20 Awesome Movies That You Haven’t Seen… And Should!
19. 12 Angry Men (Sidney Lumet, 1957)
The original feature film was directed by Sidney Lumet in 1957 and featured a young Henry Fond in the starring role.
This film is an adaptation of Reginald Rose’s teleplay of the same name. Rose had a hand in writing and producing the feature film, with Lumet trusted to direct the film.
The story follows Juror 8 (Fonda) as he struggles to build a consensus in a courtroom setting. The jurors are tasked with deciding the fate of an 18-year-old Hispanic boy from a New York City slum who stands charged with the stabbing death of his father.
Fonda’s Juror 8 stands alone at the film’s opening as the only individual to believe the young man is innocent. Throughout the story he uses various tactics to build a consensus behind his belief that the young man is innocent.
“12 Angry Men” (Blu-ray, Special Edition) is available – click here
When “12 Angry Men” was released it received positive reviews from film critics. However, the film is considered a financial disaster because it did not translate well to widescreen, color productions that were sweeping the nation during the 1950s.
The film was nominated for Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Writing of Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards, but lost to “The Bridge on the River Kwai” in all categories. Regardless, today the film is viewed as an American classic by contemporary critics and the American Film Institute.
