Reversal of Fortune (1990) - full transcript

This was my body.

On December 27, 1979,

I lay in bed all day.

Whether I was asleep or in a coma

later became a subject of dispute.

When my breathing
became obstructed...

Maria.

My husband, Claus von Bulow,

finally did as my maid
had been urging all day.

He summoned a physician.

Dr Paultees?



I stopped breathing. My
heart stopped beating.

By this time, I was
certainly in a deep coma

from which I awoke
several hours later.

By the next morning,
I was myself again.

There's no reason
for all this fuss.

I never felt better
in my whole life.

This first coma aroused
suspicion and fear

in the minds of my
personal maid Maria,

my son Alex, and my
elder daughter Ala.

From this time on,
though they never

voiced their suspicions to me,

they kept a vigilant eye on Claus.

A year later,

just before Christmas,



their darkest fears
seemed justified.

- Has Mummy had breakfast yet?
- No, we haven't seen her.

My husband did not
want our daughter

Cosima to see what he had found,

so he motioned to
his stepson Alex.

Second coma. My pulse was 38,

my temperature 81.6 degrees.

Did you call an ambulance?

Nicholas, would you ask Robert
to open the main gates.

We're expecting an ambulance.

Send an ambulance immediately...

- Keep her in something warm.
- Thank you.

Oh, a blanket or
anything you can find.

All this activity was pointless.

We'd better do an EEG.

I never woke from this coma,

and I never will.

I am what doctors call "persistent
vegetative", a vegetable.

According to medical
experts, I could

stay like this for
a very long time,

brain-dead, body better than ever.

Enter Robert Brillhoffer, former
Manhattan district attorney.

My two children from my first

marriage, Alex and
Ala von Auersberg,

hired Brillhoffer to
investigate the case.

He put a "do not resuscitate"
order on her hospital chart.

They sent Alex and a
private investigator

back to my Newport
cottage, Clarendon

Court, to search for drugs.

They found plenty,
in Claus's closet.

On top of that, the
hospital lab reported

that my blood insulin on
admission was 14 times normal,

a level almost surely
caused by injection.

Insulin injection could
readily cause coma...

Or death.

This encrusted needle tested
positive for insulin.

Alex couldn't wait to get
back and show Brillhoffer.

Now they felt they had
the murder weapon.

All they lacked was the motive.

At that moment, my husband was
vacationing with his mistress,

the very beautiful soap-opera
actress, Alexandra Isles.

Oh, God.

Mrs Isles, a divorcee,

was the daughter of an old
friend, Count Billy Botsky.

Brillhoffer also discovered
that, at my death,

Claus, whose own net worth
was only a million dollars,

stood to inherit 14
million from me.

Alexandra later
testified that Claus

showed her a legal
analysis of my will.

On the evidence collected by Alex,
Ala and their lawyer Brillhoffer,

my husband was accused
of twice trying

to murder me with
injections of insulin.

On March 16, 1982,

he was found guilty
on both counts.

Committed on December 27, 1979...

Even Alexandra Isles
testified against him.

Guilty.

As to count two,

charged the defendant committed
on December 21, 1980,

a crime of assault
with intent to murder.

- How do you find?
- Guilty.

You are about to see how Claus
von Bulow sought to reverse

or escape from that
jury's verdict.

You tell me.

And two.

Here it comes. Here we go, taking
you downtown. And Dersh...

Take it in. Foul. Okay, here I go.

Watch the hands. Watch the hands.

Yeah, hello.

What?

Oh, shit. Bottom line.

Aw, shit.

Hi.

Let's try that again. Hi,
Dad. Remember Maggie?

Hi, Maggie.

They're gonna fry. The
Johnson brothers.

What? But...

Two black kids broke their
father out of prison.

The father shot two people and the
sons are convicted of murder.

A lawyer prays for
an innocent client.

Finally, finally, I get two. Both
of them are gonna get zapped.

No more appeals?

Supreme Court but, this
was the best shot.

Whoa. It's the press.

You don't want to
talk to the press?

Dershowitz Psychiatric Institute.

Yeah, hang on a second.

Claus von Bulow.

- It's a reporter.
- With an English accent?

What paper do you represent?

If I can't save two innocent kids,

what's the point? They
might as well hang them.

Yeah, one second. Sorry.

He really seems to
think he's von Bulow.

Hello. This is Alan Dershowitz.

Who are you? What do you want?

- It is von Bulow.
- Back in business.

- Can I help you, sir?
- Claus von Bulow?

Elevators to the left.

Holy shit.

Hello?

Hello?

Professor Dershowitz.
Hello, hello.

- How good of you to come.
- Pleasure.

Won't you sit down?

- Do you play?
- That? No.

Most people think
it's a game of luck.

Actually, it's largely
a matter of nerve.

Nothing, thank you, Charles.

Why don't we go to Delmonico's
and have a proper lunch?

Whatever.

I should tell you, that I
have the greatest respect

for the intelligence and
integrity of the Jewish people.

When I married Sunny, she was the

most beautiful
divorcee in the world,

and one of the wealthiest.

Even so, we never got this table.

Professor Dershowitz.

Dr von Bulow.

Two injections of insulin,
already I'm a doctor.

In America, it's fame
rather than class.

Now, after all this
unpleasantness,

I always get the best table.

Speaking of the unpleasantness...

Oh, yes. We'd better
discuss your fee.

Okay. $300 an hour.

Good Lord.

You know, I used to be
a lawyer in London.

That sounds a bit steep.

It's average for a case like this.

Besides, I do a lot
of pro Bono work.

You'd pay for that. Plus, I have
to pay students, associates.

Are you saying that if I agree to

pay 300, you will
handle my appeal?

No, not so far. Doesn't
look like my kind of case.

I'm not a hired gun.

I gotta feel that some moral or
constitutional issue is at stake.

But I'm absolutely innocent.

And my civil liberties have
been egregiously violated.

Two black kids are
facing the electric

chair for a crime
they did not commit.

They are innocent.

Well, before you assume I'm
guilty, won't you hear my story?

No. Never let defendants explain.

Puts most of them in
an awkward position.

- How do you mean?
- Lying.

But I give you my
word as a gentleman.

Oh. Well...

Won't you at least read the record
and see if you can find something

constitutional?

You do have one thing
in your favour.

Everybody hates you.

Well, that's a start.

Come on, Maxwell.
Yeah. Come on, Max.

- It was a hit.
- Yes.

- So, what do you think?
- Oh, he did it. He did it.

Of course he did it. Can we win?

A hundred to one
against. The maid...

The maid schmeared him on both

comas. Look at this.
It says here...

After you realised that Mrs.
Von Bulow had not gotten up,

what did you do?

I came downstairs,

and Mr von Bulow said that
Madame had a very sore throat,

and I didn't have to do any work,

and she was in bed all day.

What are you doing?
Did we ring for you?

She's ice-cold.

Madame. Mrs von Bulow.

Leave her alone. She's sleeping.

She was drinking last night.
We didn't get any rest.

She's not sleeping.

She's unconscious.

- You must call a doctor.
- Maria.

Go on.

A half-hour later,
she had not moved.

I went back and forth all morning.

