12 Angry Men

Movie Details:

Cast & Characters:

• Martin Balsam as Juror 1, the jury foreman; a calm and methodical assistant high school football coach.
• John Fiedler as Juror 2, a meek and unpretentious bank teller who is easily flustered, but eventually stands up for himself.
• Lee J. Cobb as Juror 3, a hot-tempered owner of an answering service who is estranged from his son; the most passionate advocate of a “guilty” verdict.
• E. G. Marshall as Juror 4, an unflappable, conscientious, and analytical stockbroker who is concerned only with facts, not opinions.
• Jack Klugman as Juror 5, a Baltimore Orioles fan who grew up in a violent slum, and is sensitive to bigotry towards “slum kids”.
• Edward Binns as Juror 6, a tough but principled and courteous house painter who stands up to others, especially over the elderly being verbally abused.
• Jack Warden as Juror 7, an impatient and wisecracking salesman who is more concerned about the Yankees game he is missing than the case.
• Henry Fonda as Juror 8 (Davis), a humane, justice-seeking architect and father of three; initially, the only one to question the evidence and vote “not guilty”.
• Joseph Sweeney as Juror 9 (McCardle), a thoughtful and intelligent elderly man who is highly observant of the witnesses’ behaviors and their possible motivations.
• Ed Begley as Juror 10, a pushy, loud-mouthed and xenophobic garage owner.
• George Voskovec as Juror 11, a polite European watchmaker and naturalized American citizen who demonstrates strong respect for democratic values such as due process.
• Robert Webber as Juror 12, an indecisive and easily distracted advertising executive.
• Rudy Bond as the Judge
• Tom Gorman as the Stenographer
• James Kelly as the Bailiff
• Billy Nelson as the Court clerk
• John Savoca as the Defendant
• Walter Stocker as Man waiting for elevator

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.

About Movie:

12 Angry Men is an American independent legal drama directed by Sidney Lumet in his directorial debut, adapted from the 1954 teleplay by Reginald Rose. Starring Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Ed Begley, E.G. Marshall, and Jack Warden.

Shot in New York, the film was completed in less than three weeks with a modest budget of $337,000 (about $3.7 million today). Fonda and Rose took salary deferrals to help keep production costs down.

The cinematography by Boris Kaufman employed innovative techniques to intensify the film’s growing tension. Early scenes feature wide-angle lenses to create depth, but as the story progresses, telephoto lenses and closeups were used to heighten the sense of claustrophobia.

Although 12 Angry Men initially performed modestly at the box office, it was critically acclaimed, earning nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay at the 30th Academy Awards.

It is now hailed as one of the greatest films ever made. In 2007, it was selected for preservation by the United States National Film Registry, and it ranks as the second-best courtroom drama in American cinema by the American Film Institute.

Budget & Box Office Collection: