Reversal of Fortune

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Reversal of Fortune is a 1990 American drama film directed by Barbet Schroeder that was adapted from the 1985 book Reversal of Fortune: Inside the von Bülow Case, written by law professor Alan Dershowitz. It recounts the true story of the unexplained coma of socialite Sunny von Bülow, the subsequent attempted murder trial, and the eventual acquittal of her husband, Claus von Bülow, who had Dershowitz as his defense attorney.[1] The film stars Jeremy Irons as Claus, Glenn Close as Sunny, and Ron Silver as Dershowitz. Screenwriter Nick Kazan originally envisioned Austrian actor Klaus Maria Brandauer in the role of Claus von Bülow but was thrilled with Irons' performance. Irons earned the 1990 Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film.

Plot

Sunny von Bülow, a millionaire heiress and socialite, lies in a hospital bed in a persistent vegetative state, after falling into a coma from diabetic shock on December 21, 1980. A year previous, she fell into a coma on December 26, 1979, but was revived. Her husband Claus von Bülow is charged with attempted murder by injecting the hypoglycemic Sunny with an overdose of insulin. During the trial, it is discovered Claus was having an affair with actress Alexandra Isles, and stood to gain financially if Sunny had died. He is found guilty on two counts of attempted murder.

While Claus von Bulow is released on bond, he files an appeal and phones Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz for representation. Dershowitz agrees only if Claus pays him three hundred dollars an hour, as he tries to save two young Black brothers from the electric chair. As he reviews the case, Dershowitz is convinced Claus is guilty based on the testimony of Maria, the von Bulows' maid. Dershowitz is given 45 days to file an appeal, and assembles several of his law students to review the case.

Dershowitz is later informed of David Marriott, a potential witness. At his New York apartment, Marriott confesses that he worked as a drug trafficker but Dershowitz believes he is an unreliable witness. Meanwhile, Dershowitz's legal team learn Robert Brillhoffer, the plaintiff's attorney, had illegally withheld notes that could help Claus's defense. They are also alerted to a magazine interview given by Truman Capote, who stated Sunny loved to mix drugs and alcohol and taught herself how to self-inject.

Claus lunches with Dershowitz's legal team, who question him about Sunny's overdose on aspirin three weeks before her second coma. Claus is unclear on what could have motivated her to suicide, but he presumes she was unhappy. Afterwards, Claus confesses he had told Sunny of his affair with Alexandra Isles during the summer of 1979. After Sunny is revived from her first coma, she reprimanded Claus for calling a doctor and suggested he would be better off if she had died.

Dershowitz's defense team receives the toxicology report of the encrusted needle, which reveals no trace of insulin. Afterwards, Marriott arrives at Dershowtiz's house and claims his affidavit is not accurate. While he covertly records the conversation, Marriot asserts that he delivered drugs directly to Sunny once. He then doctors the recording to make it appear Dershowitz agreed to pay Marriott as a witness. Before the trial, Claus details what led up to Sunny's second coma, in which he found her lying face down on the bathroom floor with the windows open in frigid room temperature. Based on Claus's testimony, Alan believes Claus is innocent and tells his team that he will seek to overturn his conviction based on insufficient evidence.

When Dershowitz dismisses his class, he is told by his students that the jury reversed two convictions and they have obtained Brillhoffer's notes. Dershowitz arrives at a New York hotel suite where Claus is staying. He hands him the notes having discovered conflicting circumstantial evidence that could exonerate Claus in his second trial. Relieved, Claus agrees to pay Dershowitz his legal fees. While Dershowitz tells him it is a legal victory, he tells Claus: "Morally, you are on your own."

Claus is tried for a second time and acquitted, while the two young brothers remain on death row.

Cast

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Production

The film was shot in numerous estates in Rhode Island and New Jersey, and the Knole Mansion in Old Westbury, New York. At least one courtroom scene was shot at the Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department in Brooklyn, New York.

Despite the fact that the house where the facts happened was Clarendon Court, as also mentioned in dialogue, the establishing shot intentionally avoids the house and ends instead with a view of The Breakers, another grandiose property nearby built for Cornelius Vanderbilt II.

Reception

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Accolades

Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Director Barbet Schroeder Nominated [2]
Best Actor Jeremy Irons Won
Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium Nicholas Kazan Nominated
Artios Awards Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film Casting – Drama Howard Feuer Nominated [3]
Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best Actor Jeremy Irons Won [4]
Best Screenplay Nicholas Kazan Won
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Actor Jeremy Irons Won [5]
Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards Best Film Nominated
David di Donatello Awards Best Foreign Actor Jeremy Irons Won [6]
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Drama Nominated [7]
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama Jeremy Irons Won
Best Director – Motion Picture Barbet Schroeder Nominated
Best Screenplay – Motion Picture Nicholas Kazan Nominated
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards Best Actor Jeremy Irons Won [8]
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards Best Actor Won [9]
Best Screenplay Nicholas Kazan Won
Nastro d'Argento Best Cinematography Luciano Tovoli Nominated
National Board of Review Awards Top Ten Films Template:Draw [10]
National Society of Film Critics Awards Best Film Template:Draw [11]
Best Actor Jeremy Irons Won
New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Film Template:Runner-up [12]
Best Director Barbet Schroeder Nominated
Best Actor Jeremy Irons Template:Runner-up
PEN Center USA West Literary Awards Best Screenplay Nicholas Kazan Won
Political Film Society Awards Exposé Nominated
Writers Guild of America Awards Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium Nicholas Kazan Nominated [13]

In 2015, the 25th anniversary of Entertainment Weekly named Reversal of Fortune on its list of the 25 best films of the past 25 years.[14]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

See also

References

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  1. ↑ State v. von Bulow, 475 A.2d 995 (R.I. 1984).
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External links

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