I felt like Charlie Day during the entirety of this movie (and in the best way possible). 12 Angry Men is an absolutely perfect film in every aspect possible and I can't believe that it has taken me this long to witness the complex beauty of this script. This movie is a true masterclass in how to write an engaging film and the fact that the entire story takes place in one room makes it that much more impressive. Sidney Lumet's directing along with the script from Reginald Rose has made for one of the most mind-changing and morally shattering stories that I have ever seen. With so many incredible performances for the amount of intricately-crafted characters, this movie has truly set the standard for how to make a basic premise wildly captivating.
Twelve nameless jurors deliberate after a trial in order to determine the fate of a young man who has supposedly killed his father. All but one of the jurors, Juror #8 (Henry Fonda) believe that he is guilty and are all quite strong-willed in the face of the evidence presented to them. Attempting to prevent a miscarriage of justice, Juror #8 refuses to bow down to serving a guilty verdict and over the course of this film, manages to sway every single other person in the room using nothing but his intellect and moral persuasion. This movie is easily one of the most well-written films I have ever watched. The fact that the entirety of the movie is set in one room and based around dialogue interweaving the stories of these twelve people together is absolutely riveting. The way that Rose's script introduces the personalities of all of these people and individually breaks them each down was so interesting to see. I was mostly worried about this film when I began it due to the lack of differential traits between all of the men. They all looked relatively the same and I felt like I was going to endure another case of cinematic face blindness. However, as this movie went on and on, I could almost instantly tell them all apart. Simply throughout their dialogue and emerging characteristics and even without actual names, each of the twelve main cast members became their own, strong character in which an audience member could either gravitate towards or despise. The characters were the undeniably strongest part of this film as they made for such an engrossing narrative. If only more movies nowadays were as complex and socially challenging as this one, audiences would have much clearer consciences and higher expectations for what a great film should be.
The themes and moral challenges behind 12 Angry Men makes the story that much more complex. Rose's script, through the arguments and persuasions of the twelve men, proves itself as a taxing take on moral, racial, political, and social questioning and reasoning along with uncovering personal stereotypes and facing them directly. Each character throughout this movie was forced to face something that they were not comfortable with. Whether it be personal racial prejudice against the Hispanic community from Juror #10 (Ed Begley) or simply wanting to get everything done with to get to a ballgame from Juror #7 (Jack Warden), the way that they were all written together was blended beautifully. Thankfully each character was as developed and complex as they were quirky or else this film would have been a much duller take on a legal drama. And as far as legal dramas go, this film is the epitome of one that can please any kind of audience, as the dialogue and way the characters interact are so genuinely human and understandable. I also loved how this film was able to change the audience's opinion on the alleged criminal. I began the film after knowing the evidence thinking for sure that he was guilty, but after the length that these characters went to prove me otherwise, I was convinced. Accompanied by the airtight and beautiful writing, Boris Kaufman's cinematography was incredible as well. Not once did I feel bored from being in the same room and his use of different framing and movements for the types of characters kept my eyes glued to the screen.
12 Angry Men is the gold standard for screenwriting and deserves much more love than it actually receives. While this story has been adapted many times into theatre and film, I do not believe anything could be nearly as powerful as Sidney Lumet's iteration from 1957. This movie has easily become one of my new favorites and continues to astound me as to how it is so interesting and well-written. I'll be thinking about this one for a while.
My Rating: ★★★★★
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