12 Angry Men
Criterion Collection Edition #591
12 ANGRY MEN, by Sidney Lumet, may be the most radical courtroom drama in cinema history. A behind-closed-doors look at the American legal system that is as riveting as it is spare, this iconic adaptation of Reginald Rose’s teleplay stars Henry Fonda as the dissenting member on a jury of white men ready to pass judgment on a Puerto Rican teenager charged with murdering his father. The result is a saga of epic proportions that plays out over a tense afternoon in one sweltering room. Lumet’s electrifying snapshot of 1950s America on the verge of change is one of the great feature film debuts.
-
12 Angry Men
Directed by Sidney Lumet • 1957 • United States
Starring Martin Balsam, John Fiedler, Lee J. Cobb12 ANGRY MEN, by Sidney Lumet, may be the most radical courtroom drama in cinema history. A behind-closed-doors look at the American legal system that is as riveting as it is spare, this iconic adap...
Extras
-
12 ANGRY MEN Edition Intro
-
Ron Simon on 12 ANGRY MEN
In this piece, filmed in August 2011, Ron Simon, curator at the Paley Center for Media in New York City, looks at the importance of the Franklin J. Schaffner–directed teleplay of 12 ANGRY MEN, its key actors, and its impact on live television at the time.
-
12 ANGRY MEN: The Television Version
The television version of 12 ANGRY MEN was written for the series “Westinghouse Presents Studio One” by Reginald Rose and directed by Franklin J. Schaffner. It first aired on September 26, 1954.
-
12 ANGRY MEN: From TV to the Big Screen
In this interview, conducted in August 2011 at the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison, film scholar Vance Kepley looks at 12 ANGRY MEN’s evolution from teleplay to film.
-
Sidney Lumet Archival Interviews
Presented here is a compilation of interviews conducted with 12 ANGRY MEN director Sidney Lumet throughout his career.
-
Reflections on Sidney
Presented here is a 2011 interview with Lumet friend and collaborator Walter Bernstein on the director's life and work, including 12 ANGRY MEN.
-
On Reginald Rose
Reginald Rose, the writer of 12 ANGRY MEN, was one of the most renowned figures of television's golden age, known for work that explored controversial social and political issues. In this 2011 piece, Ron Simon, curator at the Paley Center for Media, examines Rose’s importance.
-
Tragedy in a Temporary Town
Before 12 ANGRY MEN there was “Tragedy in a Temporary Town,” a teleplay written by Reginald Rose and directed by Sidney Lumet that aired as part of “The Alcoa Hour” on NBC on February 19, 1956.
-
John Bailey on Boris Kaufman
Cinematographer Boris Kaufman, filmmaker Dziga Vertov’s younger brother, photographed some of the most beloved films of all time, including Jean Vigo's ZÉRO DE CONDUITE, Elia Kazan’s ON THE WATERFRONT, and Sudney Lumet’s 12 ANGRY MEN. In this 2011 piece, cinematographer John Bailey discusses Kauf...
