Reversal of Fortune

Plot

Wealthy Sunny von Bülow lies brain-dead, husband Claus guilty of attempted murder; but he says he's innocent and hires Alan Dershowitz for his appeal.

Release Year: 1990

Rating: 7.2/10 (6,416 voted)

Critic's Score: 93/100

Director:
Barbet Schroeder

Stars: Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, Ron Silver

Storyline
Alan Dershowitz a brilliant professor of law is hired by wealthy socialite Claus von Bulow to attempt to overturn his two convictions for attempted murder of his extremely wealthy wife. Based on a true story the film concentrates not on the trial like other legal thrillers, but on the preparatory work that Dershowitz and his students put in as they attempt to disprove the prosecution's case and achieve the Reversal of Fortune of the title.

Writers: Alan M. Dershowitz, Nicholas Kazan

Cast:

Glenn Close
–

Sunny von Bülow
/
Narrator

Jeremy Irons
–

Claus von Bülow

Ron Silver
–

Professor Alan Dershowitz

Annabella Sciorra
–

Sarah

Uta Hagen
–

Maria, Sunny's Personal Maid

Fisher Stevens
–

David Marriott

Jack Gilpin
–

Peter MacIntosh, Dershowitz's Student Staff

Christine Baranski
–

Andrea Reynolds, Claus' Girlfriend

Stephen Mailer
–

Elon Dershowitz

Christine Dunford
–

Ellen

Felicity Huffman
–

Minnie, Dershowitz's Student Staff

Mano Singh
–

Raj, Dershowitz's Student Staff

Johann Carlo
–

Nancy

Keith Reddin
–

Dobbs, Dershowitz's Student Staff

Alan Pottinger
–

Chuck, Dershowitz's Student Staff

Taglines:
The Case of Claus Von Bulow. An American Saga of Money and Mystery.

Release Date: October 1990

Filming Locations: Lyndhurst Estate, Tarrytown, New York, USA

Gross: $15,445,131
(USA)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Did You Know?

Trivia:

Martha "Sunny" von Bulow, who spent the last 28 years of her life in a coma after what prosecutors alleged in a pair of sensational trials were two murder attempts by her husband, died December 6, 2008 at age 76.

Goofs:

Continuity:
Von Bülow abruptly switches his eating hand in the restaurant.

Quotes:

Alan Dershowitz:
You do have one thing in your favor: everybody hates you.

Claus von Bülow:
Well, that's a start.

User Review

How Good Is This Film?…"You Have No Idea!"

Rating:

Ever since the film premiered in 1990 Jeremy Iron's portrayal of the
Aristocratic Claus Von Bulow has been etched in my memory. Iron's has
without question created one of the most brilliantly layered historical
characterizations to ever grace the screen.He gets to the heart of the
haughty Von Bulow and brings us as close to liking the man as anyone ever
could.His performance rightly won Him an Oscar for Best
Actor.
Just as engaging is Ron Silver's driven and hyper Alan Dershowitz. his
performance of the great trail lawyer is facinatingly accurate. Having seen
Dershowitz speak and meeting him afterwards it is very clear that Silver was
able to capture even the smallest details of the man's movements,vocal
inflections and dynamic rhetoric(Dersowitz himself claimed Silver used a tad
too many hand gestures however!)

The supporting cast is equally strong. Glenn Close narrates the film as the
comatose Sunny Von Bulow and appears in flashback during the events that
lead to her coma. She captures Sunny's selfishness as well as her
vulnerability. The great Uta Hagan appears as Sunny's maid and protector and
give a performance worthy of her reputation.

Barbet Schroeder slickly directs the film,not as a linier plot but as a
series of flashbacks,moments and current incidents.
This is one of the few films that I cannot find a single flaw in.For
direction,plot,characterization,writing..and Jeremy Iron's wonderful
performance this film is an absolute 10!