Brilliant Film. Favorite of All-Time.

Rating: 10/10 (2 September 2019)

Review:
'12 Angry Men' is an American drama film directed by Sidney Lumet. It is adapted from a teleplay of the same name by Reginald Rose. This is hands down my favorite film of all time. I could watch it repeatedly and never get sick of it. It's so well crafted and damn perfect in every way. It's a classic and when they attempted to remake it in 1997 it just didn't hold up to the beauty and standard that this film laid out. It's master craft filmmaking at it's finest.
The film tells the story of a jury of 12 men as they deliberate the conviction or acquittal of a defendant based on reasonable doubt, forcing the jurors to question their morals and values. In the United States, a verdict in most criminal trials by jury must be unanimous. The defendant is an 18-year-old male. There are two witnesses: a lady from across the street and an old man who lives below the defendant.
Henry Fonda is a standout in this movie, he is great! Being made in the 1950's I was very impressed with all of the acting involved with this movie, but Henry Fonda was my favorite. That is in part with the dialogue that this movie has for his character. It's so realistic and believable, and it is executed brilliantly. Every actor did a great job bringing their character to life, especially since none of them are given a name and we just know them as Jury Member 1, 2, 3 and so on.
I have nothing negative to say about this movie, which is crazy because every movie is said to have some flaws; I see none here. The acting is great, the story is entertaining and real, and the cinematography is breathtaking. The way they use long shots and move the camera steadily around the room to capture different conversation in the beginning was fantastic. Also, there is one other long take that is worth mention. It involves this older gentleman, and he is getting tired and angry that this situation is taking so long. He starts to talk about the suspects ethnicity and saying he is guilty because his kind is always guilty, and they should all be put away. He keeps talking for the course of about 3 minutes and we slowly see every other jury member stand up from the table and walk away silently and ignoring him. This scene was so powerful, one because of the dialogue, but another is because it is one long scene and you feel what the other jurors are feeling the more the man speaks, anger.
Overall, this is still my favorite movie of all time. I have never seen a movie that made me feel the way I feel every time I see it. I think this movie has something for everybody, even if you're not a fan of black and white films, I beg you to give this film a chance.
5/5