NO SPECIAL EFFECTS, JUST SPECIAL ACTING

Rating: 10/10 (5 November 2002)

I love watching movies from 1957. Beside the fact that this was the year I was born, there were some great movies from that year. "Bridge on the River Kwai" is one and "12 Angry Men" is another. No special effects, no lavish sets, no tropical backdrops. "12 Angry Men" depends on real acting and intellegence for success. A open and shut case brought to the jury room for quick debate, is set in a stark, black and white setting. Most of the movie takes place in a small, plain room, with no air conditioning. Not exactly the formula for a entertaining movie. But the cast, led by Henry Fonda and Lee J Cobb, bring color and intensity to the screen. Unlike so many movies of today, filled with physical violence and explosions, this movie is filled with verbal sparring and explosions from within the heart. Watching the movie, I felt like I was closed in that small room with the jurors. The movie has the feel of being shot in a couple of hours, instead of the weeks it actually took. This is remarkable because the scenes seem seemless. The movie was a bomb in 1957, but compared to today's formula of sex, aggresion and rock and roll, "12 Angry Men" is a blast from the past. It is 'the bomb!'