12 ANGRY MEN

(April 1957, U.S.)

Despite my usually detailed memory, I honestly can't remember if I ever read the original play of 12 ANGRY MEN as required reading for middle school or high school English class. I usually never enjoyed any of the required reading in school, but based on the late Sidney Lumet's classic black and white debut feature film, I can't imagine that I would've balked at the idea of reading such a powerful courtroom drama.

On what seems to be the hottest day of the summer in 1950's New York City, Henry Fonda leads a group of twelve jury men deliberating the conviction or acquittal of a young boy accused of stabbing his father to death, and facing the electric chair if convicted. They've been instructed by the judge that if there's any reasonable doubt whatsoever, they're required to return a verdict of not guilty. In the end, their verdict (either way) must be unanimous. In the beginning, Fonda stands alone amidst a sea of convincing evidence to the boy's guilt. This evidence includes the testimony of a neighbor who claims to have witnessed from her window, the boy stab his father, and another neighbor claiming to have heard the defendant threaten to kill his father and then hearing the body hit the floor, and then witnessing the defendant run past his door. The boy's violent past serves to further convince the jury of his immediate guilt. Fonda as Juror #8 is the only one of twelve men who doesn't want to jump to any hasty conclusion and only asks to talk the matters out first before concluding a final verdict.

In a rather step-by-step process, Fonda questions the reliability of the witnesses and also casts doubt on the supposed unique nature of switch blade used as the murder weapon, as he happens to own the same sort of knife. He's just introduced reasonable doubt, and the decision of the remaining eleven jurors must now be examined. This is the point in the film where perhaps it's not impossible to compare the story to Agatha Christie's AND THEN THERE WERE NONE. No murder involved, of course, but one by one, each juror who was so previously set in their own ways of thinking is "picked off" as they now find reason to question their values and morals, thus reversing their conviction of a guilty verdict to that of not guilty.

By the time the day has progressed, and the weather outside has become as loud and stormy as the angry debates and string of arguments inside the deliberation room, each juror, including the most die hard angry Juror #3 (played by Lee J. Cobb) believing that the undesirable accused defendant must die to pay for his anger against his own ungrateful son, has succumb to the questionable evidence and all reasonable doubt until the entire team of jurors stands at the opposite side of the spectrum as compared to how they started out. The boy is found not guilty and the jurors leave the courthouse, perhaps wiser men with a better understanding of their own humanity.

There is traditional drama, and then there's the sort of absorbing drama that manages to create the sort of claustrophobic atmosphere that 12 ANGRY MEN does with its multi use of camera positions and close-ups. One can't help but feel spellbound as we watch these men locked in a small room with no air conditioning slowly begin to unravel at the thought of deliberating any longer than they have to against circumstantial evidence and their own personal prejudices against a minority slum kid they believe to be guilty from the start. Change is key here, as the hearts of twelve men becomes increasingly less angry until what appears to be justice is finally served. Sadly, we're given no hint whatsoever as to just who may have actually killed the boy's father and why. In the end, we may only be left with the prejudices of the time, in which many believed people of the slum to be so bad, that they'd just go around killing each other for no reason. I wonder if we're any wiser today?

Favorite line or dialogue:

Juror #8 (to Juror #3): "Ever since you walked into this room, you've been acting like a self-appointed public avenger! You want to see this boy die because you personally want it, not because of the facts! You're a sadist!"

TRUMAN SHOW, THE

(June 1998, U.S.)

Let me say something right off the bat - I hate reality TV. I mean, I loathe and detest its very existence right down to fiber of my very soul, and to be perfectly honest, I generally have low opinions of people who enjoy it. Who would have thought that back in 1998, two years before CBS's SURVIVOR went on the air, that the concept of following a person's life and activities on television would've ever been more than entertaining fiction on film. Oh, I know that reality entertainment existed long before Peter Weir's little sci-fi comedy-drama of Truman Burbank (played by Jim Carrey) who grows up living an ordinary life that unbeknownst to him, takes place on a gigantic set populated by actors for an international TV show about him, but in my opinion, you don't honestly come to grips with the possibilities of reality (past, present and future) until you've witnessed it on the big screen.

