Sidney Lumet's directorial debut Twelve Angry Men remains a tense, atmospheric (though slightly manipulative and stagey) courtroom thriller, in which the viewer never sees a trial and the only action is verbal. As he does in his later corruption commentaries such as Serpico or Q & A, Lumet focuses on the lonely one-man battles of a protagonist whose ethics alienate him from the rest of jaded society. As the film opens, the seemingly open-and-shut trial of a young Puerto Rican accused of murdering his father with a knife has just concluded and the 12-man jury retires... to their microscopic, sweltering quarters to decide the verdict. When the votes are counted, 11 men rule guilty, while one--played by Henry Fonda, again typecast as another liberal, truth-seeking hero--doubts the obvious. Stressing the idea of "reasonable doubt", Fonda slowly chips away at the jury, who represent a microcosm of white, male society--exposing the prejudices and preconceptions that directly influence the other jurors' snap judgments. The tight script by Reginald Rose (based on his own teleplay) presents each juror vividly using detailed soliloquies, all which are expertly performed by the film's flawless cast. Still, it's Lumet's claustrophobic direction--all sweaty close-ups and cramped compositions within a one-room setting--that really transforms this contrived story into an explosive and compelling nail-biter. --Dave McCoy, Amazon.com [show more]
12 Angry Men is quite simply a master class in cinematic minimalism. A story of twelve males sitting in a jury room deciding on a fate of another individual does not sound like the greatest film watching night in. But with such an excellently crafted dozen, and a charismatic talisman of Henry Fonda leading the way things become a little brighter.
As skimmed over in the introduction, 12 Angry Men takes place in the jury room for the majority of the film. There are a few brief moments outside of this room, but for the most part this is the location where the viewer is going to be fixing his or her gaze upon. Again twelve folk in one room for ninety minutes doesn't sound like the most engaging of plots or sights in cinematic history. Thankfully we are in the hands of a master, with director Sidney Lumet expertly guiding us through the film.
I don't want to give too much away about the film, but I don't think it is revealing too much by saying that all twelve men may not come to a unanimous decision in the first couple of minutes of the film. As opinions and ideas flutter amongst the group, the viewer inevitably becomes riveted to the arguments and debates between the twelve. There are a few liberties taken along the way, but it is after all a film first and foremost. So some of the scenes involving evidence, and some of the scenes in which statements are reconstructed may be improper in the real life, I can let them pass in the world of celluloid.
As the film progresses the claustrophobic atmosphere begins to creep up, and the intensity of many of the performance increases to quite an intimidating level. What is even more astonishing is the fact that the majority of the men around the decision table remain nameless but are all completely identifiable and unique. They all have their own unique personalities and they are allowed to express themselves in intricate individual scenes. For me Henry Fonda is the star of the show, but it would be rude of me not to talk about the strengths of the other performers in the film. As I have said just a few lines before, each male has their own unique personality and what makes them work so well is that there isn't a weak performance amongst them. Everyone will have their 'favourite' juror. For me Henry Fonda is up there, but I also enjoyed Joseph Sweeney as juror number nine and Jack Klugman as juror number five. And for you to fully understand what that last line meant you will have to pick up the film.
I am going to stop myself from gushing about the film any longer. I will just leave you with this parting piece of advice which I have masked as a conclusion. For such a low, low price there should be no debating required on whether you should pick this film up of not. It is an easy buy, and it is a buy that will be filled with happiness rather than regret.
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Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. Adapted from Reginald Rose's television play, this film marked the directing debut of Sidney Lumet. At the end of a murder trial in New York City, the twelve jurors retire to consider the verdict. The man in the dock is a young Puerto Rican accused of killing his father, and eleven of the twelve jurors do not hesitate in finding him guilty. However, one of the jurors (Henry Fonda), reluctant to send the youngster to his death without any debate, returns a vote of not guilty. From this single event, the jurors begin to re-evaluate the case, as they look at the murder - and themselves - in a fresh light. Actors: Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Martin Balsam, John Fiedler, E.G. Marshall Directors: Sidney Lumet Writers: Reginald Rose Producers: Henry Fonda, George Justin, Reginald Rose Language: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish Subtitles: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired: English, German Number of discs: 1
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