Finally, mid-afternoon, Mr von
Bulow spoke to Dr Paultees.

But he lied to doctor.

Yes, she's sleeping now,
but she was up earlier

this morning to the bathroom
and had a soft drink,

so I don't think, there's
any cause for alarm...

But she never moved. Never got up.

She was lying in the
same position all day.

Later her heart stops, and Dr
Paultees, he comes and saves her.

After they go to the hospital,
I'm changing the sheets.

I find a puddle of urine.

If Madame went to the bathroom,

she would not have
peed in her bed.

Right. Why would Claus
lie about that?

Well, it's suspicious
but hardly criminal.

How about the second coma?

Oh, Maria wasn't in
Newport for that one.

But shortly before
the second coma...

I'm cleaning up their room

when I find Mr von
Bulow's white canvas bag

packed for Newport.

Inside, there's a
little black bag.

A bottle of insulin, a
syringe and needles.

Alexander. Alexander, come here.

Insulin?

For what, insulin? My
lady's not diabetic.

Three weeks later, Sunny's
lying unconscious

in a freezing bathroom with her
nightgown hiked over her waist.

If I was on that jury, I
would've voted to convict.

Then you're taking the case?

Reminds me of my Hitler dream.

Hitler calls up, he's
alive, needs a lawyer.

I say "Sure. Come on over."

Then I have to decide do I take
the case or do I kill him?

You? No question.

- I would take the case.
- Then kill him.

I'm a maniac. I need someone
with your judgement,

someone to watch what I'm doing

and occasionally remind
me about the law.

When can I see the transcripts?

You're a former prosecutor,
conservative. We agree on nothing.

But you're smarter
than Rhode Island DA.

If I can beat your arguments,
I can destroy his.

Look, Rhode Island is the most
corrupt state in the country.

Everything is political.

I don't think that way. You do.

I have to see the big
picture. I can't

afford to immerse myself in facts.

But we must know the facts.

Out of all my ex-students,
no one can assimilate

information as quickly as you two.

I agree with that assessment.

- You're out of your mind.
- I only have 45 days to file.

I can't do it without you.

Look, Sarah, I know you
don't wanna come back...

Is this strictly professional?

It better be.

That's wonderful. I want the best
people in the world on our side,

the most prestigious experts.

Nobel prize-winning scientists,

some of your
colleagues at Harvard.

Wait a minute, Claus. We got
a little problem, okay?

People like that,
we can't control.

They find one incriminating fact,
they'll tell the whole world.

I'm not afraid, Alan. Let the
chips fall where they may.

That's what an innocent
man would say.

I know.

That just came for you, Daddy.

My daughter Cosima.
She never doubted me.

She loves Alex and Ala dearly.

Siding with me has cost
her their affections.

I don't know what I would've done.

Okay, look, I said I didn't
want to hear your story

but I do need some information.

Of course.

Okay, I gather though the
older children denied

Sunny had a problem
with pills and alcohol.

Spectacular understatement.

So there must be somebody
who saw it, right?

Some witness, somebody
somewhere, a friend?

- You want affidavits?
- Yes, I do.

- I'll get them.
- You'll get them.

You should also know, the drugs

prescribed for me
were taken by Sunny.

That's a lot of drugs, boss.

But the prosecution's allegation

that I knew about
syringes, injections,

totally accurate.

Sunny and I used to give ourselves
B12 injections in the late '60s.

It's quite the fad in London.

Can I explain something to you?

The less I know from you,
the more options I have.

When you tell me "the truth",

you limit me to a
defence that lines

up with what you have to say.

But isn't the truth the
simplest way, Alan?

I mean, why did I stay all day at

Sunny's side without
calling a doctor?

Because Sunny detested doctors.

If we called one without her
approval, she went berserk.

Once she broke her hip and didn't
go to hospital for two full days.

Claus, did you hear
what I just said?

Of course. Did you hear
the judge sentence me?

Sorry. 30 years is a
pretty stiff sentence.

Twice trying to murder one's wife,

anything less would be monstrous.

But for a man like myself,
who did nothing...

What I wanted to ask
if we lose the appeal,

will I have the chance
later to set my

affairs in order before
I'm incarcerated?

In Europe, a gentleman
is given the

opportunity to end
things properly.

Come on, Claus.

We are each the keeper
of our own soul, Alan.

Okay, two big problems.

The case against him
is very strong,

and probably more important
the legal conviction

isn't the only conviction
that we got to reverse.

The more dangerous conviction
is the absolute certainty

of the American people
that Claus is guilty.

Finding grounds for reversal
won't be enough here.

Judges on the Rhode
Island Supreme Court

will have to go home
to their spouses

and explain why they reversed.

To get them to do that,

we have to completely obliterate

every single aspect
of the state's case.

Destroy both the medical
case and their witnesses,

so the judges have no
possible way to affirm.

Total victory, or we
are dead in the water.

Now, I assume that
you've all had an

opportunity to look
at the transcripts.

First impressions? Yeah, Minnie.

I think this whole thing stinks.

I think Claus von Bulow stinks.

He's obviously guilty of
something pretty despicable,

and, if we free him,

we become partners in his crime,
accessories after the fact.

I'm really shocked,
with your record

defending the poor and oppressed,

that you've taken this case.

I won't have anything
to do with it.

And I hope my fellow students
won't, either. Goodbye.

My I exercise my First Amendment
right to free speech?

If lawyers only defended
innocent clients,

there'd be ten defence lawyers
in the entire country

and none of you would
be able to find a job.

Why help guilty people get off?

Oh, you're sure he's
guilty? 100% sure?

He had a lawyer. He had a
trial. He was convicted.

Are you sure he had a fair trial?

Come on.

It's the basis of the
whole legal system.

Everyone gets a defence.

So the system is there for the one

innocent person who
was falsely accused.

Okay, look. Say it's you. Okay?

You decide... You decide
to get a divorce.

You're gonna divorce your husband.

A week later, you're accused
of molesting your son.

Oh, no, don't give me that look.

Stuff like this
happens all the time.

Suddenly, you're
alone. You hate it.

It's a nightmare. Everyone
assumes that you are guilty.

Even the postman is beginning
to look at you a little funny.

You only got one person
who believes in you.

There's only one person you
can trust, your lawyer.

Yeah, okay. So, someone's
got to defend Claus.

But why you? Why us?

Look, you're my student.
You have a choice.

You don't have to do anything you

don't want to. That
is your choice.

The reason I take cases

and here I'm unlike
most other lawyers,

who are not professors and
therefore have to make a living

I take cases because
I get pissed off.

And I am pissed off here.

The family hired a private
prosecutor. Unacceptable.

They conducted a private search.

Now, we let them get
away with that,

rich people won't go
to the cops any more.

You know what they're gonna do?

They're gonna get their own
lawyers to collect evidence.

And then they are going
to choose which evidence

they feel like passing
on to the DA.

And the next victim isn't
gonna be rich like von Bulow,

but is gonna be some
poor schnook in Detroit

who can't afford or can't
find a decent lawyer.

I think it's a little
more complicated

than your simple
moral superiority.

No?

I agree von Bulow is
guilty, but that's

the fun. I mean,
that's the challenge.

