It is one of the best American films of all time and is broadcast on television this week. The ideal opportunity to catch up with it and perfect its cinematographic culture.
Despite the passing decades and the technologies that evolve, some films do not have a wrinkle and remain timeless seventh art. This is the case of this judicial drama released 67 years ago: by its rhythm, its words, its acting and its tension, it remains one of the best films of all time, that it is necessary Have seen at least once in your life.
Directed by Sidney Lumet (One dog afternoon, Network),, 12 angry is a judicial closed closed closed dock which follows the twelve members of a jury responsible for deciding on the fate of a man accused of the murder of his father. When voting, while the jurors all seem to be convinced of his guilt and are about to condemn him to death, one of the members of the jury issues reservations. The group of men must however arrive at a unanimous decision in one direction as in the other, and each camp must convince the other of its intimate conviction.
12 angry is a particular trial film which does not take place within a courtroom, but only in the deliberation room of the jury. The black sheep of the jury, embodied by Henry Fonda, poses an apparently simple question, but which is also one of the great challenges of justice: can we condemn a man if the slightest doubt remains? As you go, the jurors will discover that the apparently simple affair is probably much more complex than it looks.
Sidney Lumet thus signs a theatrical thriller in its form but without dead time, superbly played, which explores in depth what it really means “do justice”, especially when one can decide on the life or death of someone. 12 angry is above all a film which is easily seen and which captivates the spectator from start to finish, without any artifice. With the 9/10 note, he also appears in the fifth position of the best films of all time on the Internet Movie Data Base (IMDB), which compiles spectator opinions. He is also on the list of 100 best films of all time according to the American Film Institute.
To discover it on television, go to Monday, February 17, 2025, from 8:55 p.m. on Arte, where it will probably also be accessible as a result of its free streaming broadcast. The judicial drama of Sidney Lumet is also available in streaming for purchase or rental on most VOD sites.