Man Under Suspicion Reviews

An offbeat thriller, MAN UNDER SUSPICION is almost a one-man show as Schell, one of the most intense actors of this age, essays a chain-smoking, lonely lawyer seeking to defend an equally lonely assassin, Aldini. The defendant is accused of participating in an assassination attempt concocted by a right-wing German organization. Aldini gives his counsel little or no help, refusing to admit or deny that he is part of a conspiracy. Aldini plays his part like a firecracker about to go off at any minute. Schell learns his background painstakingly, assisted by Aldini's sister, Stolze. He realizes that his client has probably been duped into fronting for a deadly terrorist group and is too proud to admit that his acts were self-motivated, that Aldini was really seeking recognition, not a political death. Schell is gripping as the shrewd lawyer-turned-investigator, unraveling a mysterious organization and conspiracy much deadlier than he originally suspected. Kuckelmann directs with a sure hand, carefully building his scenes to a disarming climax. (In German; English subtitles.)