12 Angry Men (1957)

User Rating:

8.9/10   

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Reginald Rose (story)
Reginald Rose (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 July 1957 (Sweden)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

Tagline:

Life Is In Their Hands -- Death Is On Their Minds!

Plot:

A dissenting juror in a murder trial slowly manages to convince the others that the case is not as obviously clear as it seemed in court.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Jury | Trial | Jury Room | Restroom

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 13 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Martin Balsam	...	Juror #1
John Fiedler	...	Juror #2
Lee J. Cobb	...	Juror #3
E.G. Marshall	...	Juror #4
Jack Klugman	...	Juror #5
Edward Binns	...	Juror #6
Jack Warden	...	Juror #7
Henry Fonda	...	Juror #8
Joseph Sweeney	...	Juror #9
Ed Begley	...	Juror #10
George Voskovec	...	Juror #11
Robert Webber	...	Juror #12
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Rudy Bond	...	Judge (uncredited)
James Kelly	...	Guard (uncredited)
Billy Nelson	...	Court Clerk (uncredited)
John Savoca	...	The Accused (uncredited)

Directed by
Sidney Lumet

Writing credits
Reginald Rose		(story)
Reginald Rose		(screenplay)

Produced by
Henry Fonda	....	producer
George Justin	....	associate producer
Reginald Rose	....	producer

Original Music by
Kenyon Hopkins

Cinematography by
Boris Kaufman		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Carl Lerner

Art Direction by
Robert Markel

Makeup Department
Herman Buchman	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Don Kranze	....	assistant director (as Donald Kranze)

Sound Department
James A. Gleason	....	sound
Al Gramaglia	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Saul Midwall	....	camera operator

Music Department
Kenyon Hopkins	....	conductor

Other crew
Faith Hubley	....	script supervisor (as Faith Elliott)

Production Companies

• Orion-Nova Productions

Distributors

• Shochiku Select (1959) (Japan) (theatrical)
• United Artists (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Japan (2001) (Japan) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2003) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (USA) (laserdisc)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (VHS)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (video)
• Varus Video (Russia) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Solters & Digney  publicity

Also Known As:

Twelve Angry Men (USA) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

South Korea:12 | Brazil:Livre | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:15 | UK:U | USA:Approved (certificate #18206) | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Company:

Orion-Nova Productions

Trivia:

Debut of John Fiedler.

Goofs:

Continuity: Many shots of the jurors' watches are inconsistent with "film time".

Quotes:

[first lines]
[In a tedious manner, sounding bored and tired]
Judge: To continue, you've listened to a long and complex case: murder in the first degree. Premeditated murder is the most serious charge tried in our criminal courts . You've listened to the testimony, you've had the law read to you and interpreted as it applies in this case...

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in "The Odd Couple: The Jury Story (#1.4)" (1970)

No bombs, no car chases but edge of the seat stuff none the less

This film is superb, in fact as Shakespeare once said "Its the bees' knees". The film captivates the audience from the beginning. Each of the twelve jurors are introduced to us as they are introduced to themselves. The characters are well draw out and individual, each with his own personality.

The tension of the characters draws the audience in from the start. We imagine that the case is open and shut, 11 me saying guilty and 1 not. We feel the discomfort of Henry Fonda as the other characters belittle and mock how he can see any reasonable doubt in the case. But we also share his victories and the enthusiasm as he proceeds to refute or add doubt to the arguments for guilty and are captivated and draw in as other jurors begin to see doubt in the proceedings.

The audience can also see the arguments for guilty and wonder if Fonda's character is correct in saying that he doubts. Yet they also feel the shame of the characters as he disproves that a previously sound theory is iron tight, joining his side as members of the jury do.

On top of this they are wonderfully woven in human elements such as the misconceptions that influence people and the growing tension between different characters. This is brought to life even more by the amazing performances, Fonda, Lee J Cobb and Joseph Sweeney are of particular note.

I started watching this film on a bored relaxed laying about day but by the end i was on the edge of the seat with my hands on my knees feeling more tense than a politician on results day.

How a film should be made. Modern directors take note(thats ur telling off for the day) 10/10