Review of 12 Angry Men (1957) by Edward C — 24 Nov 2013

!2 Angry Men(1957).

Starring:Henry Fonda,Lee J. Cobb,Ed Begly,E.G. Marshall,Jack Klugman,Jack Warden,Marin Balsam,Edward Binns, and Joseph Sweeny.

Directed By:Sidney Lumet.

My Review.

I honestly didn't think I'd like this movie but damn,this is one of the greatest films of all time. When the men are done taking there votes and the arguments and talks about the murder,suspects, the what if's and statistics that's were it keeps its audience hooked. The movie looks like a boring movie with nothing but dialogue, if you take the subject matter into consideration though it';s so much more.

In 12 angry men were seeing the ending of a courtroom jury with the lawyers and suspect. We get to see the boy who is accused for killing his father for a brief moment. We cut to the jurors having a meeting and having a vote of the accused boy being guilty or not. The first time they made the vote it was 11 to one. They go to arguments,discuss details that they might have missed like the type of knife the accused had,the woman's glasses(eyes),and the time it would have taken for the boy to leave the apartment. They checked and argued very closely to see if the boy was guilty or not.

The Story is based on a television play by Reignald Rose,was made into a movie by Sidney Lumet,with Rose and Henry Fonda acting as co-producers and putting up their own money to finance it. It was Lumet's first feature,although he was much experienced in TV drama,and the cinematography was by veteran Boris Kufman,whose credits(On a waterfront,Long Day's Journey into Night) show a skill for tightening tension in dialogue exchanges. The cast only included one blank able star Henry Fonda,but the other eleven actors were among the best working in New York,including Martin Balsam,Lee J. Cobb,E G. Marshall,Jack Klugman,Jack Warden,Ed Begley and Robert Weeber. They Smoke,they sweat,they swear,they sprawl,they stalk,they get angry.

The movie plays like a textbook for directors intrested in how lens choices affects moods. By gradually lowering his camera Lumet illsturates another principle of composition:A higher camera angle tends to dominate,while the lower camera angle tends to be dominated. As the film begins we look down on the characters and the angle suggests they can be comprehended and mastered. By the end,they loom over us and we feel overwhelmed by the force of their passion.

12 Angry Men is a force to be reckoned with, it plays like a thriller but feels like so much more. With intense dialogue that is like fist fighting but not for a boy but for justice. I give 12 Angry Men a five out of five.