One of the greatest pictures ever made

Rating: 10/10 (30 July 2002)

Looking at the lists from over the years of the American Film Institute (best movies, comedies, thrillers, and passions), I've come to the conclusion that they know what they're talking about. However, they did make one mistake: the failure to recognize '12 angry men' as one of the best motion pictures ever made. Quite simply, '12 angry men' is perfect, or very close. It's the story of a court case, in which an 18-year old Hispanic kid is accused of killing his father. What's very interesting is that, with the exception of the first two minutes and the last 30 seconds, the entire movie takes place in the jury room. The twelve jurors are discussing the case, and the bottom line is that every single solitary shred of evidence points to the direction that the kid is guilty. At the preliminary vote, eleven of the men vote guilty, and the twelfth man (played by Henry Fonda) votes not guilty. And then the fun starts. The film progresses with the eleven men convincing Henry Fonda that the boy is guilty ("they proved it a dozen different ways in court. Would you like me to list them for you?"), and meanwhile, Henry Fonda tries to convince them that there is enough reasonable doubt to consider that maybe the boy didn't commit the murder after all. There are several things that make this movie so good, and perhaps the most impressive is the fact that the acting performances are perfect; all twelve of them; a feat almost unthinkable in today's cinema. Each of the twelve men have a different personality, and you'll remember every one of them. The one that really stands out is Lee J. Cobb, because his character is very complex. He starts off polite and pleasant, and as the film progresses, starts to become 'excitable', as one of the characters calls it, and seems to suddenly be personally involved in the case. "12 Angry Men" is riveting, exciting, fascinating, and one of the greatest motion pictures of all time. A must-see.