12 Angry Men (1957 film)

12 Angry Men is a 1957 American drama film adapted from a teleplay of the same name byReginald Rose.^[1][2] Directed by Sidney Lumet, the film tells the story of a jury made up of 12 men as they deliberate the guilt or innocence of a defendant on the basis of reasonable doubt. The film is notable for its almost exclusive use of one set: with the exception of two short scenes at the beginning and the end of the film set on the steps of the court building and two short scenes in an adjoining washroom, the entire movie takes place in the jury room. The total time spent outside of the jury room is three minutes out of the full 96 minutes of the movie.

12 Angry Men explores many techniques of consensus-building, and the difficulties encountered in the process, among a group of men whose range of personalities adds intensity and conflict. Apart from two of the jurors swapping names while leaving the courthouse, no names are used in the film: the defendant is referred to as "the boy" and the witnesses as the "old man" and "the lady across the street".

In 2007, 12 Angry Men was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registryby the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Plot

After the final closing arguments have been presented to the judge, he gives his instructions to the jury. In the United States (both then and now), the verdict in criminal cases (whether guilty or not guilty) must be unanimous (all must agree on guilty or not guilty). A non-unanimous verdict results in a hung jury which in turn forces a mistrial. The question they are deciding is whether the defendant, a teenage boy from a city slum, murdered his father. The jury is further instructed that a guilty verdict will be accompanied by a mandatory death sentence (under current American criminal law, a defendant must first be found guilty or not guilty, and then the jury in the sentencing phase must find an aggravating circumstance to recommend the death penalty). The jury of twelve retires to the jury room where they begin to become acquainted with each other's personalities and discuss the case.

The plot of the film revolves around their difficulty in reaching a unanimous verdict, mainly due to several of the jurors' personal prejudices. An initial vote is taken and eleven of the jurors vote "guilty". Juror number 8 (Henry Fonda), the lone dissenter, states that the evidence presented is circumstantial and the boy deserves a fair deliberation, whereupon he questions the accuracy and reliability of the only two witnesses to the murder, the fact that the knife used in the murder is not as unusual as testimony promotes (he produces an identical one from his pocket), and the overall shady circumstances.

Having argued several points, Juror 8 requests another vote, this time by secret ballot. He proposes that he will abstain from voting, and if the other eleven jurors vote guilty unanimously, then he will acquiesce to their decision. However, if at least one juror votes "not guilty" then they will continue deliberating. In a secret ballot Juror 9 (Joseph Sweeney) is the first to support Juror 8, not necessarily believing the accused is not guilty, but feeling that Juror 8's points deserve further discussion.

After hearing further deliberations concerning whether one witness actually heard the murder take place, Juror 5 (Jack Klugman) - who grew up in a slum - changes his vote to “not guilty.” This earns criticism from Juror 3 (Lee J. Cobb), who accuses him of switching only because he has sympathy for slum children. Soon afterward, Juror 11 (George Voskovec), questioning whether the defendant would have reasonably fled the scene and come back three hours later to retrieve his knife, also changes his vote.

After Jurors 2 (John Fiedler) and 6 (Edward Binns) also decide to vote "not guilty" to tie the vote at 6-6, Juror 7 (who has baseball tickets to a game at 8:00 that night) becomes tired and also changes his vote just so that the deliberation may end, which earns him nothing but shame. When pressed by Juror 11, however, Juror 7 (Jack Warden) says he truly believes the defendant is not guilty because he has a reasonable doubt.

The next people to change their votes are Jurors 12 (Robert Webber) and 1 (Martin Balsam) when Juror 8 demonstrates that it is unlikely that one witness actually saw the boy flee the scene, making the vote 9-3. The only dissenters left are Jurors 3, 4 (E.G. Marshall), and 10 (Ed Begley). Outraged at how the proceedings have gone, Juror 10 proceeds to go into a bigoted and narrowminded rage on why people from the slums cannot be trusted, and as he speaks, one by one the other jurors turn their backs to him until only Juror 4 remains. A confused Juror 10 wonders why the others are turning away from him. Juror 10 insists that they "Listen to me. Listen." Juror 4 responds, “I have. Now sit down and don't open your mouth again.”

When Juror 4 is pressed as to why he still maintains his vote, he states his belief that despite all the other evidence that has been called into question, the fact remains that the woman who saw the murder from across the street still stands as solid evidence. After he points this out, Juror 12 changes his vote back to “guilty” to make the vote 8-4 again.

Then Juror 9, after seeing Juror 4 rub his nose (which is being irritated by his glasses), realizes that, like Juror 4, the witness who allegedly saw the murder had impressions in the sides of her nose, indicating that she wore glasses, and asks juror number 4 if he wears his eyeglasses to sleep, then juror number 4 says no. After he points this out, Jurors 12, 10, and 4 all change their vote to “not guilty.”

