The Trial of the Chicago 7
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Short description
Set in Chicago around the 1968 Democratic National Convention, The Trial of the Chicago 7 follows a group of antiwar activists who gather to protest American involvement in Vietnam. A demonstration meant to be peaceful turns into a violent confrontation with police, and seven men are subsequently charged with conspiracy. Their prosecution becomes one of the most closely watched court cases in the country's history.
Aaron Sorkin wrote and directed the film, his second feature behind the camera after Molly's Game. The large cast is led by Eddie Redmayne as Tom Hayden, Sacha Baron Cohen as Abbie Hoffman, Jeremy Strong as Jerry Rubin, Mark Rylance as defense attorney William Kunstler, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as prosecutor Richard Schultz and Frank Langella as Judge Julius Hoffman. Marc Platt and Stuart M. Besser are among the producers, and the production, made for a budget of about 35 million dollars, credits 81 cast members and 94 crew members.
Released on September 25, 2020, the film runs 130 minutes. Audience responses are consistent: on IMDb it holds 7.7 out of 10 from roughly 205,000 votes, and on TMDB it also stands at 7.7 out of 10, from around 3,451 votes. A critics' rating of 7.8 out of 10 from 343 reviews places professional assessment slightly above the broad audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- A committed pacifist, David Dellinger (1915-2004) did not strike a police officer or anyone else during the trial. In fact, he maintained composure, even when one of the bailiffs struck one of Dellinger’s children.
- In 2006, Steven Spielberg approached Aaron Sorkin with a request to write a similar screenplay, but the Writers Guild strike intervened, followed by other projects taking priority. When Sorkin finally agreed to Spielberg’s request, he had to turn to his father, asking him to recount what happened in 1968, and whether a trial actually took place, as Sorkin himself knew nothing about it.
- Sacha Baron Cohen admitted he was terrified at the prospect of having to speak with an American accent in the film. He had previously used various versions of the accent in his comedies, but never in dramatic films. The actor knew that his character, Abbie Hoffman (1936-1989), had a unique pronunciation – a Massachusetts accent, but he had studied in California, and the actor rightly feared he would sound 'wrong.' The film's director, Aaron Sorkin, tried to reassure him, but Cohen didn't think he succeeded.
- Richard Schultz, as portrayed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, is depicted as a man of strong convictions who, against his will, carries out orders from his superiors and pursues a case whose accusatory slant he does not believe in. In reality, Schultz wholeheartedly supported the prosecution, and when asked about it, denied having stood when the names of those killed in the war were read.
- The character played by Caitlin Fitzgerald – she portrays an undercover agent monitoring Jack Ruby (1938-1994) – is a fictional creation of the film's authors.
- According to the film, Renny Davis had a notebook with him containing the names of U.S. soldiers who died during the trial. In reality, Davis also had the names of Vietnamese soldiers recorded in the same notebook.
- Jeremy Strong pleaded with the director to allow tear gas to be used on set for realism in the scene where a police officer knocks him down. Aaron Sorkin did not grant permission.
- When Steven Spielberg was set to direct the film, he arranged a meeting with Heath Ledger to discuss the role he was to play. Ledger (1979-2008) died of acute intoxication the day before the meeting.
- The film claims that the reason for Seale’s outburst, which led to the decision to bring him to court with a gag and chains, was the murder of Fred Hampton (chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party). However, Hampton’s death actually occurred after Seale’s trial, when Seale was no longer present at the 'Chicago Seven' trial.
- It was Dellinger, not Tom Hayden (1939-2016), who attempted to read a list of names of those killed in Vietnam, but he was not allowed to do so. The assumption that it was Hayden who did this and that it ended the proceedings is incorrect.
- Judge Hoffman truly treated Bobby Seale, a co-founder of the Black Panther Party, terribly – even worse than depicted in the film. As shown on screen, Seale was chained during the trial and had a gag in his mouth. However, based on the film, he was in that position for a very short time, whereas in reality, he was first chained and gagged on October 29, 1969, and it continued every time he appeared in court (i.e., every day) until November 5, 1969.
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