See? Now, there is a lawyer.

- What?
- I have Mr Von Bulow for you.

Okay, put him on.

Alan, a rather unsavoury character

called David Marriott
contacted me,

claiming to have
information about a

drug delivery at Clarendon Court.

- Okay. Where does he live?
- Somewhere in Wakefield.

Okay, we'll get on it.

Tom, I want you to get
a private investigator

to dig into a David Marriott,
lives in Wakefield.

Okay. How are we
gonna win this case?

The judge made lots of mistakes.

Judges always make mistakes.
How are we gonna win?

All right, one issue leaps up.
This lawyer, Brillhoffer,

interviewed Alex,
Maria, everybody.

He was the first person
to hear their stories.

He took notes and used those notes

at trial against a
defence witness.

But the defence never
saw the notes.

The judge wouldn't
let us have them.

It somehow seems like sufficient
grounds. It's perfect Brady.

Okay, fine. Why don't you draft a
letter, writing to Brillhoffer,

asking him very nicely
to send us his notes?

Yeah, right. He'll
fax them right over.

Yeah, right.

We could win on this issue
alone and he knows it.

You know it, I know it.

Just make sure he knows it.

- Now, Nancy and Dobbs.
- Yes?

They're going to attack
the medical testimony.

Our Rhode Island counsel,
Peter Macintosh,

he will analyse the
state supreme court.

I think the rest of us should
begin dissecting the transcript.

Errors, inconsistencies.
Anything unusual.

Okay, great. Now
remember, most cases

are won in the
field, not in court.

Minnie?

You wanna work with Sarah on this?

- You may learn something.
- Come on, Minnie.

Minnie.

Please? Come on.

Of course I don't
trust David Marriott.

I don't know David Marriott.

But if he knew Alex
von Auersberg...

You're crazy. I don't know
who you think you are.

Perry Mason?

Let our private investigator
interview this jerk.

It's stupid, it's arrogant,
and it's unprofessional.

- It's fun.
- Fun? This guy is a sleaze.

You don't know what
he's gonna try.

What, is he gonna shoot me?

Come on, I'm from Brooklyn.

Okay I'll stand by the window
every ten minutes, okay?

That way you can know I'm safe.

I had this friend, Gilbert
Jackson. Interior decorator.

Flaming queen, but a
very excellent guy.

He introduced me to
Alex von Auersberg.

Sure it was Alex?

We had dinner a few times, drinks.

All I knew, Alex
was some rich kid.

So sometimes, this is
like summer of '77

I'd motor to Newport
for some R and R.

Gilbert asked me to
bring Alex a package.

I figured interior
decoration. Maybe drapes.

Like six times. So I'd call Alex.

How did you get his phone number?

From Gilbert.

- You still have it?
- Maybe.

I'm that kind of guy.

Here.

One night, I got curious.
Opened the package.

Fucking pharmacy, man.

Needles, syringes, white powder,

nice selection of pills,
Demerol... Like a drug store.

You delivered, drugs six
times and didn't know it?

Stupid, huh? Then
Gilbert asked me again.

I couldn't say no, but this time

I made Alex open the
package in front of me.

Voila.

I go, "Awful lot of
pharmaceuticals for one person."

He goes, "Oh, I give some to my
mum to keep her off my back."

A few weeks later, Gilbert
gets mistaken for a softball.

Two guys bash his head in.

Alex calls me, totally urinary.

Will the cops find
his phone number

and fuck up his trust
fund or something?

Well, that's the fat. That's
the skinny. You like it?

You traffic with drug
dealers and drag queens,

you have a part-time job,
you ride in rented limos.

All in all, I would have
to say you're probably

the least impressive
witness I've ever seen.

Wait a minute.

You think I'm scum, don't you?

Blow it out your ass.

You want a witness to
back me up? I'll get one.

And hey, maybe I'll see
you at the Celtics, huh?

I am not going to let them execute
you. You're not gonna die.

Look, Johnny, this
is gonna be a lot

easier on you if you
don't cry, okay?

I know your brother's hysterical.

Number one, they always set
a date for the execution,

and they always postpone it.

He's great when he's
like this, huh?

That's right.

I just wish he had something
left for those around him.

Why are you talking
to me about money?

Did I ever ask you about money?

Anyway, it's nice to
have you back here.

Say hello to your brother.

Right. Okay.

Okay, who's got what?

Yeah.

Maria's testimony.

She says Sunny did take
Valium prescribed for Claus.

Hey, score one for von Bulow.

And, this Jamie
Smather prescription?

Who's Jamie Smather?

300-pound red-headed hooker
in pigtails and white boots.

She supplied Claus with Valium.

He had a gorgeous mistress
and went to an ugly whore?

You know, there are some things
even mistresses won't do.

- Like what?
- I am not telling.

Anyway, Maria swears she first saw
this Jamie Smather prescription

February 14th, and then
again February 28th.

So?

It wasn't prescribed
till the 28th.

You're not suggesting she's lying?

Okay, how about Maria's
insulin? For what insulin?

Anything more on that?

Not yet.

Something about that bothers me.

Okay, who's next?
Brillhoffer wrote back.

He's very attached to his notes.

"I am satisfied that there is not
a scrap of paper in my files

"that might even arguably
be viewed as exculpatory."

English translation?

He says he doesn't have
anything that'd help us.

- You with me?
- Pay dirt.

- What's pay dirt?
- He's a lawyer.

If he really didn't have
anything, he'd give it to us.

But there's something
there, and he's

gonna fight like hell
to hold on to it.

I will bet my fee that no one
remembered seeing insulin

until after the lab
report came back.

- So you're suggesting...
- Memory enhancement.

- It might be more than that.
- Possibly.

- A frame-up.
- You mean, by the kids?

Where are you getting all this?
From Brillhoffer's letter?

Pure deduction.

A good lawyer is
part psychiatrist,

detective, logician.

A great lawyer...

Never would have taken this case.

If there's nothing more,
has anybody read this?

It's an interview
with Truman Capote.

He says, when she
was 19, Sunny von

Bulow taught him how
to inject drugs.

Let me see that.

Well, well, well. The
famous professor.

Alan, I'd like to introduce my
new girlfriend, Andrea Reynolds.

I'm not his girlfriend.
I'm his saviour.

Perfectly true.

Two days after the trial
ended, we fell in love.

It was really very, very dramatic.

Andrea, Andrea, Andrea, come on.

Since then, I've devoted my
life to clearing his name.

I made him hire you.

"Get the Jew," I said.

Darling...

Can the Jew get down to business?

We've got an affidavit. Smythe.

Mrs Ruth Smythe gave
us an affidavit

corroborating Truman Capote.

I have affidavits, too.

Newport people. They
describe Sunny taking pills,

getting drunk and falling down,

thumping into doorways, smearing
lipstick all over her face.

- Not a very pretty picture.
- She did it, didn't she?

Don't be a priss.

- Sunny was a lovely woman.
- Spoiled rotten.

Yes, but lovely. Till she drank.

Two drinks, and she became...
Nasty, irrational.

All women are irrational, darling.

Did we mention the priest?

Oh.