On screen, Truman suspects nothing as he lives his daily existence in the fictional seaside town of Seahaven Island, which in reality, is situated in Hollywood, equipped with state-of-the-art technology to simulate such things as day and night weather conditions, and features more than five thousand hidden cameras documenting Truman's every move (and even sleep). The town is psychologically programmed to condition Truman into never wanting to leave, despite his inner longings to break free and explore the country of Fiji. However, Truman's instilling by the show's producers of his fear of the water through the "death" of his TV father in a boating accident lead him to believe that he lacks the courage to face the water as well as the potential dangers of traveling, thus instilling the virtues of staying put at home. Every other resident of the town, including Truman's own beloved wife Meryl (played by Laura Linney) and best friend Marlon (played by Noah Emmerich) are actors playing a role. The show's creator Christof (played by Ed Harris) stands high in the makeshift moon above the town and seeks to capture Truman's real-life emotions and behavior, thus giving his audience a relatable everyday man (and extremely high TV ratings).

From the moment a spotlight falls mysteriously from the blue sky one morning, Truman suspects that something is not right about his life, and proceeds to take actions to try and figure out what's going on. Despite falling for the beautiful Sylvia during his college years, Truman was intended to fall in love with and marry Meryl. As a result of trying to tell Truman the truth, that his reality was a fake, Sylvia was kicked off the show and believed to be living in Fiji with her (fake) father, thus justifying Truman's longing to flee to that country. Now on the outside of the show, Sylvia is part of a campaign to free Truman from his fake life, thus accusing Christof of destroying Truman's life, which of course, Christof denies. As time and the show go on, mounting evidence including a radio frequency that follows his car and rain water that only falls on him, leads Truman closer to the truth. Even the return of Truman's deceased "fake" father in order to return him to a more controllable state cannot deter him from discovering who and what he really is.

As he begins to sleep in the basement after Meryl leaves him, the TV production crew realizes that Truman's sleeping body is out of their sight, and they begin to suspect something is wrong. They're right. Truman is gone and Christof orders the show's transmission cut while a citywide search for Truman begins, thus leaving TV audiences around the world on the edge of their seats wondering what will become of their ignorant TV hero. Truman is discovered sailing on the fake waters out of Seahaven, determined to conquer his fear of the water. Despite the fact that Truman may drown on live television, Christoff ignores all warnings. Truman persists and sails his boat smack into the wall of the great makeshift dome and finds an exit door. Christof, speaking directly to Truman through a giant speaker system, tries to persuade him to remain, stating that truth doesn't exist in the real world and that only be staying inside his own artificial world, would Truman be safe. Tempted by these words for only a moment, Truman takes a bow and exits, thus sending many audience members into a cheering frenzy on Truman's behalf. Show over. Turn the channel and see what else is on.

Like I previously stated, this is all wonderful motion picture entertainment from the director of DEAD POETS SOCIETY (1989) and also breaks Jim Carrey out of his insane comedy persona of the 1990s in order to try his hand at some emotional drama. But unfortunately, THE TRUMAN SHOW turned out to be a prelude to what would become an onslaught of reality TV that has plagued the entire 21st century with titles that include SURVIVOR and BIG BROTHER, just to name a couple. But honestly, think about it, and even you too may come to realize that in the real world, there's virtually nothing real about reality TV. Whereas Truman's reality is real to him in fiction, everything that's supposed to compose reality on TV is false - none of what you watch on TV is actually real because it all has the potential to have been scripted and rehearsed before its ever broadcasted. None of those idiots you watch on SURVIVOR are ever in any real danger, because there's a camera crew (and probably a staff doctor) is right there on the island with them (in real life, no one is there to save you if you get into trouble on a deserted island). Still, even as fiction, Truman's story illustrates the power and the hold the media has over the average moron who's willing to be controlled by all of the crap on TV.

And of course, I'm sure it's no accident that the name Christof is so close to Christ, thus giving Ed Harris's character a representative quality of Jesus Christ or even an Antichrist ("Christ-off") who seeks to control the minds of his many followers - in this case, the TV audience with an insatiable lust for the private details of the lives of (so-called) ordinary people in a world filled with celebrity culture.

Anyway you look at it, it's probably a lot easier to see why in the end, I prefer movies over television any day of the week. Thank goodness for that because this blog and my books might not exist otherwise.

Favorite line or dialogue:

Meryl Burbank (holding up a jar of cocoa): "Why don't you let me fix you some of this Mococoa drink? All natural cocoa beans from the upper slopes of Mount Nicaragua. No artificial sweeteners."
Truman Burbank (looking around): "What the hell are you talking about? Who are you talking to?"