12 Angry Men Overview:

12 Angry Men (1957) was a Drama - Black-and-white Film directed by Sidney Lumet and produced by Henry Fonda, Reginald Rose and George Justin.

SYNOPSIS

This is perhaps the most famous classic-movie courtroom drama. The jurors get their instructions in a murder case and enter a hot, close jury room to begin deliberating. The first count shows only Fonda holding out for acquittal. Then the fireworks begin, fueled by fatigue, heat, and the different personalities and experiences of the jurors. In Lumet's debut, he breaks every rule of cinema action, setting his story in one claustrophobic room and using multiple takes from different angles to provide movement. Originally a teleplay, this was Fonda's only experiment with producing. Remade for cable TV with Jack Lemmon.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

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12 Angry Men was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2007.

Academy Awards 1957 --- Ceremony Number 30 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best DirectorSidney LumetNominated
Best PictureHenry Fonda and Reginald Rose, ProducersNominated
Best WritingReginald RoseNominated
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12 Angry Men BlogHub Articles:

12 Angry Men – Take 2 – Henry Fonda

By Virginie Pronovost on Feb 2, 2019 From The Wonderful World of Cinema

I had already written about 12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957) on this blog when I wrote about Lee J. Cobb’s paternal roles in this film and in Golden Boy (Rouben Mamoulian, 1939). But there’s another 12 Angry Men’s actor that obviously deserves to be discussed: Henry Fonda, juror #... Read full article


DOUBLE BILL #13: Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and 12 Angry Men (1957)

By Carol Martinheira on Apr 12, 2018 From The Old Hollywood Garden

DOUBLE BILL #13: Witness for the Prosecution (1957) and 12 Angry Men (1957) On April 12, 2018 By CarolIn Uncategorized Courtroom dramas never disappoint. They?re tense, gripping, dramatic and emotional and, more often than not, they grab you by the throat and they don?... Read full article


What I Learned from 12 Angry Men

By 4 Star Film Fan on Oct 16, 2016 From 4 Star Films

Recently I got the chance to sit down with a group of friends and watch 12 Angry Men together. Many of them had never seen it and hearing their reactions was immense fun for me. But as we talked for a few minutes afterward, I began to realize that really each of these characters represents something... Read full article


What I Learned from 12 Angry Men

By 4 Star Film Fan on Oct 16, 2016 From 4 Star Films

Recently I got the chance to sit down with a group of friends and watch 12 Angry Men together. Many of them had never seen it and hearing their reactions was immense fun for me. But as we talked for a few minutes afterward, I began to realize that really each of these characters represents something... Read full article


12 Angry Men (1957)

By Beatrice on Jun 1, 2016 From Flickers in Time

12 Angry Men Directed by Sidney Lumet Written by Reginald Rose 1957/USA Orion-Nova Pictures Repeat viewing/Netflix rental #333 of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die Lumet gathered all the great character actors of the 50’s into one room with Henry Fonda and made a stage play work com... Read full article


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Quotes from 12 Angry Men

Juror #4: I'll take the testimony from right after the murder, when he couldn't remember a thing about the movies, great emotional stress or not.
Juror #8: I'd like to ask you a personal question.
Juror #4: Go ahead.
Juror #8: Where were you last night?
Juror #4: I was home all night.
Juror #8: How about the night before that?
Juror #3: What is this?
Juror #4: It's all right. I left the office at 8:30 and went straight home and to bed.
Juror #8: And the night before that?
Juror #4: That was... Tuesday night. The bridge tournament. I played bridge.
Juror #8: Monday night?
Juror #3: When you get to New Year's Eve, 1954, let me know.
Juror #4: Monday night? Monday night... my wife and I went to the movies.
Juror #8: What did you see?
Juror #4: "The Scarlet Circle". A whodunit.
Juror #8: What was the second feature?
Juror #4: "The"... I'll tell you in a minute..."The... Remarkable Mrs." something... "Bainbridge". "The Remarkable Mrs. Bainbridge".
Juror #2: I saw that. It's called "The Amazing Mrs. Bainbridge".
Juror #4: Yes. "The Amazing Mrs. Bainbridge".
Juror #8: Who was in "The Amazing Mrs. Bainbridge"?
Juror #4: Barbara... Long, I think it was. A dark, very pretty girl. Ling or... Long, something like that.
Juror #8: Who else?
Juror #4: I'd never heard of them before. It was a very inexpensive second feature, with unknown...
Juror #8: And you weren't under an emotional stress, were you?
Juror #4: [slowly, realizing] No. I wasn't.


Juror #2: It's hard to put into words. I just think he's guilty. I thought it was obvious from the word, 'Go'. Nobody proved otherwise.
Juror #8: Nobody has to prove otherwise. The burden of proof is on the prosecution. The defendant doesn't even have to open his mouth. That's in the Constitution.


[after another vote is taken, the count is six to six]
Juror #10: Six to six... I'm telling you, some of you people in here must be out of your minds. A kid like that...
Juror #9: I don't think the kind of boy he is has anything to do with it. The facts are supposed to determine the case.
Juror #10: Don't give me that. I'm sick and tired of facts! You can twist 'em anyway you like, you know what I mean?
Juror #9: That's exactly the point this gentleman has been making.
[indicates Juror #8]


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Facts about 12 Angry Men

Though the final scene in the film primarily involves Juror #8 and #9, the other 10 jurors can all be seen descending the courthouse steps and going their own separate ways.
Jack Lemmon appears in Mister Roberts with Henry Fonda, in which he takes over Fonda's position of Cargo Officer when Fonda is transferred off the USS Reluctant. In the 1997 remake 12 Angry Men, Lemmon plays the same juror that Fonda played in the original 12 Angry Men.
Because the painstaking rehearsals for the film lasted an exhausting two weeks, filming had to be completed in an unprecedented 21 days.
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Best Picture Oscar 1957






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National Film Registry

12 Angry Men

Released 1957
Inducted 2007
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