Oh. Marriott apparently
confided in a

priest, who's consented
to talk to us.

Father Capello from Providence.

A priest?

Oh, a priest is the ideal witness.

It's like getting the word of God.

I checked. God is unavailable.

If the priest comes through,

and we can get documentation
on Sunny's drug use,

then self-injection may
be a plausible theory.

There's no insulin in this case.

Yeah, but people do use insulin.

They use it for dieting. It's
not a prescription drug.

Sunny was concerned
about her weight.

Maybe, but believe me, Alan,
there's no insulin here.

Really? How can you be so sure?

You realise, with this case, I'm

looking for evidence
to exonerate you.

But, at the same time, I'm also
wondering what really happened.

- Who you are.
- Who would you like me to be?

Your mother's death,
what happened?

I believe she had a heart problem.

Really? The rumour in
England is you killed her.

Hey, wait a minute,
Alan. Statute of

limitations ran out
on that years ago.

There's rumours also
that I killed my aunt.

And that I'm a necrophiliac

who injected Sunny with insulin

so that I could have
my way with her.

Please.

Your mother's death wasn't
recorded for five full days.

True.

Where were you during that time?

In the flat.

Where the body was?

My mother is my own business.

Did Claus drive me crazy?
Even I don't know.

But it's true that I took
up to 24 laxatives daily,

popped aspirin like M&M's,

smoked three packs
of cigarettes a day,

had a problem with alcohol,

took Valium and Seconal frequently

and consumed large
quantities of sweets,

despite a medical
condition, hypoglycaemia,

which made them hazardous.

As for my state of mind...

I had not had sex with
my husband for years.

My schedule was I woke at 9.30,

did a little exercise
and shopping,

and returned to bed
at 3 o'clock for

the remainder of the afternoon.

I liked to be in bed. I didn't
much like anything else.

Hold on here, will you?

- Come in.
- Alan.

Welcome to my humble law firm.

In the kitchen, our
insulin-on-the-needle team.

They're cooking up
some surprise for us.

This is our Brillhoffer
notes team.

Mr von Bulow.

Where are the paper
towels? Ask Sarah.

Sarah used to live here.

This, I guess he was up all night.

This sort of commune, you
do it on every case?

Never before. 38 days to write 100
pages. Only way to get it done.

Here's the black-bag team.
Illegal-search team.

My son Elon lost his
room. Well, actually

this is another case
that you're paying for.

- And this is my team.
- You wish.

I can't find the damn thing.

Hi. I'm Sarah.

Well, a very lovely Sarah you are.

- Does that really work?
- Flattery? Absolutely.

Like Chinese food?

What do you give a wife
who has everything?

An injection of insulin.

How... Ah, my prawns.

How can one define
a fear of insulin?

Claus-trophobia.

Is there anything more you can
tell us about Alexandra Isles?

Is it true that she
gave you a deadline

of Christmas 1979 to be together?

Ah, not really. No, she knew I
was looking for full-time work.

I worked for JP Getty in London.

Alexandra assumed
that, when you did

find a job, you'd
marry her, correct?

Oh, she assumed it.

How about when she testified,
did you get the sense

that she wanted to
get back together?

Very much so. In fact, at
the trial, she said...

I loved him, but I was still
caught up in my own anger.

And I'm sorry I acted
that way then.

I loved him then. I was angry.

Let me ask you this.
Maybe you can't answer.

Do you still love him?

I don't know.

That means yes, doesn't
it? It would seem so.

In fact, after the
trial, she wrote

me a letter saying so explicitly.

A very passionate letter.
Passionate and jealous.

But that was the relationship from
the outset. That was Alexandra.

She was your love slave.

Ah.

Well, I think now I'll have my own
individual order of ginger prawns.

Waiter.

Three weeks before her final coma,
Sunny overdosed on aspirin.

Can you tell us
anything about that?

No one maintained I had
anything to do with that, Alan.

No. Of course not. I'm
asking you what happened.

Well, Sunny had been unwell.

- Are you all right?
- Ah, just a bit dizzy.

Well, if you're dizzy,
don't go wandering.

Sunny?

Oh, my God. Come on, my darling.

Now, you're all right. Come on,
put your arm around my shoulder.

No, you're all right. Come on,
we'll get you back into bed.

- Something happened to my head.
- You're all right.

It's just a little cut.

Come on, let's get you lying down.

There you are.

There.

- Shall I call a doctor?
- No.

No, I don't want a doctor.
Just... I don't want a doctor.

I just wanna be left alone.

I wanna be left alone with
all those beautiful letters.

What did you do
with those letters?

Why did you write those letters?

Later the doctor said we
needn't have gone to hospital,

but I wasn't going
to take any chances.

Why did she take so much aspirin?

Oh, Sunny always
took aspirin. She'd

been taking a lot
for several days.

- That's not what our doctor said.
- Dr Lucus Lupardus,

chief forensic toxicologist,
Suffolk County,

says people who take
large amounts of

aspirin every day never
reach that level.

He also said the average blood
level in cases of death is 60.

Hers was 90. So...

So, it was obviously
a suicide attempt.

- Why?
- Yeah. Why?

Why?

Alan, do they all want
to be prosecutors?

We're waiting.

Well, I presume she was unhappy.

How about we all finish up
and go back to the house?

We're not gonna win this
on a technicality. Peter?

I've read every case in
the last seven years

where the Rhode Island
Supreme Court reversed.

They don't like to make new law,

they don't like to discuss
broad legal issues.

When they do reverse, the
grounds are technical,

but the reason seems to be

they suspect a convicted
defendant may be innocent.

Okay, everybody get that?

True or not, we've gotta convince
the judges that you are innocent.

Claus, now I do wanna hear
your side of the story.

With pleasure. Innocence has
always been my position.

First coma, what preceded it?

Well, Sunny loved Christmas.

It was her favourite
season, really.

You see, what you must
understand about Sunny

is that she loved giving
more than anything else.

♪ Peace on earth and mercy mild

♪ God and sinners reconciled

Each year, she always made a
big bowl of fresh eggnog.

On that year, she
drank a lot of it.

How much? 10 or 12 glasses.

With her hypoglycaemia?

She didn't always drink like that?

Never. She never touched
alcohol at all,

except on social occasions
to overcome her shyness

or when she was upset.

This was not a social occasion?

No. We'd been discussing
divorce all afternoon.

This whole subject of your
work coming between us,

isn't it just a pretext, when
the real subject is her?

Certainly not.

I'm thinking of redecorating
this whole fucking house.

Then she knew about Alexandra.

- Yes.
- How did she find out?

I...

I told her the previous summer.

Thank you.

Oh, I've been meaning to mention,

our understanding about my
extracurricular activities.

I've been involved with
someone who falls outside

the parameters of our agreement.

Really?

Someone peripherally
in our circle.

Billy Botsky's daughter,
Alexandra Isles.

Well...

That must be better for you than
what you've had to put up with.

You're referring
to the call girls.

Yes. I mean, that is where you've
gone previously, isn't it?

Yes, it is.

And isn't this better? Or is Billy
Botsky's daughter a call girl too?

This is much better.

That was what? July, August?

