12 Angry Men 4K UHD - Henry Fonda

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

(aka "Twelve Angry Men")

directed by Sidney Lumet
USA 1957

12 Angry Men, by Sidney Lumet, may be the most radical courtroom drama in cinema history. A behind-closed-doors look at the American legal system that is as riveting as it is spare, this iconic adaptation of Reginald Rose’s teleplay stars Henry Fonda as the dissenting member on a jury of white men ready to pass judgment on a Puerto Rican teenager charged with murdering his father. The result is a saga of epic proportions that plays out over a tense afternoon in one sweltering room. Lumet’s electrifying snapshot of 1950s America on the verge of change is one of the great feature film debuts.

***

Following the closing arguments in a murder trial, the twelve members of the jury must deliberate, with a guilty verdict meaning death for the accused, an inner-city teen. As the dozen men try to reach a unanimous decision while sequestered in a solitary, sweltering room, one juror (Henry Fonda, The Ox-Bow Incident) casts considerable doubt on elements of the case. Personal issues soon rise to the surface, and conflict threatens to derail the delicate process that will decide one boy’s fate. In addition to Fonda (who also co-produced with writer Reginald Rose), the cast includes Lee J. Cobb as his main opposition; Ed Begley as a hateful bigot; E.G. Marshall as a cold, logical stockbroker; Jack Warden as a baseball fanatic and Jack Klugman as the disturbed blood-brother to the defendant. The feature directing debut of Sidney Lumet (Serpico, The Verdict), 12 Angry Men remains “one of the best pictures ever made” (The Hollywood Reporter), a searing examination of race, justice, family and morality.

Posters

Theatrical Release: April 13th, 1957 (New York City, New York)

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Review: Kino - Region FREE - 4K UHD

Box Cover		CLICK to order from: Bonus Captures:
Distribution	Kino - Region FREE - 4K UHD
Runtime	1:35:57.083
Video	1.85:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD Disc Size: 65,151,006,628 bytes Feature: 64,659,585,792 bytes Video Bitrate: 76.49 Mbps Codec: HEVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate 4K Ultra HD:
Audio	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1942 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1942 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit) Commentaries: DTS-HD Master Audio English 1880 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1880 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	English, None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Kino 1.85:1 2160P 4K Ultra HD Disc Size: 65,151,006,628 bytes Feature: 64,659,585,792 bytes Video Bitrate: 76.49 Mbps Codec: HEVC Video Edition Details: 4K Ultra HD disc • Brand New HDR/Dolby Vision Master – From a New 4K Scan of the Original Camera Negative • NEW Audio Commentary by Film Historian/Screenwriter Gary Gerani • Audio Commentary by Film Historian Drew Casper • Triple-Layered UHD100 Disc • Optional English Subtitles DISC 2 Kino - Region 'A' - Blu-ray • 12 ANGRY MEN – 1997 Film Directed by William Friedkin and Starring Jack Lemmon • BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT: Making of 12 Angry Men (23:05) • INSIDE THE JURY ROOM: Featurette (15:29) • Theatrical Trailer (2:15) (1997 - 0:50) 4K Ultra HD Release Date: April 18th, 2023 Black 4K Ultra HD Case inside slipcase Chapters 10

Comments:

NOTE: The below Blu-ray and 4K UHD captures were taken directly from the respective discs.

ADDITION: Kino 4K UHD (May 2023): Kino's are releasing Sidney Lumet's "12 Angry Men" to 4K UHD. It is cited as being a "Brand New HDR/Dolby Vision Master – From a New 4K Scan of the Original Camera Negative". We compared three MGM DVD iterations to the Criterion Blu-ray HERE. The elephant in the room is that they were all 1.66:1 where Kino's 4K UHD is 1.85:1. We lose some information on the top and bottom while gaining on the sides. I was hoping it would be addressed in one of the commentaries but, if it was - I missed it. To me this composition looks accurate. Close-ups chop heads in both ratios. It was intentional. I expect the 1.85:1 is correct. Now, the image itself is gorgeous. The 2160P is slightly darker with exquisitely layered contrast. The HD presentation has sublimely fine grain, is pristinely clean and I found it flawless without a pixel out of place.

