12 Angry Men

Too few films take on the art of arguing as a subject; we could certainly use more of them, but until then, Lumet's window into strained civic duty will continue to serve mightily.

The film leaves a tremendous impact.

Mechanically written, but within its own middlebrow limitations, it delivers the goods.

A strangely realistic thriller.

Although it may sound ungallant, these 12 Angry Men, are all right without distaff glamour. Their dramas are powerful and provocative enough to keep a viewer spellbound.

This is a film where tension comes from personality conflict, dialogue and body language, not action.

In the 60 years since its release, Sidney Lumet's masterpiece has lost none of its impact. In this age of unreason, 12 Angry Men remains sorely and urgently contemporary.

With each new viewing I come away feelings as if I have peeled away another layer on the characters and their buried motives.

Lumet in his first film records it as a meticulous laboratory experiment, a clammy orchestra

...the film has aged surprisingly well in the years since its 1957 release.

There is real value is how it allows each member of the cultural mosaic of a jury to develop into distinct, damaged, and interesting characters

The film takes a confined, almost completely banal real-world location and makes it completely dynamic, using incredibly nimble camera movements to establish character motivation and theme.