Prejudice In 12 Angry Men

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Sidney Lumet directs 12 Angry Men. The film is on twelve men representing a jury in a small room. Lumet uses close-up camera shots to give attention to someone’s idea throughout the film. All over the film, there are repeating close-ups of different characters when innovative ideas are brought to light or throughout an argument. This is significant, new ideas are constantly evolving, and the close-ups show the importance of these angry men’s ideas’ evolution. In addition, Lumet groups characters together, most of the time being likeminded characters such as Juror 8, played by Henry Ford, and Juror 9 played by Joseph Sweeney. Lumet includes this grouping element to bring characters together, to show that the characters are together. This is …show more content…

I believe that his work on this film is staggering. The story is perfect, I love how each character has a personality with their own opinions. This film is not shy about prejudice and is important for a court-style film because it is prevalent in courts. Prejudice presents itself throughout the film by emotion in a character's life. Lee J. Cobb acts as juror three, his source of prejudice comes from his son, who is a similar age to the defendant. This prejudice of his relationship with his son directly affects how he, juror three, views the case. Juror three’s emotion piles on as the other jurors discuss the case repeatedly, leading to his breakdown where he rips the picture of his son, then claims that the defendant is not …show more content…

Juror eight is the most key role in the film, Lumet needed someone with a strong character, someone who could look death in the eyes. That person would be Harry Fonda, the scene where it looks as if Lee J. Cobb is about to stab Fonda is interesting. It really looks like Cobb is going to stab Fonda yet Fonda does not even flinch, presenting Fonda as the stronger man in that situation. Juror nine, played by Joseph Sweeney, is a difficult role. Juror nine is an old man who some characters look down upon because he is an old man. But this does not stop Sweeney from presenting vital points and being a profound character. Lee J. Cobb acts as juror 3, a very forceful character with prejudice. Cobb’s character has a lot of emotion which is why it is the hardest role out of the film, Cobb’s emotion feels real like he has a son that he has not talked to in two years. His anger, frustration, and sadness all is coming from a real character which is unrivaled in the