In 1944, in Lincoln Bluff, a fictional, small Colorado town,[2] the Second World War is still raging when the town's only doctor, George Hansen, is murdered at local US Army Camp Bremen, which holds German prisoners of war.
Harmon J. Cobb, a local lawyer, is coerced by Judge Bell into being the defense attorney for Geiger, the German prisoner accused of killing the doctor, who also happened to have been Cobb's friend.[3] Cobb has no desire for Geiger to be acquitted; in addition to sharing in the wartime anti-German sentiment, Cobb's son is an American soldier fighting the Germans. However, to preserve his hard-earned standing as a top-notch attorney, he begins to build a nominal defense by asking several of Geiger's subordinates who are also prisoners at Camp Bremen to act as character witnesses. However, they all refuse to testify, and when Cobb asks Geiger to pull rank on them to get them on the stand, he refuses. Moreover, he angrily accuses Cobb of being disinterested in the real goings-on in the camp.
Cobb does not press Geiger for more explanation of his comments. However, when a local acquaintance comes forward with more information, Cobb begins to suspect that not only is Geiger innocent, but that Hansen's death is only the tip of the iceberg in illicit operations at Camp Bremen.
Robert MacKenzie as Sergeant Osias (as Robert Mckenzie)
Reception
John J. O'Connor gave the film a positive review in The New York Times, deeming it "a first-rate production". Although he found that a number of details in the script did not make sense, he praised the historical authenticity of both the story and the production, as well as Matthau's immense presence in the lead role.[1]
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