. When his daughter Rachel, who is engaged to Cates, protests, he condemns her. Brady admonishes Brown by quoting Proverbs 11:29: "He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind", and sends the crowd home.

Taking advantage of her confiding to him and Sarah, Brady calls Rachel to the stand, forcing her to tell how Cates left the church when her father declared that a child who drowned was not worthy of heaven because he was not baptized. He browbeats Rachel until Sarah cries out, "Matt!", and Brady seems to come to himself. Cates tells Drummond not to cross-examine Rachel.

Drummond has six scientists as witnesses, but the prosecution successfully objects. In an impassioned speech, Drummond paints a grim picture of the consequences of allowing a wicked law to prevail and asks to withdraw from the case. The judge orders him to show cause the next morning for why he should not be held in contempt. John Stebbins, the father of the boy who drowned, offers his farm as collateral for Drummond's bail.

That night, the crowds march with a burning effigy singing that Cates should be killed. When Drummond tells Hornbeck he needs a miracle, Hornbeck tosses him a Bible, exclaiming, "Here's a bagful!". Drummond clasps the Bible to his chest, beaming.

In court, he calls Brady as a witness. Brady welcomes this challenge, but becomes increasingly flustered by Drummond's questions, until he is forced to confess that some Biblical passages cannot be interpreted literally. He loses control, and court is adjourned. In their hotel room, Brady weeps on Sarah's shoulder.

WGN Radio is in court to announce the verdict, which is "guilty". Lacking a precedent, the judge fines Cates only $100. Brady tries to enter a speech into the record, but Drummond successfully moves that the court be adjourned. Brady begins his speech, but in the chaos, few pay attention. He becomes increasingly agitated, and after stating, "Faith of our fathers… we shall be true to thee…'til death", he collapses and dies.

In the courtroom, Hornbeck and Drummond are alone. For the obituary, Hornbeck asks what Brady said to Rev. Brown, to which Drummond cites chapter and verse. Hornbeck marvels at how Drummond can call himself an agnostic in spite of this. Drummond accuses Hornbeck of being a heartless cynic, a lonely man who will be buried alone, yet Hornbeck states that Drummond will be there, as he leaves.

Drummond picks up the Bible and Darwin's book in either hand, balancing them as the voice from the beginning sings, "Mine eyes have seen the glory…". Drummond slams the books together, and the camera focuses on his face as he walks out with them under his arm.

Uncredited roles include Richard Deacon, George Dunn, Snub Pollard, Addison Richards, Harry Tenbrook, Will Wright.^{[citation needed]} Actress and singer Leslie Uggams sings both the opening and closing songs a cappella.^{[citation needed]}

Kramer offered the role of Henry Drummond to Spencer Tracy, who initially turned it down. Kramer then sought March, Kelly, and Eldridge as co-stars, and Tracy eventually agreed to make the film. However, none of the other co-stars had been signed at the time; Tracy was the first. Once Tracy signed on, the others signed too.^[6]

Inherit the Wind is a fictionalized account of the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial, which took place between July 10 and July 21, 1925, and resulted in John T. Scopes's conviction for teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution to a high school science class, contrary to a Tennessee state law. The characters of Matthew Harrison Brady, Henry Drummond, Bertram Cates and E. K. Hornbeck correspond to the historical figures of William Jennings Bryan, Clarence Darrow, Scopes, and H. L. Mencken, respectively. However, Lee and Lawrence state in a note at the opening of the play on which the film is based that it is not meant to be a historical account,^[7] and many events were substantially altered or invented.^[8][9][10] For instance, the characters of the preacher and his daughter were fictional, the townspeople were not hostile towards those who had come to Dayton for the trial, and Bryan offered to pay Scopes' fine if he was convicted. Bryan died shortly after the trial's conclusion. He died in his sleep five days later, on July 26, 1925, at the age of 65.^[9][10]

Political commentator Steve Benen said the following about the drama's inaccuracies: "Scopes issued no plea for empathy, there was no fiancee and the real Scopes was never arrested. In a 1996 interview, Lawrence stated that the play's purpose was to criticize McCarthyism and defend intellectual freedom. According to Lawrence, "we used the teaching of evolution as a parable, a metaphor for any kind of mind control ... It's not about science versus religion. It's about the right to think."^[5]

The film includes events from the actual Scopes trial, such as Darrow's citation for contempt of court when he denounced the court by stating that it was prejudiced and his subsequent act of contrition and his request that the charge be dropped. Both events occurred the next day.^[11]

In the play, Brady is a more extreme Christian fundamentalist than Bryan was. According to historian Ronald Numbers, author of The Creationists, Bryan should be considered a day-age creationist.^[12]

Because the judge ruled that scientific evidence was inadmissible, a ruling which the movie depicts, Darrow called Bryan as his only witness and then he attempted to humiliate Bryan by asking him to interpret Scripture. When Darrow, in his closing remarks, called upon the jury to find Scopes guilty so he could appeal the verdict, Bryan was prevented from delivering his summation. The guilty verdict was overturned two years later.^[13][14] Bryan suffered a heart attack and died in his sleep five days after the trial ended.^[15]

The film had its world premiere at the 10th Berlin International Film Festival on June 25, 1960.^[1] Its U.S. premiere was in Dayton, Tennessee on July 21, 1960.^[1][where?]

The film grossed $2 million ($20,000,000 in 2022) worldwide and recorded a loss of $1.7 million ($17,500,000 in 2022)^[3]

Thomas M. Pryor of Variety described it as "a rousing and fascinating motion picture ... roles of Tracy and March equal Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan who collided on evolution ... a good measure of the film's surface bite is contributed by Gene Kelly as a cynical Baltimore reporter (patterned after Henry L. Mencken) whose paper comes to the aid of the younger teacher played by Dick York. Kelly demonstrates again that even without dancing shoes he knows his way on the screen."^[16] Bosley CrowtherofThe New York Times praised the performances of Tracy and March, and further praised Kramer for displaying "not only a graphic fleshing of his theme but he also has got one of the most brilliant and engrossing displays of acting ever witnessed on the screen."^[17] Harrison's Reports praised the cast as "superb", but cautioned that "it will be difficult to sell the average movie-goer unless the limited romantic sequences are exaggerated. It is principally a wordy, philosophical courtroom drama, splendidly produced. Direction is top-notch; photography, excellent..."^[18]

In 2006, Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times rated the film four stars, referring to it as "a film that rebukes the past when it might also have feared the future".^[19] On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 93% approval rating, based on 27 reviews with an average rating of 8.1/10.^[20]

• Inherit the Wind at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
• Inherit the WindatIMDb  
• Inherit the Wind at the TCM Movie Database
• Inherit the WindatAllMovie