Jury duty’s never fun. Just ask Pauly Sh…errr, Henry Fonda. Being stuck in the 85 degree heat of a cramped New York jury room can be one hell of a frustrating experience, especially when having to deal with bigots like Ed Begley’s juror #10 character in the movie, 12 Angry Men (1957). What started out as a near unanimous guilty verdict is slowly reversed throughout the film in a series of brilliant arguments on the part of Henry Fonda’s juror #8. Unsure of the defendant’s guilt himself, he refuses however to give in to the pressure of endorsing the guilty verdict without at least ‘talking about it’. This puts him in an unfavorable position, at odds with the 11 other jurors whose quick decisions were a clear sign of ignorance in their failure to uncover the truth during the trial.

With 12 angry men locked in a seemingly hopeless stalemate over a complicated murder trial, the inevitable was about to happen, leading up an explosive bursts of tempers, initially directed towards Fonda’s unshakable juror #8. Of the 12 present, 2 ( Lee Cobb’s #3 & Ed Begley’s #10 ) would later stand out for being classic examples of bigotry in the 1950s. Some of the other characters too, had equally annoying attitudes to compliment their limited powers of reasoning. An obvious candidate was Jack Warden’s juror #7, who was more interested in attending an upcoming ball game than paying attention to the discussion at hand. Along with the loud-mouthed Begley & Cobb, Warden’s character certainly ranks among the least intelligent, clearly seen from his constant idiotic remarks & trash talk about his ball game being more important than the life of an innocent defendant.

In the presence of such intimidating adversaries, the 2 least verbal jurors were frequently overlooked. Both jurors #2 & #9 ( John Fiedler & Joseph Sweeney, respectively ), were often the subject to vicious attacks from others like the aforementioned bigot duo of Begley & Cobb. Though the other jurors had received a moderate degree of exposure, the center stage was clearly a 2-way battle between Fonda’s #8 against the combined onslaught of Begley’s #10 & Cobb’s #3.

For a movie shot entirely in a single, cramped jury room, it’s amazing to note how 12 Angry Men was able to carry itself so remarkably well. Reginald Rose’s solid script was obviously the driving force behind the movie, which would have otherwise bored a majority of viewers from its total lack of action & scenery. In fact, I was a little surprised at myself in finding this more entertaining compared to some of the usual anime stuff crowding around my VCR.

Without mention, the acting was uniformly superb in all characters. And with the dialogue spread out over its large cast of 12, it's interesting how each of them would react to another's remarks, often in ways less than pleasant, hence the title of the film. The delicate balance & communicative dynamics from the vastly differing personalities of its 12 jurors are brilliantly captured in Sidney Lumet’s solid direction. And with that said, viewers shouldn’t be at all surprised to find themselves actually enjoying the film, despite its seemingly boring surroundings & absence of color. Overall Grade: B





Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older