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12 Angry Men (1957) ✦ Full-Length Watchalong Reaction (Patreon)

Published:
2025-02-26 16:35:00
Edited:
2025-05-22 00:01:21
Imported:
2026-08
Tags:

Content

Wow, wow, WOW! I had so much to say about this, both during and after. Let's talk about it! A reminder that this was the winner of my last YouTube poll, thank you to everyone who voted! [Direct link here.]

Please enjoy!

✦ KL

Files

12 Angry Men (1957) ✦ Full-Length Watchalong Reaction

Comments

Bryan Dempsey

That’s a great thumbnail. You look good in black and white, total golden age of Hollywood vibe.

Death Lego

There are a lot of 'classics'. Perhaps some are slightly more timeless than others. Aside from having an all male jury, as something unfortunately would have been more indicative of the period. The basic idea of a group of people being tasked with responsibility of deciding someone's guilt; with all their flaws, frailties, biases and bigotries. That fascinating exploratory idea is narratively timeless. Looking forward to spending the time revisiting this film, plus with your thoughts, for the umpteenth time.

HugoBoss435

Heard of this movie but never seen it. Perfect time to do a first time watch!

Steve Mercier

Based on a television "play" later adapted into a stage play which was later adapted--by the original writer--into this movie. Absolutely spectacular movie. The peeling back of each character to reveal their inner workings is both a testament to the play and the actors. Very cool shit.

Joe

Such incredible storytelling. There were some very risky but impressive choices made in this story. It is one thing not to see the crime, but to not see the trial either was an interesting way to follow the events. Additionally, they really put you in the position of the juror in that (as you mention) you do not end up finding out if he did it. There is a decent chance that he was guilty anyway, but the standard is reasonable doubt and that is what they had. Incidentally, I ended up being foreman for a jury last year and being on jury is not easy. You have experts and testimony on both sides definitively saying opposite things in an area of which you have no expertise. After two days in the jury room and a lot of careful thought and good discussion, we did come to a decision, but I still think about the events of the case and whether the decision was the right one.

Movies with KL

Thanks for sharing your experience! I've received a jury summons one in my life, but at the time I was 19 and in college and being a full-time student was a valid exemption.

Cliff Adams

I studied filmmaking in college (made a few, worked camera on more, edited many). One of the often unspoken details of "great cinematography" is the specific camera angles and framing. At the beginning, the shot in the jury room is a long shot from the ceiling. We see the entire room with nearly faceless men entering and settling in. As we meet the jury, the camera angle is mostly from above their eye level, and often shows many characters with the background in good focus. As the argument begins to heat up the camera drops to more eye-level shots, with a few actors in frame, with the occasional pop of a single face close-up. Backgrounds are less sharp. By the end of the arguments, nearly all shots are from slightly below eye level, and single faces. If two characters are shown, they lean toward the camera, as if in accusatory disbelief of the ranting character. The background is quite out of focus, forcing the viewer to see actors' faces clearly. The visual intensity increases every minute. The cinematography and editing are as brilliant as the script and acting. If you read the Wikipedia article on the film, it states: At the beginning of the film, the cameras are positioned above eye level and mounted with wide-angle lenses, to give the appearance of greater depth between subjects, but as the film progresses the focal length of the lenses is gradually increased. By the end of the film, nearly everyone is shown in closeup, using telephoto lenses from a lower angle, which decreases or "shortens" depth of field. Lumet stated that his intention in using these techniques with cinematographer Boris Kaufman was to create a nearly palpable claustrophobia.

Movies with KL

Thanks for all this info! Love learning more about this!

Tyler Foster

In addition to Martin Balsam, some other notable cast members here include Henry Fonda. Henry is the father of both Peter Fonda and Jane Fonda, who are also actors. Not seeing anything you'd have caught either of them in on your Letterboxd at a glance (my guess is you've heard of Jane), but you saw Peter Fonda's daughter Bridget Fonda in Jackie Brown as surfer girl Melanie. The racist who gets the cold shoulder is played by Ed Begley. You'd have seen his kid, Ed Begley Jr., as Clifford Main, the guitar-playing leader of the law firm of Davis & Main on "Better Call Saul," as well as in a cameo as the owner of the Aldrich Museum at the beginning of Ghostbusters (2016). Last but not least, the smallest juror, with the squeaky voice, thinning hair, and glasses, is played by John Fiedler, the voice of Piglet in Winnie the Pooh for decades. There are several versions of 12 Angry Men. On the Criterion Blu-ray, there is a 1955 version made for television, and included with the Kino Lorber 4K UHD, there's a 1997 TV version with some notable character actors. There is also a Russian remake, 12 (2007), which is in fact 2.5 hours long. As a piece of drama, I enjoyed the remake, but there are some iffy messages introduced through its shifting of the story to then-contemporary Russia and giving the murder a political angle.

Jason Chirevas

Had a great time watching along, it’d been a while. I very much hope 12 ANGRY MEN will serve as gateway to the classic era for you, KL, whether we see it or not. There is so much out there to enjoy. Every decade was different, every studio was diffferent. https://boxd.it/2CaAzz

Nathan Jasper

This one's in my Top 100 list, I think even the Top 20. All you really need is riveting conversation. The tension built along with the heat in the room, and we felt just as stuck and desperate as they felt. I love it especially because it makes us feel like we're part of the jury as well! We're right alongside them making up our own minds about a man's judgment.

Sam

Sidney Lumet is a genius.

Nabila

had issues with my membership payment recently and girl I've missed on quite a bit and you've been picking good ones haha. just watched this one last week so can't wait to watch along again with you!