12 Angry Men
Rightfully regarded as a brilliant courtroom procedural, 12 Angry Men takes us into the realm of the American justice system, the responsibilities of citizens to do right by their fellow human, and the assumptions made every time someone – particularly someone of the lower working classes – is accused of a crime.
Set on a hot day in New York City, 12 nameless jurors meet to discuss the case of a young boy accused of murdering his father. While the case appears simple on the face of it, only Juror 8 (Henry Fonda) is a hold out for the boy’s innocence. Because a unanimous verdict must be brought in, the 12 engage in heated debate to convince Juror 8 that the boy should be found guilty.
The film slowly reveals the prejudices, fears, and assumptions of the other jurors, from one man hoping to get out of the room in time to go to a baseball game, another hateful towards people of the working classes, a third easily brow-beaten into taking the perspective of the majority, and so on. As the jurors’ minds begin to change, more is brought to the surface.
12 Angry Men is an excellent courtroom drama in itself, but it also expands on the values – and shortcomings – of the American justice system. Prejudice in particular is the greatest culprit here, with commentary on the reasons why we so often assume that a man is guilty until proven innocent, despite our system being set up the other way around. While it is a film solidly set in the 1950s, 12 Angry Men could take place anywhere, any time, and still be as meaningful as it was in 1957.