Last of all to agree is the rigid Juror 3 who, after a long confrontation with Juror 8, breaks down after glancing at and furiously tearing up a picture of him and his son. It is established earlier in the film that Juror 3 had a bad relationship with the boy and it is exposed as the real reason why he so badly wanted the accused to be guilty until this moment. The final vote is unanimous for acquittal. All Jurors leave and the defendant is found not guilty off-screen, while Juror 8 helps the distraught Juror 3 with his coat in a show of compassion. In an epilogue, the friendly Jurors 8 (Davis) and 9 (McArdle) exchange names (all Jurors having remained nameless throughout the movie) and the movie ends.

[edit]Cast of characters

Juror #	Character	1954 actor	1957 actor	1997 actor	2004-2005 Actor	2006-2007 Actor	Order that juror votes 'not guilty'
1/The Foreman	The jury foreman, somewhat preoccupied with his duties; proves to be accommodating to others. An assistant high schoolfootball coach	Norman Fell	Martin Balsam	Courtney B. Vance	Mark Blum	George Wendt	9th
2	A meek and unpretentious bank clerk who is at first domineered by others, but as the discussion furthers, so does his courage, even motivating him to reprimand Number 7 for innappropriate behaviour.	John Beal	John Fiedler	Ossie Davis	Kevin Greer	Todd Cerveris	5th
3	A businessman and an emotionally distraught father, opinionated and stubborn with a temper and an alleged streak of sadism; the antagonist	Franchot Tone	Lee J. Cobb	George C. Scott	Philip Bosco(Replaced by Robert Foxworth)	Randle Mell	12th
4	A rational stockbroker, unflappable and self-assured	Walter Abel	E. G. Marshall	Armin Mueller-Stahl	James Rebhorn	Jeffrey Hayenga	11th
5	A young man from a violent slum, a Baltimore Orioles fan	Lee Phillips	Jack Klugman	Dorian Harewood	Michael Mastro	Jim Saltouros	3rd
6	A house painter, tough but principled and respectful	Bart Burns	Edward Binns	James Gandolfini	Robert Clohessy	Charles Borland	6th
7	A salesman, sports fan, superficial and indifferent to the deliberations	Paul Hartman	Jack Warden	Tony Danza	John Pankow	Mark Morettini	7th
8	An architect, the lone dissenter (in the beginning); the protagonist. Identified as "Davis" at end of film	Robert Cummings	Henry Fonda	Jack Lemmon	Boyd Gaines	Richard Thomas	1st
9	A wise and observant elderly man. Identified as "McArdle" at end of film	Joseph Sweeney	Joseph Sweeney	Hume Cronyn	Tom Aldredge	Alan Mandell	2nd
10	A garage owner; a pushy loudmouthed bigot	Edward Arnold	Ed Begley	Mykelti Williamson	Peter Friedman	Julian Gamble	10th
11	An immigrant watchmaker, proud to be a naturalized American citizen	George Voskovec	George Voskovec	Edward James Olmos	Larry Bryggman(Replaced by Byron Loquon)	David Lively	4th
12	A wisecracking, indecisive advertising executive	William West	Robert Webber	William Petersen	Adam Trese	Craig Wroe	8th

[edit]Production

Reginald Rose's screenplay for 12 Angry Men was initially produced for television (starring Robert Cummings as Juror #8), and was broadcast live on the CBS program Studio One in September 1954. A complete kinescope of that performance, which had been missing for years and was feared lost, was discovered in 2003. It was staged at Chelsea Studios in New York City.^[3]

The success of the television production resulted in a film adaptation. Sidney Lumet, whose prior directorial credits included dramas for television productions such as the Alcoa Hour and Studio One, was recruited by Henry Fonda and Rose to direct. 12 Angry Men was Lumet's first feature film, and for Fonda and Rose, who co-produced the film, it was their first and only role as film producers. Fonda later stated that he would never again produce a film.

The filming was completed after a short but rigorous rehearsal schedule in less than three weeks on a budget of about $350,000.

At the beginning of the film, the cameras are positioned above eye level and mounted with wide-angle lenses to give the appearance of greater depth between subjects, but as the film progresses the focal length of the lenses is gradually increased. By the end of the film, nearly everyone is shown in closeup using telephoto lenses from a lower angle, which decreases or "shortens" depth of field. Lumet, who began his career as a director of photography, stated that his intention in using these techniques with cinematographer Boris Kaufman was to create a nearly palpable claustrophobia.^[4]

[edit]Reception

[edit]Critical response

On its first release, 12 Angry Men received critical acclaim. A. H. Weiler of The New York Times wrote "It makes for taut, absorbing, and compelling drama that reaches far beyond the close confines of its jury room setting." His observation of the twelve men was that "their dramas are powerful and provocative enough to keep a viewer spellbound." ^[5] However, it was not a commercial success: the advent of colour and widescreen productions resulted in a disappointing box office performance.