Now it's Christmas
time, and you were

still squabbling over Alexandra?

No, we were fighting
about my work.

Sunny was...

Well, by the evening, she'd
drunk so much eggnog

that I had to help her
into the bedroom.

Time for bed, darling.

There we are.

Please don't hold my arm.

Darling, you know when
you get like this.

Do you remember? You
fell and broke your hip.

That was years ago.

It was two years ago.

Get me a Scotch and soda.

May I at least urinate alone?

She runs the water every
time she goes in there.

If she was already soused, why
do you go for the Scotch?

Because she asked for it.

Sunny got what Sunny wanted.

It's okay.

- Good night, Daddy.
- Good night, darling.

- Good night, Claus.
- Good night, Alex.

Hasn't my mother given
us enough money?

Claus.

That night, we hardly slept.

Your age is perfectly
acceptable to retire.

I'm already retired.

I haven't worked
full-time since Getty.

Exactly. It's your ego. You've
never had a career, not really.

I'm going to have one now.

Oh, come on, Sunny.
Your father worked.

Do you want the children
to grow up thinking

a male's place is in a deck chair?

Perhaps, you marry me for my
money, then you demand to work.

You're the prince of perversion.

I mean, what? Are you trying
to destroy our whole family?

Oh, no, of course not.
I simply want some

intercourse with the world.

Shut up, Pan.

Oh, what does it matter?

So, is that it? Another divorce?

Okay. I'll divorce you. I will.

Oh, God. Two-time loser.

- I'll divorce everybody.
- I don't want a divorce.

I don't want to marry
Billy Botsky's daughter.

I want to stay with you and I want
to work. I need that as a man.

It's hopeless.

Oh, God. I need my beauty sleep.

Why do you believe it's hopeless
just because it's some...

Good night, Claus.

Sunny, you know I love you.

Good night.

- Okay, and the next day?
- Well...

Maria's testimony was
wildly exaggerated.

Sunny was never moaning.

Maybe the occasional slur, but...

And Maria shook Sunny.

Nobody ever shook Sunny.

What happened when she
became conscious?

After the first coma,
it was kind of absurd.

Everybody was angry at me.

Can't you ever leave me alone?

Why did you do it?

I would have been better off.

You would have been better off.

What do you want me to say? That
I'm sorry I saved your life?

Yes.

Say it.

Of course I'm not sorry.

Claus.

What am I going to do with myself?

When I phoned Alexandra
to tell her what

had happened, she
said the same thing.

She said "Why did you do it?
Why did you call the doctor?"

Are you telling me, she
wanted you to let Sunny die?

No, no, no, no, no.

It was more "Everybody says
Sunny's such an unhappy woman

and has nothing to live for."

Well, so much for the first coma.

The second, of course, was
much more theatrical.

Theatrical? What is
this, a fucking game?

This is life and death. Your
wife is laying in a coma.

You don't even make a
pretence at caring, do you?

Of course I care, Alan.

It's just I don't wear
my heart on my sleeve.

Let's call it a night, okay?

Okay, guys, so...

As you wish.

Three drugs on the needle
amobarbital, Valium, insulin.

We can't all be you, Alan.

Shoot, shoot.

Okay, get a doctor to
prepare five needles.

One with nothing, two with
Valium, amobarbital and insulin,

two with just Valium
and amobarbital.

We're gonna send them to the same

lab that our famous
needle went to.

Let's see if we can get a
false-positive result.

If we don't?

If we don't, I clean the latrines.

Oh, you're not gonna believe this.

David Marriott wants money.

Who doesn't?

I'm afraid, his memory might fail.

Well the hell with
him. Forget about him.

Well, he has lost his crummy job,

and he is running around trying
to find evidence for us.

Okay, but why don't
we do, what the

government does with
its witnesses, okay?

We'll pay him for his time.

- What's his time worth?
- Buck and a half.

Dersh. Your team's on.

Okay, you gonna pass
to me this game?

No.

Their private investigator
said the needle

had a small encrustation
near the tip.

Doctors tell us this is totally
inconsistent with injection.

Okay, so how did it get there?

Oh.

If I inject this needle, the
skin acts as a kind of a swab.

It cleans the needle off, leaving
the tip completely free of liquid.

But if I just dip the needle into
the liquid, what do you see?

Dry this out, you
have an encrustation.

So it's a frame-up?

It's Desdemona's handkerchief.

My stepchildren
thought I was guilty,

didn't feel they had enough
evidence, so concocted some.

- This should win us the case, no?
- No.

We're maybe halfway home.

There's still a lot
of weird stuff.

- Did you love Sunny?
- I married her.

Of course I loved her.
She was beautiful.

- Rich.
- Why not?

What I've seen of the
rich, you can have 'em.

I do.

The black bag. Was it yours?

Sunny appropriated it.

But to understand that, you must

understand that, after
the first coma,

she went into a complete rage.

Where are they? Did you take them?

Certainly not. Take what?

My pills, you moron.

Valium, Seconal.

You took them, didn't you?

My dear, I've long since
stopped interfering.

Well, who? My children
wouldn't dare.

- Oh, I know who.
- Where are you going?

Maria.

She soon found them.

It's my lovely mother, isn't
it? She's behind all this.

She's in cahoots with Maria.

Well, just because she had all the
money before I had all the money

does not mean she's
my lord and master.

Of course not. I am
your lord and master.

Just kidding.

Maria loves me too much.

It's unhealthy for her, and
it's certainly no fun for me.

There.

We'll see if that ugly little maid
of mine can sniff this one out.

And what are you going
to do with all that?

I'm not gonna tell you.

I assure you, it's not
gonna be among my affairs.

Odd she used that word, "affairs".

You realise the
prosecution thinks you

ground up the drugs so
you can inject Sunny.

And frankly, this nose-drop
business is pretty far-fetched.

But consider the pattern, Alan.

It's public record
that Sunny used drugs.

Her behaviour here
of hiding them in

liquid so that no
one will find them

is your classic alcoholic
buying pints of whiskey

and stashing them
all over the house.

You're right. Of course. I mean...

I mean, you've always
been right, haven't you?

This is the most dangerous
case I ever worked on.

You find that exhilarating?

No, I do not. I am
breaking every rule.

Because the best way to win is
to proclaim your innocence,

and I have never done
that for anybody.

And the problem I got
is I see who you are.

- You'd do anything to win.
- So would you.

Yeah, but you don't
trust the legal system.

You're saying I'd manufacture
witnesses, affidavits?

- No, but you would sacrifice me.
- Oh, please, Alan.

See, the more I
believe that you are

innocent, the more nervous I am.

I go out on a limb for you, you're

proven guilty, I look
like an asshole.

My reputation, my credibility,
my career, destroyed.

That's the risk you're
taking, isn't it?

Well, fuck you.

Fuck you, man.

I'm glad we understand
one another.

It's easy to forget all this
is about me, lying here.

To most of you, my
name means "coma".

My second marriage means
"attempted murder".

Everything that came before,
everything beautiful,

does not exist in the public mind.

No one thinks of how I loved
my children. Look at Cosima.

And Alex, of course. And Ala.

And certainly no one
cares about Claus,

the way he was when I
fell in love with him.

