The defense and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young Spanish-American is guilty or innocent of murdering his father. What begins as an open and shut case of murder soon becomes a mini-drama of each of the jurors prejudices and preconceptions about the trial the accused and each other. Based on the play all of the action takes place on the stage of the jury room.
Review
I defy anyone to watch this movie and not be completely absorbed in the group dynamics on display. I could take points off for the overly tidy and convenient script with its TVmovie ending or some of the less subtle methods through which director Sidney Lumet drives home his points. But with a cast as uniformly excellent as this why quibble Henry Fonda is just the person to play the liberal everyman an extension of his Tom Joad character from "The Grapes of Wrath." E.G. Marshall is excellent as Fondas most formidable opponent coolheaded and logical hes the only holdout who bases his verdict on facts instead of emotions. Lee J. Cobbs performance wears thin and his character is the most poorly written. Ed Begley is almost too good in his role so revolting is his character. Jack Klugman and Jack Warden register in smaller roles as well.
This movie conveys the sweaty tensionfilled atmosphere of a stifling jury room but never feels oppressive thanks to Lumets fluid direction. My favorite moment comes when Fonda begins counting off paces around the jury table (a key piece of evidence hinges on this) and the camera drops to floor level and follows his feet as he does so. Choices like this prevent Lumets film from ever being static or stagy.
An important film and a great one. If you havent already seen it put it at the top of your list.
Grade A