12 Angry Men (1957) (runtime 1:36:08) - Patreon Version
Added 2026-02-17 17:00:07 +0000 UTC
Comments
Oh crazy!
Chandra
2026-02-23 20:02:18 +0000 UTCFinally got to this reaction and looking forward to your reaction. God, I love this movie. BTW, I scanned the comments and don't think anybody else mentioned this yet, but Juror #3 (Lee J. Cobb) was the police detective in "The Exorcist".
Thomas Yanez
2026-02-20 22:27:57 +0000 UTCYou're definitely inspiring me to do a rewatch. It seems like the type of film I'll get something new out of every time I watch it!
Chandra
2026-02-19 18:26:27 +0000 UTCI can see why it's an all time fav, it's definitely up there on my list now! I'm excited to watch it again.
Chandra
2026-02-19 18:23:12 +0000 UTCYou could really feel the passion for the system in the way Juror 11 talked, and knowing the actors history it makes sense, could definitely bring some real life experience to the role.
Chandra
2026-02-19 18:21:20 +0000 UTCOutstanding reaction, you guys!! Everyone is excellent here (you'll see them pop up as you watch more classics), but Henry Fonda is so powerful as a cool, plain-spoken everyman. I love the moment when he says, "I don't know" at the beginning. Another of his excellent performances can be seen in The Grapes of Wrath (1940), a great adaptation of the novel. As you mentioned, the camera shots get closer and closer as the film goes on, ratcheting up the claustrophobia. But the shot right after Juror #3 (Lee J. Cobb) finally switches his vote comes from **inside** the closet for the first time to literally show us the situation from a new angle. Keeping the direction and camera angles fresh inside that one room is an amazing achievement. (The showrunners of BCS mentioned how hard it was to think of new ways to shoot so many scenes in Kim and Jimmy's apartment; I'm sure they were inspired by this film.) And the final shot of Davis and McArdle walking outside is such a rewarding breath of fresh air after the tension of 90 minutes in the room. Definitely one of the great dialogue-driven films of all time. (Another great example is 1992's Glengarry Glen Ross.) Thanks for this!
JM63
2026-02-19 02:06:57 +0000 UTChighly recommend “my cousin vinny”! definitely more of a comedy but still a great courtroom film
Foggy
2026-02-19 02:02:05 +0000 UTCHBO did a pretty faithful shot-for-shot remake in 1997 but with modern actors and it's great in its own right.... you should check it out if you want more 12 angry men it stars Jack Lemmon, George c Scott, James Gandolfini... same screenwriter
penoyer79
2026-02-18 22:19:56 +0000 UTCI spent a few years in film school. Early, I learned screenwriting, directing, editing. Moved on to camera placement, lenses, lighting. I wound up studying film criticism. This film was used in every aspect of my studies. Notice the lack of music until the verdict is decided. Notice how the camera begins high, with much of the room and many characters visible... few close-ups. As the film moves along, the camera moves lower and lower. Often focuses on one face, more and more close-ups. Jump to the overhead shot where ten of the jurors walk away from Ed Bagley's bigoted character. It starts broad, becomes intimate, sometimes invasive. Brilliant script, perfect casting and acting, perfect editing and visuals. Great film.
Cliff Adams
2026-02-18 03:44:41 +0000 UTCThe African Queen is great. I think Casablanca would be a great follow-up Bogart film for C&J. My vote for first Kate Hepburn-Cary Grant pairing would be Holiday (1938). And I absolutely agree with your larger point. The acting style in old films is somewhat different from today, but once you understand that it's halfway between stage acting and modern film acting you can totally appreciate it and enjoy any sort of emotion in old films. (And the frame composition and blocking, I think, are often superior in old films because they put more emphasis on them. The main showrunners on Better Call Saul, Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan, are huge classic film fans and it really shows in the way they direct and block the scenes in BCS.)
JM63
2026-02-18 02:45:44 +0000 UTCCool, I'm glad YT can introduce ppl to under-watched classic films! You might also like The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), a really great coda to Band of Brothers.
JM63
2026-02-18 02:37:45 +0000 UTCThere are so many old films with great stories beautifully told. Some deeply serious like this one, others more exciting or funny or romantic. Any emotions you find in a movie today you will also find in an older movie. That's really what makes them classic. For a switch to a classic adventure movie you should watch "The African Queen".
James Melton
2026-02-18 01:42:49 +0000 UTCI had never seen this movie until I saw youtubers reacting to it. Whenever it comes up I always watch it with the reactors and have watched a couple times on my own. One of my favorites now. Something so fun about a dialogue intense movie. The acting is great. Just so good.
Ian A
2026-02-18 00:32:48 +0000 UTCThis ranks as one of my all time favs. There is nothing to it but awesome writing, acting, and directing. Just amazing. I watch it nearly every year and already had this year until this post made me watch it again (happily)
Prof Moff
2026-02-18 00:09:38 +0000 UTCGreat choices! I also really like Prince of the City (1981) 12 Angry Men was Lumet's debut feature, but he had already directed lots of TV. Still, one of the best directorial film debuts of all time! (Along with The Maltese Falcon, Blood Simple, and of course Citizen Kane.)
JM63
2026-02-17 21:34:25 +0000 UTCThis is one of the very few movies I consider to be pretty much flawless, although as a lawyer I might be a bit biased. Fun fact - Juror nr. 11 is played by a very famous czech actor Jiří (George) Voskovec, who actually fled from Czechoslovakia to the US, first time after the outbreak of WWII, and again after the communist coup in 1948, after which he never returned home.
Sobizle
2026-02-17 20:36:18 +0000 UTCSidney Lumet was a genius. And this is pretty much a perfect movie. Off the top of my head, I would highly recommend watching Dog Day Afternoon, Network, Serpico, The Verdict, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead... even Deathtrap. On a tangentially related note, I think 12 Angry Men is the first movie Lumet directed, and it made me think of Duel, Spielberg's first proper movie... so, I'll recommend that too :)
Sam
2026-02-17 19:47:44 +0000 UTC
