Are We Really Innocent Until Proven Guilty? In a justice system where a defendant is supposedly innocent until proven guilty, a group of eleven men are convinced that an unnamed 18 year old poor man was his father’s murderer before discussing potential alternatives. In the movie 12 Angry Men it is the lone 8th Juror who holds up the jury by stating that the man may not be guilty. 12 Angry Men, written by Reginald Rose and directed by Sydney Lumet, explores the justice system of 1957 in a seemingly straight-forward murder case. Accused of murdering his father, an 18 year old man from the “slums” is discussed by a 12 man jury about whether or not he committed the crime. If he is proven guilty, he will be sentenced to death via electric chair.
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With the help of a couple of other jurors who gradually choose to respect his wishes of discussing the case first, he tears apart the evidence by disproving the boy’s switchblade as the only possible weapon, questioning the validity of the witnesses, and whether or not an individual could hear something over the sound of an elevated train. Eventually Juror #8 is able to convince the rest of the jury that the man could not be proven guilty. At first glance 12 Angry Men is a thought provoking film that brings a significant amount of attention to the value of a human life. Throughout the film a group of excitable and irritated men become increasingly aware of the importance of people they do not regard on a daily basis. They are forced to face and consider their personal prejudices, priorities and demons that are brought to the surface in this film. Some of the most interesting characters are a European man, who sees the trial from an outsider’s perspective that is free of prejudice, an elderly man, who can understand why a person would be desperate for some form of attention, a man who grew up in the slums, a man who just does not care unless he can get his baseball game in, and a child abuser who is determined to only relate to the man
With the help of a couple of other jurors who gradually choose to respect his wishes of discussing the case first, he tears apart the evidence by disproving the boy’s switchblade as the only possible weapon, questioning the validity of the witnesses, and whether or not an individual could hear something over the sound of an elevated train. Eventually Juror #8 is able to convince the rest of the jury that the man could not be proven guilty. At first glance 12 Angry Men is a thought provoking film that brings a significant amount of attention to the value of a human life. Throughout the film a group of excitable and irritated men become increasingly aware of the importance of people they do not regard on a daily basis. They are forced to face and consider their personal prejudices, priorities and demons that are brought to the surface in this film. Some of the most interesting characters are a European man, who sees the trial from an outsider’s perspective that is free of prejudice, an elderly man, who can understand why a person would be desperate for some form of attention, a man who grew up in the slums, a man who just does not care unless he can get his baseball game in, and a child abuser who is determined to only relate to the man