#7 12 Angry Men:

This movie is without a doubt, the most interesting boring movie I have ever seen. The whole thing takes place basically in one room. Only 8 minutes of the film transpire outside of the Jury Room, and most of these are in the bathroom. Not a single thing bursts into flames or is shot repeatedly by Bruce Willis. On paper, it’s hard to grasp why this movie was able to keep my attention and even go so far as to intrigue me. It was certainly made in a different time, when dialogue, camera angles and lighting were used to set the tone and relay the plot. Interesting fact, no screen time is devoted to back stories other than setting up the court case. The only details we get about the jurors is their jobs, which in 1954 might as well have served as personalities, and whatever else we glean from appearance and behavior during deliberations. The time this movie was made was a time for people that are so different from my generation, I’m not even sure I have the right to review this movie. Point of fact, that’s sort of something that I gleaned from the film itself. The themes of doubt and respect are so prevalent I get a little wobbly of conviction when analyzing it with my skewed, 21^st century perception. I mean, where do I get off? Ignoring that for the sake of a compliment, this movie is damn good. In fact, it rocks. Michael Bay has never seen anything like it. Someone should make sure he’s aware of non-exploding plot lines. I love the fact that it begins with one man of conviction standing up for the simple thing of deliberate consideration. All he wanted was a thought-out decision, nothing more. I’m not even sure where he decided that the kid wasn’t guilty. One by one, the other jurors are shown that acting hastily almost resulted in a grave injustice. By far my favorite part though, was when Henry Fonda baited Juror #3 into screaming “I’ll kill you”, just as was testified too during the trial.

So, this is a keeper. You should watch it at home and decide for yourself whether you agree with the one man, or the original 11 that stood against him. Even now, at the end, I’m not convinced that the kid was not guilty. One other thing, I’m glad this was a short one. Most of these are almost 3 hours long if not over and I’m glad to have an in-and-out movie once in a while.