Despite this, the film is today viewed as a classic, highly regarded from both a critical and popular viewpoint: Roger Ebert lists it as one of his "Great Movies".^[6] The American Film Institute named Juror #8, played by Henry Fonda, 28th in a list of the 50 greatest movie heroes of the 20th century, and Fonda himself as 6th of the 25 greatest American screen legends among males. AFI also named 12 Angry Men the 42ndmost inspiring film, the 88th most heart-pounding film and the 87th best film of the past hundred years. In June 2008, it revealed AFI's 10 Top 10—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. 12 Angry Men was acknowledged as the second best film in the courtroom drama genre. As of August 2009, the film holds a 100% approval rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes.^[7]

[edit]Awards

The film was nominated for Academy Awards in the categories of Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Writing of Adapted Screenplay. It lost to the movie The Bridge on the River Kwai in all three categories. At the 7th Berlin International Film Festival, the film won the Golden BearAward.^[8]

[edit]Adaptations

[edit]Film and television

Hancock's Half Hour ^[9], Picket Fences, Perfect Strangers and The Odd Couple have episodes based on the film. In the latter, Oscar Madison, the first juror to change his mind, was played by Jack Klugman, who played Juror 5 in this film.

Indian director Basu Chatterjee remade the film as Ek Ruka Hua Faisla in 1986.

The movie was the basis for the 1993 Matlock episode "The Juror": Matlock was initially the lone juror voting "not guilty" and had to convince the others, one by one, with many personality conflicts erupting.

12 Angry Men was remade for television in 1997. Directed by William Friedkin, the remake stars George C. Scott, James Gandolfini, Tony Danza, William Petersen, Ossie Davis, Hume Cronyn, Courtney B. Vance, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Mykelti Williamson, Edward James Olmos,Dorian Harewood, and Jack Lemmon. In this production, the judge is a woman and four of the jurors are African American (in interviews, producers said they decided against putting a woman in the jury because they did not want to change the title). Still, most of the action and dialogue of the film are identical to the original. Modernizations include a prohibition on smoking in the jury room, the changing of references to income and pop culture figures, more dialogue relating to race, and occasional profanity.

One episode of 7th Heaven is based largely on the film. But in this case, Eric Camden is the lone juror who believes the defendant is guiltyand must convince the other jurors of his guilt (the complete opposite of the movie's plot). This adaptation also deals with racism in the criminal justice system.

The second season of Veronica Mars has an episode called "One Angry Veronica" based on Lumet's film.

The first season of Hey Arnold! has an episode called "False Alarm", based on the film, in which Arnold, Gerald, Helga, Phoebe, Harold, and Curly are a jury, and must reach a verdict over Eugene pulling a false alarm in school. Arnold is similar to Juror 8, and Curly is similar to Juror 3.

In 2007, Russian film director Nikita Mikhalkov completed "12", his remake of the movie. The jury of the 64th Venice Film Festival assigned its special prize to this remake 'to acknowledge the consistent brilliance of Nikita Mikhalkov's body of work.'^[10]

[edit]Stage

Main article: Twelve Angry Men (play)

Rose wrote several stage adaptations of the story. In 1964, Leo Genn appeared in the play on the London stage. In other theatrical adaptations in which female actors are cast, the play is retitled 12 Angry Jurors or 12 Angry Women.

In 2004, the Roundabout Theatre Company presented a Broadway production of the play, starring Boyd Gaines as a more combative Juror No. 8, with James Rebhorn (No. 4), Philip Bosco (No. 3), and Robert Prosky as the voice of the judge. In 2007, 12 Angry Men ran on a national theatre tour with Richard Thomas and George Wendt starring as Jurors No. 8 and No. 1, respectively. The 2008 tour does not include Wendt but features another popular television personality, Kevin Dobson of Kojak and Knots Landing, as Juror No. 10.

[edit]Cultural Influences

Speaking at a screening of the film during the 2010 Fordham University Law School Film festival, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayorstated that seeing 12 Angry Men while she was in college influenced her decision to pursue a career in law. She was particularly inspired by immigrant Juror 11's monologue on his reverence for the American justice system. She also told the audience of law students that, as a lower-court judge, she would sometimes instruct juries to not follow the film's example, because most of the jurors' conclusions are based on speculation, not fact.^[11] Sotomayor noted that events such as Juror #8 entering a similar knife into the proceeding, doing outside research into the case matter in the first place, and ultimately the jury as a whole making broad, wide ranging assumptions far beyond the scope of reasonable doubt (such as the inferences regarding the "Old Woman" wearing glasses) would never be allowed to occur in a real life jury situation, and would in fact have yielded a mistrial.

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