When Claus and I first met, I was
married to the dashing young

Prince Alfred Eduard Friederich

Vincenz Martin Maria
von Auersberg.

It was 1964, seven years
into my first marriage.

It seems that my first husband,
Alfie, as he was called,

had vowed to be unfaithful with
every pretty girl in Europe.

He was having quite a success.

And so... I was
unfaithful with Claus.

Psst.

Wildly unfaithful.

Happy memories.

But it's not the passion
I remember most.

It's the tenderness.

Good God, what's that?

Just one of Frank's pets.

Oh, my God.

Come on, silly.

I never liked people
much, not as a rule.

But Claus was somehow different.

Not a normal person, I guess.

It's all right. Do it
again. Give him some more.

Aw.

One of those things
you never forget.

Of course, now he lives in
my apartment, my bedroom,

my bed.

Cold, isn't it?

Cold and brutish, and
the way of the world.

Looking at him now, the
issue seems simple.

Is he the devil?

If so, can the devil get justice?

And all this legal activity,
is it in Satan's service?

"Sunny von Bulow was totally
vulnerable to Claus von Bulow?"

Can't argue with that.

But it's speculation,
exaggeration.

- You keep working on it.
- Totally inflammatory.

Okay, good. Let's go over this.

Okay, we went over it once.

I just wanting to see if it...

Oh, shit. What is
this? Illegal search?

A classic technicality, it's
a guilty man's argument.

Come on, this is different.

Usual Fourth Amendment case,
you're trying to exclude evidence.

- This is bad for your client.
- Nah, nah, nah, nah.

Same thing here. Same thing.

No, this search
destroyed evidence.

No fingerprints, no inventory.

Yeah, what's left hurts
Claus, but on the

Brady the state has
an obligation...

Wait, wait, wait...

The cops tested the drugs from
the illegal search, right?

- Yes. Yes.
- And we are saying that that test

constituted a second
illegal search.

There are precedents. Walter,
Jacobs and Morgan...

I know there are precedents.

I know the lawyer is on our
side. I'm not debating that.

What I'm trying to do...

You're debating me,
personally. Why?

I'm debating strategy, okay?
I'm not debating you.

We're all on the same team. Are
we on the same team? You and I?

I don't know. We seem to be.

Well, then why don't I feel it?

I thought this was
strictly professional.

- It was.
- That's bullshit, Alan.

Loo, I brought you... I asked
you to work on this case

because I think you
are a good lawyer.

I think you are a fine lawyer,
too, you are a great lawyer,

but you give everything
you have to the law

and forget the people
you care about.

My clients are the people
that I care about.

Obviously.

What I care about,
all I care about,

all I fucking care about
is this. This case.

And making the best
possible appeal

that we're capable of doing, okay?

Now, you can make your
argument better, Sarah.

You know that. I know that.

So why don't you just do it
and cut all the bullshit?

You always have to have
the last word, don't you?

What?

We're gonna lose.

Why do you think this
case fascinates people?

Because one time or other, every
man is driven crazy by his wife,

and in his secret heart,

he wants to do exactly
what Claus is accused of.

Kill her in some sly, silent
way that can't be detected.

Claus is a scapegoat.

Someone has to suffer for the
sin that we all wanna commit.

Alan, that's ridiculous.

It's ridiculous. You're right.

What have you got?

Prosecution's case is
based on a theory.

The needle in the
bag, plus insulin on

the needle, plus
insulin in her blood.

Right, right, right.
Okay, okay, fine.

In Derek, this Rhode Island
Supreme Court, these same judges,

said that, in a case based
on circumstantial theory,

the case falls apart if any
part of the theory is weak.

If there's a weak
link in the train,

then you throw the
whole chain out?

Exactly.

Peter, that's good.
That's very good.

- Oh, yeah, this is good.
- Thank you.

Oh, yeah.

Wait, wait, what do you
want me to do now?

What I want you to do?
I want you to find

as many alternative
theories as possible.

Hey. Come on. Come on. Come on.
There's only seven days left.

Dersh. I'm sorry, but you'd
better come downstairs.

Hey, Dersh. Sorry to
get you out of bed.

- What do you want? More money?
- Can you get more?

Can I have a glass
of water, please?

No. The reason I'm here, my
affidavit is inaccurate.

Great. Just what I need right now.

- It's slow.
- Yeah.

I left something out, something
incredibly important.

Remember I gave Alex's drugs
to a woman at Clarendon Court?

Yeah. So?

Well, that bitch was
definitely Sunny von Bulow.

David, this, this is bad.

It look bad. I've
met with you about

five times now, and
all of a sudden...

No, it's not sudden.

I think I always
knew, but I became

convinced by staring
at pictures of her.

Oh, we can't use your affidavit
unless it's truthful.

Are you sure this time?

I swear, on the body
and soul of my mother.

Poor woman.

Put in this change,
and make him go

over every word of the affidavit.

Ah...

Can I use your men's room?

More money?

Can you get more?

If Claus had injected
her, he would've

thrown away the needle, right?

Sure. If he threw away the
insulin, why keep the needle?

Claus is strange, but
he ain't stupid.

He is arrogant.

- Is that a crime?
- Sometimes.

Why are we even discussing this?

It's obvious, the kids framed him.

Whoa. You changed your tune.

A frame-up doesn't
mean he's innocent.

The kids could've
framed the guilty man.

Dersh. Telephone.

It's Peter Macintosh.

Yeah.

Do you know what it is?

Okay.

Word in Rhode Island
is that the state

can't lose. Got an
ace up their sleeve.

What is it?

He's gonna try to find out.

- All right, my friend.
- Friend? I like that.

Nothing personal.

Okay, no students, no witnesses.

Second coma let's hear it.

Well, Alan,

strange as it may seem
now, in retrospect...

Okay, Claus, cut the
bullshit. December 20, 1980.

Sunny was unwell.

We'd been arguing all afternoon.

I'd at last been offered a new
position in the oil business,

which would've meant my
spending some time in Europe.

Well, the discussion
must've escalated

because I went to
talk to the children.

This cargo will bring 50,000 gold

florin from any rebels
worth the name.

50,000 florin? That's
a pretty good take.

Let's put it to the vote.
All those in favour...

If you'll forgive
my interruption...

I...

I've something to tell you both.

We're heading for the
best pirate days ever.

I...

It looks as if...

As though Mummy and I are
going to have to split up,

because my work is something
she just cannot tolerate.

Well, mummy says things like that,

but she always gets over it.

Yes, but this has been
going on for too long.

I'm going to Europe for a
few months in the new year.

Now, this will probably
lead to a split.

Oh.

It's all right.
She'll get over it.

Hey, well, Alexander says that

conversation happened
the next day.

Can you imagine
anything more absurd

than announcing your
intention to divorce a woman

who's just fallen into a coma?

No. That evening everything
seemed normal enough.

Not cheerful. But then, we didn't
usually giggle at mealtimes.

Despite her doctor's
warnings about sweets,

the only thing Sunny
consumed was a sundae.

After supper, I went to finish
off some work in my study.

Oh, what should we all do?

The others decided to
chat in the living room.

