Town Without Pity (1961)

Set in a small town in 1960 occupied Germany, four American soldiers (Robert Blake, Richard Jaeckel, Frank Sutton, Mal Sondock) are accused of raping a 16 year old German girl (Christine Kaufmann). With the death penalty hanging over the four men, the military defense lawyer (Kirk Douglas) will do everything in his power to prevent the men from hanging, even if it means destroying the rape victim on the stand. Based on the novel THE VERDICT by Gregor Dorfmeister and directed by Gottfried Reinhardt (BETRAYED). A very disturbing and unpleasant movie to sit through. Which doesn't mean it's poorly done or not good, just upsetting to watch. We've come a long way in societal attitudes about rape and rape victims since 1961 so to watch a rape victim's reputation torn apart by innuendo and gossip while the town's inhabitants watch the trial with inappropriate glee is highly unsettling. The rapists on trial become almost secondary to the plot. I don't mean to imply that the movie condones this attitude, it's clearly on the side of the rape victim. The movie's downbeat ending is inevitable. The Oscar nominated title song sung by Gene Pitney was a top 40 hit. With E.G. Marshall, Barbara Rutting and Gerhart Lippert.