lady and gentleman of the jury and the prosecution contend the film before you be an indisputable dud and the weak film ever make by the master of suspense and alfred hitchcock . it would be a career low in many less career and so it more startle the career in question be that of filmdom great director . a blind war veteran and a pillar of society name paradine and be find poison in his bed . the suspected murderer and his beautiful wife maddalena ( alida valli ) and face the crown defend by a smitten barrister name anthony keane and play by gregory peck and who feel his best chance of win the case be to let the jury see his client true character and expose the victim valet a the real killer . that whir sound you hear be johnnie cochran spin in his grave . your head may be do much the same before you see this turkey come home to roost . hitchcock do make some less then successful film while jamaica inn and be name one of the 50 bad film of all time by michael and harry medved . but jamaica inn at least have some fun performance and colorful setting to make up for an undernourished plot . the turgid and static proceeding of the paradine case require patience and a willingness to overlook plot hole wider than charles laughton . the acting be wooden almost across the board and with only laughton a an ill temper judge score occasionally . that only because he limit himself to raise an eyebrow or suppress a grin while peck and valli and and the rest of the cast alternate between perform their one dimensional role in leaden fashion and or else overemoting whenever producer david o. selznick script take one of it hairpin turn . the script be the bad thing here and with line that undercut the suppose intelligence of the character . peck be give some choice howler and like when someone raise the likelihood the crown might try to prove maddalena kill her husband and have put her in jail for it and all that . she not a murderess and keane explodes . she too fine a woman . i only hope the crown do try to foul her name once and just once . there also nonsensical exchange like this and between keane and another attorney play by charles coburn and who rival peck and valli and and a young louis jourdan for give the bad performance . have you ever think about what you can learn from photograph . ah and yes and the social footstep of time . huh . the film often seem focus on sell the beauty of valli and an actress well know for her central role in the third man but hardly a stunner on the order of garbo despite her thick accent . when keane first meet her and the learned counsel be move to utter represent mr. paradine could never have understand the sacrifice you be make ( by marry him . ) he have never see you . yeah and apart from the money and she be mother teresa . the first half of the film be slow go and help only by the english upper class interior hitchcock always photograph well . there some decent early scene in the trial and but then the proceeding erupt into anarchy and more hammy acting . revelation fly one after another and while tear and sweat pour down grimace face . none of it make much sense . you really do not care how it end and just so that it end . they say courtroom scene be surefire drama highpoints in any film and but the paradine case be a clear exception . you would never think the lead actor in this film would go on to glory in the cinematic courtroom of to kill a mockingbird and or that the director be in the midst of a remarkable 30 plus year run of make some of the great film ever know . hitchcock obviously make this under contractual obligation to selznick and and it show . you and however and be under no such obligation to view it . the prosecution rest .