Oh, that would be
lovely, but first I

need to go to my room
for just a minute.

After about an hour, I
dropped in on them.

Darling, would you
care for anything?

If there's some chicken
bouillon left.

I'll look.

- There you are, darling.
- Ah.

Here.

Thank you.

How is your work coming?

I'm totally flummoxed. I can't get
the figures to make any sense.

Why don't you call
your friend Deborah?

I doubt she'd be
in Saturday night.

So, Deborah, I think you'll agree
that's 7-2-8. Right. Now...

But Deborah was home, and we did
talk for some time, until...

Claus, come quick.
Mummy's not well.

Hold on.

Deborah, can I call you back
in the morning? Thanks.

Her voice got very weak, and she

almost fell down. I
had to help her.

Somebody open a window.

I find the chill reassuring.

Now I must speak with Claus.

- Good night, Mummy.
- Good night.

Good night, darling.

Good night, Alex.

That is, if Claus
has time to talk.

Or are you going to
work every spare

moment right through Christmas?

Is your work so fascinating?

Or are you trying
to drive me away?

Because if you are,
you're succeeding

beautifully, because
I don't want this.

I didn't marry you for this.
I could've had anybody.

With my money? Anybody.

Well? Say something.

Do something. Be a man.

I already have a butler.

Do something. I don't want this.

I don't. I don't want this.

I don't... I don't want this.

The same conversation
as the previous year,

only this time with greater venom.

You've always been afraid of me.
It's not because of my money.

It's basically because
you're a coward.

Your pitiful masculinity
is so fragile, you

can't stand the idea
of confrontation,

so you go off with Miss Botsky.

Good night.

As was usual, I was
awakened before dawn.

I let the dogs out,
as was customary.

I went back through the bedroom to
my study as quietly as possible.

I did not notice if
my wife was in bed.

I did not notice if the light
was on under the bathroom door.

Had it been on, I wouldn't
have given it a thought.

I did my exercises, showered,

and then I called Deborah Knowles.

Well, I mean, it's stable
and it's profitable.

Can anyone really believe,

if I was trying to murder my wife,

that I would spend an hour going
over a tedious set of figures?

After the call, I passed
through the bedroom again.

I remember it was freezing.

By this time, Sunny was
certainly not in bed.

And I heard water running
in the bathroom.

I had breakfast, walked the dogs,

and, on my return, asked the
children where Mummy was.

Has Mummy had breakfast yet?

We haven't seen her.

Sunny?

Her bathroom was her
private sanctuary.

No one entered it. Except the
maid, of course, to clean up.

Sometimes she stayed there
for hours, or so it seemed.

One can only speculate what
goes on behind a closed door.

Sunny, are you there?

I hesitated even to knock.

Darling?

Sunny?

Oh, God.

Once I'd ascertained she was

breathing, I went
to fetch Alexander.

- Why not call an ambulance first?
- Panic, Alan, panic.

I mean, I...

I needed to talk to
somebody. That...

It was not I wasn't worried if she

was breathing normally.
It wasn't...

It wasn't like the year before.

I mean...

In retrospect it seems absurd,
but I looked at her upper lip.

She had blood on it. I thought
she'd broken a tooth.

That was the extent of my concern.

And that's...

And that's really all I can...
That's really all I can say.

- But is it the truth?
- Of course.

- But not the whole truth.
- I don't know the whole truth.

I don't know what happened to her.

I wish I didn't believe you.

It's very hard to trust
someone you don't understand.

You're a very strange man.

You have no idea.

Everybody here?

Peter Macintosh says
he's got bad news.

There he is.

Well?

I found out what the state has.

Their ace in the hole.

It's you.

It's me?

David Marriott taped all his
conversations with you.

Oh, great.

The scuttlebutt is, if we win
the case, you go to prison.

What did I say?

Good old corrupt Rhode Island.
A friend got me an excerpt.

The reason I'm here... My
affidavit is inaccurate.

David, this is bad. It looks bad.

What do you want? More money?

Can you get more?

Yeah.

- That is not what I said.
- It's on tape, Alan.

I don't care if it's on tape.
That's not what I said.

- What do we do?
- I don't know.

I'll tell you what we do. We
ignore it. That's what we do.

Alan, with that tape,
it's your whole career.

I now believe Claus is innocent,

so we've decided no tricks,
no technicalities.

We are going to base
our appeal directly

and explicitly on
Claus's innocence.

That's not proper. An appeal has
to be based on judicial error.

It is. The judge should've
thrown out the case.

How can you say there
wasn't sufficient

evidence when the
jury convicted him?

- That's a good point.
- That's what we are saying.

If the rules don't
work, you change them.

Red Auerbach got the
jump-ball rule changed

when the Celtics had a short team.

Ah, but it's dangerous
politically, Alan.

If the judges feel insulted,
then we're gonna...

Wait up here.

State supreme court
shouldn't even look

at an appeal based
on new evidence.

Hey, guys. I'll take care of that,
okay? You just leave it to me.

Look, I know you're all
exhausted. We got four days left.

What we do now is gonna
decide this thing.

Do you wanna win or not?

- Alan. We've got something.
- What?

We've hit the jackpot.

Our needles that had
amobarbital and Valium...

But no insulin.

Both came back with false-positive
readings for insulin.

One was 93, the other 282.

We've knocked out every piece
of their medical case.

- Whoo.
- Good one. Good one.

Okay, now all they've
got left is my neck.

Anybody know anything about
editing audio tapes?

Defence. For what?
Defence. Come on.

Come on, baby. Come on, baby.

- All right, Alan.
- Come on.

Hurry up.

Pass it, Alan.

Wait a minute. No, I got
it. I got it. Where's Raj?

- He's upstairs.
- Where are you going?

Raj. Raj, I got it.

I got it. Remember Maria?

She could have said
it like this...

Insulin? For what, insulin?

My lady is not diabetic.

You see? "My lady
is not diabetic."

She is assuming that
the bag is Sunny's.

Her first reaction, instantaneous,

not part of a legal
strategy devised later,

is that the stuff in the black bag
belonged to Sunny, not Claus.

Who's gonna know better
than she? Start writing.

You are not God. You
are a prosecutor.

And Alabama cannot
execute those Johnson

kids before the
Supreme Court rules.

That's right. You heard me right.

You got two hours to
get to Rhode Island.

- You're gonna have to speed.
- You want me to commit a crime?

Of course, not. Because if you
do, they're gonna stop you

and you're not gonna
make the deadline.

I'm telling you right now, buddy,
those kids fry, you're next.

You're damn right.

Some startling developments
in the von Bulow case.

Harvard Law School
professor Alan Dershowitz

had been accused of paying
for falsified testimony,

but those accusations
were discredited today

by the Rhode Island
attorney general,

who announced that David
Marriott's tape was doctored

and that Marriott is not
a reliable witness.

So, what was he up to, Alan?
Who was he working for?

Damned if I know.

Hope they don't think
he was working for you.

Well, no one's going to...

Look, I don't think
you did it, okay?

But at the Chinese restaurant,
you did duck the big question.

Chuck is our Alexandra
Isles expert.

Sunny's aspirin overdose.
Why did she take so many?

