12 Angry Men (1957)

12 angry men. 6 ash trays. 1 room. No ventilation. Sounds smelly and boring, doesn't it? Except the 12 angry men are jurors, and the fate of a 18 year old Latino who has been accused of murdering his father, rests in the hands of 12 individuals he has never met. The movie starts of with 1 voting not guilty and the rest 11 voting guilty. It is upto Henry Fonda to change the mind of 11 stubborn men.

I found it incredibly hard to fall asleep or not enjoy this movie. The plan was to watch some 50 year old boring black and white movie that starts getting interesting 3 weeks later. At 4AM I found my self still wide awake shocked at how a movie that takes place in a single room with 12 sweaty men be this great! I was particularly impressed with the fantastic acting by Lee J Cobb. He was terribly loud at times, but the louder he got the more you lost hope in seeing the 18 year old getting a second chance.

This film, along with Paths of Glory (Which I will talk about in the coming days) take the medals for my favorite movies in the 50's. I am yet to watch the half a dozen movies released in the 50's I have put aside. Don't hold your breath though for anymore recommendations on the 50's unless you specifically advise me to watch ASAP the ones I've put aside.