It is indeed fortunate that a kinescope of the original Studio One production of Twelve Angry Men was found an preserved. The film version expanded quite a bit and we got more rounded characterizations of the jurors in the big screen film. Nevertheless this version can hold its own in terms of drama.
Only George Voskovec and Joseph Sweeney repeated their roles for the big screen and it was interesting to see a different interpretation of the parts. The main roles on the screen were done by Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb and Ed Begley. Those same parts are essayed by Robert Cummings, Franchot Tone, and Edward Arnold. There was certainly a different emphasis on certain characters placed on the big screen. Whole parts are added in the big screen version, most notably Jack Warden's desire to get to Yankee Stadium to see the debut of a new pitcher that the team had called up.
Cummings was far more diffident and unsure of himself than Henry Fonda was. Still he's quite the impassioned advocate for reasoning out the evidence than just taking a perfunctory vote.
I could never give the big screen film a higher rating because of what I consider a fatal flaw in the story. The same flaw is here. The second that Bob Cummings produced that knife, someone should have hollered for a mistrial and gotten it. One cannot develop independent evidence in a jury trial. By bringing that identical switchblade into court that's what Cummings did. I learned here that we have this kinescope courtesy of the estate of Samuel L. Leibowitz. That man certainly would have known about developing independent evidence.
Still this is a fine drama that will hold your interest every bit as much as the movie did.
Only George Voskovec and Joseph Sweeney repeated their roles for the big screen and it was interesting to see a different interpretation of the parts. The main roles on the screen were done by Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb and Ed Begley. Those same parts are essayed by Robert Cummings, Franchot Tone, and Edward Arnold. There was certainly a different emphasis on certain characters placed on the big screen. Whole parts are added in the big screen version, most notably Jack Warden's desire to get to Yankee Stadium to see the debut of a new pitcher that the team had called up.
Cummings was far more diffident and unsure of himself than Henry Fonda was. Still he's quite the impassioned advocate for reasoning out the evidence than just taking a perfunctory vote.
I could never give the big screen film a higher rating because of what I consider a fatal flaw in the story. The same flaw is here. The second that Bob Cummings produced that knife, someone should have hollered for a mistrial and gotten it. One cannot develop independent evidence in a jury trial. By bringing that identical switchblade into court that's what Cummings did. I learned here that we have this kinescope courtesy of the estate of Samuel L. Leibowitz. That man certainly would have known about developing independent evidence.
Still this is a fine drama that will hold your interest every bit as much as the movie did.