What happened? Sunny
had a headache?

The headache was Alexandra, right?

Let's hear it, Claus.

Alexandra was spiteful.

On the day of Sunny's
aspirin overdose,

she returned some presents I'd
given her, some photographs.

Love letters.

She dropped them off
in a shopping bag.

Did Sunny see them?

Sunny was home. I was not.

Alexandra neglected to
address the package to me.

I wanna be left alone with
all those beautiful letters.

What did you do
with those letters?

Why did you write those letters?

There's a big difference between
knowing about an affair

and having love letters
crammed down your throat.

It seems that Sunny did
care about your affair.

She cared a lot.

Why didn't you tell us?

Everything was open-book.

"Get the best experts." "I'm
not afraid of the truth."

Looks to me like Alexandra tried
to force Sunny into suicide.

Or they plotted it together.

Either way, he's
protecting Alexandra

because he still in love with her.

And why not? Hey, she's a babe.

Of course I still love her.

And hate her.

Alexandra, Sunny, Andrea...

I love them all.

Being a human being
is very literal.

You're trapped.

Time moves in only one
direction, forward.

It's stupid and boring and
results in a lot of silliness.

Example, the legal process.

In this particular
case, a vast amount

of time, effort and
money was spent

trying to determine
precisely what happened

on those two nights so
close to Christmas,

December 26, 1979,
December 20, 1980.

Happened right here.

Even now, it all looks the same,

feels the same, smells the same.

If you could just go back in time

and take a peek, you'd know.

And all this would be unnecessary.

All rise.

Hear ye, hear ye.
All persons having

business before the Supreme Court

holding in province within

and for the State of Rhode
Island may now draw near.

Then again, everyone
enjoys a circus.

Be seated.

If the appellant is
ready, you may proceed.

If it would please the court,
oral argument will be made

by out-of-state counsel,
Professor Alan Dershowitz.

Your Honours, you may not
like Claus von Bulow.

You may think he is
guilty of something.

But I am here to tell
you he is innocent.

Our new evidence will
clearly indicate...

Professor.

You know there is no single case

which allows you to introduce
new evidence on appeal.

But there is one, Your Honour.
And you wrote it, Derek.

In Derek, in Derek,
you yourself said,

that a case based
on circumstantial

theory rather than fact

only stands up if no other
theory makes sense.

The only way to show a better
theory is to present it.

Get on with it, counsellor.

The first issue is the
encrusted needle.

I hope you will have the courage
to free an innocent man

and remedy a grave injustice.

This will never work. Too
smart for his own good.

Alan says it will work. If the
prosecutor takes the bait.

What do you mean, "bait"?

Argues the evidence.

Your Honours, introduction
of new evidence on appeal

violates every principle of
jurisprudence, every statute,

every precedent, every
rule of ethics.

Ah, he's nailing us
right off the bat.

I am not going to stand before you
and argue Mr von Bulow's guilt.

However, I have no
choice but to address

Mr Dershowitz's
arguments one by one.

Bingo.

First, the matter of
the encrusted needle.

So, now it's up to the judges.
Tell me what you really think.

I think it's easier to love
somebody than to live with them.

Love is fantasy. Living is work.

I'll say. And those people
don't like to work.

But if you don't do the
work, the love dies,

and nobody wants to
deal with that one.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

The love died, Sunny
couldn't accept it...

So Claus tried to kill her?

- Maybe.
- I don't agree.

Face it. All we had to do was
prove the state made a lousy case.

We didn't prove that
Claus was innocent.

We couldn't, we didn't have
to, and he probably isn't.

He isn't? You mean you think...

I mean, so he didn't
inject Sunny with insulin.

So what? Break it down.
First coma, no problem.

Even the attending doctor thought
it was caused by hypoglycaemia,

loss of air to the brain
and so on. All right.

But what about the second coma?

I mean, why does
Claus act so guilty?

Hey, come on.
Wouldn't any man feel

guilty if his wife was suicidal?

Yeah. So maybe she took
the sleeping pills

with the intention
of killing herself.

But how did she end up
lying on a marble floor

in a freezing bathroom with her
head under the toilet bowl?

How about this?

Sunny wakes up miserable.

Second marriage is over,
children are leaving home.

What's to live for?

But when she was found, her

nightgown was hiked
over her waist.

Exactly. How did it get there?

Okay, let's say she's standing
at the sink. She has to pee.

At exactly the same
instant, the drugs hit,

her body convulses, she
grabs the nightgown.

- I don't buy that.
- It does seem far-fetched.

- Well, so is the truth sometimes.
- Oh, bull.

I think she took the
barbiturates the previous night.

And, let's say, he
saw her take them.

Or she told him she was going
to before they fell asleep.

This time, he wants
her to succeed.

Sunny?

Maybe there's some way
he can help her along.

Of course. The open window.

Zero degrees.

But somebody might see her there.

The action of dragging her would
naturally pull up the nightgown.

In this cold, how long
could she survive?

Remember what Sunny said?

"I would've been better off.
You would've been better off."

because the law is a
blunt instrument.

It is not a rapier.
It is a cudgel.

Tomorrow, death penalty. Which

reminds me of the
comedian who said

"I don't know why they
call it the death penalty?

"It's no penalty. You're
out of the game."

- Good news.
- Great news.

And more good news.

- The decision came down?
- They just announced it.

- Five-zip.
- We murdered them.

Grounds?

Well, they got the
Brillhoffer notes.

And that silly-silly, guilty-man's
argument, search and seizure.

- Federal or state?
- Both.

Yeah, if it's federal, they could
appeal at US Supreme Court,

but because it's Rhode
Island, they can't. We win.

Don't get too excited till
we see Brillhoffer's notes.

We destroyed their medical case,

but their witnesses
still carry emotional

weight if there is a second trial.

Unless the Brillhoffer notes show

that they've changed
their stories.

Good afternoon, sir.

- Let me get that for you.
- Thank you.

- You have Brillhoffer's notes?
- Yes.

- Well?
- They're not what we hoped.

I knew it.

They're much better.

No one mentioned
seeing insulin when

they first talked to Brillhoffer.

Plus, Maria told him
that, at Thanksgiving,

when she supposedly first saw
insulin for the first time,

she couldn't even read any of the
labels. They were all scraped off.

- What does this mean?
- It means,

that if there is a second trial,

we can be reasonably confident.

Both the medical case and their
witnesses are now highly suspect.

Ah.

Darling, this is Alan Dershowitz.

Yes, I know. Hello.

Alan tells me... Well,
things look very hopeful.

I knew it would come out
all right. Thank you.

Yes, Alan, thank you. I
am eternally grateful.

Hey, this means we'll be
getting back your bail.

A million dollars.

I know I still owe you, Alan.

Please send me your bill.

And maybe when you're in New York

we can meet for lunch.
I'd enjoy that.

One thing, Claus. Legally,
this was an important victory.

Morally, you're on your own.

Claus von Bulow was given a second

trial and acquitted
on both counts.

This is all you can know,
all you can be told.

When you get where I am,
you will know the rest.

Two packs of Vantage, please.

- Anything else?
- Yes, a phial of insulin.

Just kidding.