Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men, the movie version of a celebrated teleplay by Reginald Rose, takes a riveting cast of stage, television, and film actors, places them in one set, and for ninety blissful minutes lets them bully and bluster, insinuate and pontificate, and generally hold forth in dazzling fashion.
The Production: 5/5
One of the greatest courtroom dramas ever made spends less than five minutes in the actual courtroom. Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men, the movie version of a celebrated teleplay by Reginald Rose, takes a riveting cast of stage, television, and film actors, places them in one set, and for ninety blissful minutes lets them bully and bluster, insinuate and pontificate, and generally hold forth in dazzling fashion maximizing a dramatic sequence of events which has only gained in impressive stature over the years since its initial release.
A jury of twelve New Yorkers is brought together to decide the guilt or innocence of an 18-year old slum kid accused of murdering his father with a switchblade knife thrust into his heart. There is a fair amount of circumstantial evidence against the boy and two eyewitnesses, and yet juror number eight (Henry Fonda) casts the lone not guilty-vote in the initial balloting. Despite continual heated protests from three jurists (Lee J. Cobb, E.G. Marshall, Ed Begley), juror eight and others who slowly come to acquire reasonable doubt begin a slow but systematic analysis of the various facts of the case casting doubt on the evidence as presented. As the other jurors begin to consider their own interpretations of the facts in reflection, the drama builds increasingly as a verdict is decided.
The original hour-long television version of the story won three Emmy Awards in 1954, and Reginald Rose (who won an Emmy for his teleplay and who co-produced this movie version) has skillfully expanded the script for the movie adding various informative bits of character for the twelve jurors to take many of them away from being merely narrow stereotypes. All of them, particularly the quieter members of the jury, grow from these expansions. The various pieces of evidence are also allowed to be poured over in greater detail justifying in each situation the changes in vote from guilty to not guilty for many of the jury members. As for Lumet’s direction, it’s a marvel (how many other directors earn an Oscar nomination for directing their first film, one that’s basically staged in a single confined space?). With only the enclosed area of the jury room to work in, he manages to keep the camera moving subtly but effectively, zooming in for telling close-ups where appropriate and blocking actors in fascinating combinations at pivotal moments in the narrative. Rarely has so much tension been established so adeptly, though he’s helped immeasurably by his brilliant actors and the dazzling script.
The cast rehearsed for two weeks before a single foot of film was shot, so is it any wonder that these performances have become the definitive interpretations for these characters? Two actors were imported from the TV version for the movie: the elderly juror nine Joseph Sweeney (marvelously cagey and wry) and the immigrant juror eleven George Voskovec (admirably solid, considerate and quietly forceful). But then, the cast is filled with past and future Tony, Oscar, and Emmy winners, and each one makes an indelible impression. Henry Fonda’s thoughtful, unshowy performance, of course, reminds us of all of the stalwart but quiet heroes he had previously played from Wyatt Earp to Tom Joad and Mister Roberts. Lee J. Cobb is galvanizing as the fiery-tempered blowhard who’s a bully on the outside and a marshmallow on the inside. E.G. Marshall is his polar opposite: a quiet, thoughtful man who’s determined not to get drawn into the personal bickering and backstabbing that is happening around him. Great as well are Ed Begley as the bigot (perhaps Reginald Rose’s least successful attempt to give more depth to one of the stereotypical characters), Jack Klugman as the timid former slum kid now fighting to be heard, and Martin Balsam as the even-tempered foreman trying to keep the erratic proceedings under control.
Video: 5/5
3D Rating: NA
For the first time in my home video experience with 12 Angry Men, it’s presented in its proper theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 (the MGM DVD and Criterion Blu-ray both framed it at 1.66:1), and it’s in 2160p resolution using the HEVC codec. With a silvery tone to the black and white cinematography, the HDR/Dolby Vision enhancement has brought out specular highlights in the white shirts and glistening foreheads of most of the jurors as they sweat buckets in the middle of an inferno-like, un-air conditioned jury room, and the added resolution has made every facial wrinkle, freckle, and cold sore eminently visible. The movie has been divided into 10 chapters.
Audio: 5/5
The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono sound mix is solid and dependable with fidelity that reproduces all of the dialogue with laser-like clarity and the thunderstorm sound effects with equal force. While Kenyon Hopkins’s music is sparsely laid over the film in brief interludes, it’s most effective in its melancholy moodiness, and the bits of hiss which seemed evident in earlier disc releases of the movie seem to have been eliminated.
Special Features: 5/5
Audio Commentaries: there are two on the UHD disc. The better of the two is a new one by film historian Gary Gerani whose engaging critical analysis of the film additionally offers lots of comparisons between the movie, its original teleplay, and the 1997 made-for-TV film. Dr. Drew Casper’s commentary taken from an earlier disc release of the movie is a drier analytical take on the movie with Dr. Casper’s odd tendency to continually change the pronunciation of the director’s last name quite irritating and somewhat distracting.
On the enclosed Blu-ray second disc are all of the remaining bonus materials.
12 Angry Men (1:57:27, HD): the 1997 made-for-TV color film directed by William Friedkin is presented in 1080p 16X9 and DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono sound. Beautifully populated with a mix of ethnicities among its superbly talented cast, it’s an all-star remake that’s very close to the text of the 1957 film with some changes in dialogue (but not plot) appropriate to the characters of the new actors playing them.
“Beyond a Reasonable Doubt” (23:04, SD): a featurette on the making of the film. Only Jack Klugman and director Sidney Lumet from the original film participate in the discussion, but they are abetted by actors Richard Thomas and George Wendt and director Scott Ellis from various stage productions and a mix of film historians and legal experts like Robert Osbourne, Jami Floyd, Patricia King Hanson, and Joel Kling, among others.
“Inside the Jury Room” (15:28, SD): a team of legal experts compare the workings of a real jury with what is seen on the screen in 12 Angry Men.
Theatrical Trailer (2:15, HD)
Kino Trailers: 12 Angry Men (1997), Witness for the Prosecution, Sergeant Ryker, The Ox-Bow Incident, Daisy Kenyon, The Group, A Stranger Among Us.
Overall: 5/5
A magnificent film with memorable performances and constructed with riveting dramatic ebb and flow, Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men comes beautifully to Ultra High Definition with a first-rate transfer and a gaggle of valuable bonus material. Highest recommendation!
12 Angry Men (4KUHD) [4K UHD]
32% Off $39.95 $25.99
Matt has been reviewing films and television professionally since 1974 and has been a member of Home Theater Forum’s reviewing staff since 2007, his reviews now numbering close to three thousand. During those years, he has also been a junior and senior high school English teacher earning numerous entries into Who’s Who Among America’s Educators and spent many years treading the community theater boards as an actor in everything from Agatha Christie mysteries to Stephen Sondheim musicals.
Post Disclaimer
Some of our content may contain marketing links, which means we will receive a commission for purchases made via those links. In our editorial content, these affiliate links appear automatically, and our editorial teams are not influenced by our affiliate partnerships. We work with several providers (currently Skimlinks and Amazon) to manage our affiliate relationships. You can find out more about their services by visiting their sites.
Similar threads
- Matt Hough
- Blu-ray and UHD
2