12 Angry Men (1957)

A jury holdout attempts to prevent a miscarriage of justice by forcing his colleagues to reconsider the evidence.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Reginald Rose (story), Reginald Rose (screenplay)

Stars:

Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Martin Balsam

Top Rated Movies #5 | Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Martin Balsam	...	Juror 1
John Fiedler	...	Juror 2
Lee J. Cobb	...	Juror 3
E.G. Marshall	...	Juror 4
Jack Klugman	...	Juror 5
Edward Binns	...	Juror 6
Jack Warden	...	Juror 7
Henry Fonda	...	Juror 8
Joseph Sweeney	...	Juror 9
Ed Begley	...	Juror 10
George Voskovec	...	Juror 11
Robert Webber	...	Juror 12

Storyline

The defense and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young man is guilty or innocent of murdering his father. What begins as an open-and-shut case of murder soon becomes a detective story that presents a succession of clues creating doubt, and a mini-drama of each of the jurors' prejudices and preconceptions about the trial, the accused, and each other. Based on the play, all of the action takes place on the stage of the jury room.

---

Plot Keywords:

jury | dialogue driven | courtroom | single set production | trial | 

---

Taglines:

...it explodes like twelve sticks of dynamite!

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Because the film failed to make a profit, Henry Fonda never received his deferred salary. Despite this setback, he always regarded this film as one of the three best he ever made. The others being The Grapes of Wrath (1940) and The Ox-Bow Incident (1942).

---

Goofs

Jurors are expressly instructed by the judge in every jury trial to only consider the evidence that was actually admitted into evidence. Thus, it was misconduct for Henry Fonda's character to go out and purchase a knife on his own, and it was misconduct by all jurors to discuss that knife during deliberations. Further, they had a duty to inform the judge of the misconduct that had occurred in their deliberations. The acts of jury misconduct were egregious and absolutely were grounds for mistrial.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Man in corridor: You did a wonderful job, wonderful job!
Judge: To continue, you've listened to a long and complex case, murder in the first degree. Premeditated murder is the most serious charge tried in our criminal courts. You've listened to the testimony, you've had the law read to you and interpreted as it applies in this case, it's now your duty to sit down and try to separate the facts from the fancy. One man is dead, another man's life is at stake, if there's a reasonable doubt in your minds as to ...

---

Crazy Credits

The credits only credit the jurors. All other actors in the film (judge, bailiff, accused, etc.) go uncredited.

---

Connections

Referenced in Head of the Class: Twelve Angry Nerds (1990)

---

Soundtracks

Dance of the Cuckoos
(uncredited)
Music by Marvin Hatley
Portion whistled by Jack Warden

User Reviews

What a Character-Study Is Meant to Be.

Intense courtroom drama which has 12 very different people, all males, struggling with a murder case involving a young Puerto Rican boy that seems cut-and-dried. However, juror Henry Fonda does not believe it to be as sure-fire as it appears. He votes not guilty and what follows is a chain of events that will test the views, beliefs and thoughts of the other 11 members. Fonda is great, but Lee J. Cobb steals every scene (and that is not easy to do in a film like this). Ed Begley, Martin Balsam, Jack Warden, Jack Klugman, Joseph Sweeney, E.G. Marshall and John Fiedler are among the other individuals caught in a situation that is much more difficult than it appears on the surface. An excellent character-study that should be studied and embraced by all present and future film-makers. 5 stars out of 5.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 April 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

Douze hommes en colère

Filming Locations:

New York County Courthouse - 60 Centre Street, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$350,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$576

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orion-Nova Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1