¨It's always difficult to keep personal
prejudice out of a thing like this. And wherever you run into it, prejudice
always obscures the truth. I don't really know what the truth is.¨
12 Angry Men is one of the best courtroom
dramas I`ve seen despite the fact of it being filmed way back in 1957 in black
and white and happening almost entirely (except for the opening 3 minutes and a
few seconds in the end) inside an enclosed room. So why is this so good?
Because Reginald Rose came up with an excellent story, which he wrote as a play
first and was later turned into a movie under the direction of the great Sidney
Lumet. This was actually Lumet`s first feature film and among his best movies
all time, although it wasn’t received really well when it first came out. This
film paved the way for Sidney who in the 70`s made one great film after another
(Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon, and Network). 12 Angry Men works thanks to the
strong characters that are introduced in the story starring Henry Fonda and Lee
J. Cobb. In order for a film in an enclosed room to work you need a very
engaging story with interesting characters and that is what Rose was able to
do. Many great plays have failed to perform well in film, so credit has to be
given to Sidney who managed to maintain the tension and suspense in the movie.
As the film moves on the enclosed room seems to be closing in on each
character, and this was achieved really well by Sidney. The dialogue in this
film is really powerful and authentic as we see how each character interacts
with one another. Sidney manages to let the action play out through words
because the entire film is one giant deliberation between these 12 men.
The film
opens in a courtroom where we hear the judge say his final words before sending
the 12 men in the jury to deliberate over whether the accused young Spanish
American is guilty or not of murdering his father. He reminds the jury that if
they find the teenager to be guilty then he will be sentenced to death. The 12
men enter the jury room where the rest of the film takes place as they
deliberate whether or not the kid is guilty. Everyone seems to have made their
mind up and believe he`s guilty even before beginning to debate the issue. The
first thing they do is vote and 11 of the 12 men believe he`s guilty pointing
to the clear evidence, but Juror #8 (Henry Fonda) claims to have his doubts. He
isn`t sure the guy is innocent, but he has reasonable doubts so he asks the
rest of the jurors to deliberate about it for the next hour considering that
the young man`s life is in their hands. Once the jurors begin to debate the
issue the more difficult the case becomes and doubts begin to creep in all over
the place. The rest of the jury is played by Martin Balsam (#1), John Fiedler
(#3), Lee J. Cobb (#4), E.G. Marshall (#4), Jack Klugman (#5), Edward Binns
(#6), Jack Warden (#7), Joseph Sweeney (#9), Ed Begley (#10), George Voskovec
(#11), and Robert Webber (#12). The debate escalates as tension builds and the
jurors begin to grow impatient over one another`s arguments. The small room and
the heat also seem to play an important factor in the story.
One of the greatest things about the film is
that it actually serves as a case study as how small groups work and how
important communication can be in these scenarios. Many of the jurors entered
the room with prejudice and had their own conceived ideas, but sometimes in
order to find the truth you have to discuss the issue as objectively as
possible. As the men debate we see how all of this plays out, and Reginald Rose
writes the story in such a way that it begins to unfold through the
conversations these men are having about their own views. There is no mention
of names (except for the final scene where we hear the name of two of the
jurors), but we do find out a lot about each character through the way they
think and act. Their personalities are very different and that always makes it
hard to have everyone agree with each other. This is why the film is used in so
many business and communication schools today. These characters are well
crafted and we might even have come across a couple of these jurors in real
life because their personalities and views are still very much alive in the 21st
century. Overall I believe this to be a great film and a must watch for all
cinema lovers. It is really well executed and one has to admire the talents of
Sidney Lumet and Henry Fonda who have left us with their rich legacy.
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