Lloyd Bridges does a fine, no-frills job as the antihero of this story, a clearcut tale of basically an ordinary guy, caught up in the rat race (he's just been promoted to a top position as officer in his firm) who witnesses a murder but fails to come forward to testify, as it would jeopardize his job and his marriage. It's a story of a man on the spot: will he try to help make sure a hapless janitor is not convicted for this crime he did not commit?
A nice twist has his mistress (nicely played by a relative unknown, Sandra Church) coming up with an idea: she'll say she saw the murder and fill in for Bridges is setting the police on the trail of the actual killer. Guilt-ridden Lloyd is uncertain whether this ruse will work since Church already told the police a different story, but agrees to her offer -the fly in the ointment is that the killer saw Bridges and is a loose cannon in this situation.
It turns out that Ireland, Lloyd's artist college buddy, serves as the witness in his stead -he's a friend of Lloyd and his wife Geraldine Brooks. Ireland is forced to retract his testimony, resulting in a mistrial.
Suspense is maintained because the killer attends the trial in the audience and keeps tabs on Bridges, while things go from bad to worse, as the public defender is poised to make a plea deal for life imprisonment for his client the janitor. Pressure mounts on Lloyd.
Fate moves its huge hand, as the killer (played mutely by Victor French) tries to run Bridges off the road and plunges to his death off a cliff. Llolyd confesses everything to his boss, who takes the cynical position that the old janitor will be just fine living out his days in prison, and that it's useless for our hero to go to the district attorney and ruin his own life and career in what might prove pointless to clear the innocent man. Only his conscience can get Bridges to do the right thing.
This well-written piece, with its ironic title, hits the spot and handles some major issues with aplomb.
A nice twist has his mistress (nicely played by a relative unknown, Sandra Church) coming up with an idea: she'll say she saw the murder and fill in for Bridges is setting the police on the trail of the actual killer. Guilt-ridden Lloyd is uncertain whether this ruse will work since Church already told the police a different story, but agrees to her offer -the fly in the ointment is that the killer saw Bridges and is a loose cannon in this situation.
It turns out that Ireland, Lloyd's artist college buddy, serves as the witness in his stead -he's a friend of Lloyd and his wife Geraldine Brooks. Ireland is forced to retract his testimony, resulting in a mistrial.
Suspense is maintained because the killer attends the trial in the audience and keeps tabs on Bridges, while things go from bad to worse, as the public defender is poised to make a plea deal for life imprisonment for his client the janitor. Pressure mounts on Lloyd.
Fate moves its huge hand, as the killer (played mutely by Victor French) tries to run Bridges off the road and plunges to his death off a cliff. Llolyd confesses everything to his boss, who takes the cynical position that the old janitor will be just fine living out his days in prison, and that it's useless for our hero to go to the district attorney and ruin his own life and career in what might prove pointless to clear the innocent man. Only his conscience can get Bridges to do the right thing.
This well-written piece, with its ironic title, hits the spot and handles some major issues with aplomb.