It is likely that the monitor you are seeing this review is not an HDR-compatible display (High Dynamic Range) or Dolby Vision, where each pixel can be assigned with a wider and notably granular range of color and light. Our capture software if simulating the HDR (in a uniform manner) for standard monitors. This should make it easier for us to review more 4K UHD titles in the future and give you a decent idea of its attributes on your system. So our captures may not support the exact same colors (coolness of skin tones, brighter or darker hues etc.) as the 4K system at your home. But the framing, detail, grain texture support etc. are, generally, not effected by this simulation representation. The package has a second disc BD with William Friedkin's highly regarded 1997 adaptation of 12 Angry Men with Jack Lemmon, George C. Scott etc. and other extras (see below.)

NOTE: 64 more more full resolution (3840 X 2160) 4K UHD captures, in lossless PNG format, for Patrons are available HERE

We have reviewed the following 4K UHD packages to date: Branded to Kill (no HDR), Picnic at Hanging Rock (software uniformly simulated HDR), Two Orphan Vampires, The Shiver of the Vampires, Drowning By Number (software uniformly simulated HDR), Serpico (software uniformly simulated HDR), Cool Hand Luke (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Seventh Seal (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Maltese Falcon (software uniformly simulated HDR), Mildred Pierce (software uniformly simulated HDR), Tár (software uniformly simulated HDR), Marathon Man (software uniformly simulated HDR), Dazed and Confused (software uniformly simulated HDR), Three Colors: Blue (software uniformly simulated HDR), Invaders From Mars (software uniformly simulated HDR), Death Wish (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (no HDR), High Plains Drifter (software uniformly simulated HDR), Mystery Men (software uniformly simulated HDR), Silent Running (software uniformly simulated HDR), Dressed to Kill (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Power of the Dog (software uniformly simulated HDR), Escape From Alcatraz (software uniformly simulated HDR), I, the Jury (no HDR), Casablanca (software uniformly simulated HDR), In the Mood For Love (NO HDR applied to disc), The Werewolf vs. the Vampire Woman (software uniformly simulated HDR), Blow Out (software uniformly simulated HDR), Night of the Living Dead (NO HDR applied to disc), Lost Highway (software uniformly simulated HDR), Videodrome (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Last Picture Show (software uniformly simulated HDR), It Happened One Night (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Mummy (1932)(software uniformly simulated HDR), Creature From the Black Lagoon (software uniformly simulated HDR), Bride of Frankenstein (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Amityville Horror (software uniformly simulated HDR), The War of the Worlds (1953) (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Incredible Melting Man (software uniformly simulated HDR), Event Horizon (software uniformly simulated HDR), Branded to Kill (software uniformly simulated HDR), The Killing (software uniformly simulated HDR), Killer's Kiss (software uniformly simulated HDR.)

On their 4K UHD, Kino use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original English language. "12 Angry Men" has zero violence but a few instances of aggressive yelling. It comes across authentically flat in the uncompressed transfer and I can't notice any difference from the Criterion Blu-ray audio rendering from way back in 2011. The simple score is by jazz-notable Kenyon Hopkins (A Lovely Way to Die, Lilith, as well as recognized for composing the music in Robert Rossen's "The Hustler" and being a conductor for many great films such as "Elmer Gantry") and there is a portion of Marvin Hatley's Dance of the Cuckoos whistled by Juror 7, played by Jack Warden. Kino include optional English subtitles - and is, like all 4K UHD, region FREE, playable worldwide. The second disc Blu-ray is Region 'A'-locked.

There are two commentaries on the 4K UHD disc - the one found on the 2008 MGM DVD by Dr. Drew Casper. Like all his commentaries - it is excellent, professionally researched and detailed. Our comments from reviewing the 15-year old DVD "...he hardly seems to take a breath, with a few short gaps, - he eloquently narrates at times but also inputs vast extraneous details about Lumet, Fonda and much of the cast (shot in 20 days for a mere $250,000.)" The other commentary is new from film historian / screenwriter Gary Gerani (co-author of Fantastic Television: A Pictorial History of Sci-Fi, the Unusual and Fantastic From Captain Video to the Star Trek Phenomenon and Beyond...). Gary makes specific observations on the Reginald Rose story and subtle details on Sidney Lumet's production. He talks about extended shots, choreography, close-ups, crane shots etc. and many cinematographic choices within Boris Kaufman's subtle camerawork. I learned a lot.

The second disc Blu-ray includes William Friedkin's 1997 adaptation of 12 Angry Men in 1080P. The cable television remake has, as jurors, Jack Lemmon, George C. Scott, Hume Cronyn, Ossie Davis, James Gandolfini, Tony Danza, Edward James Olmos, William Petersen etc. and Mary McDonnell playing the judge. It's easy to dismiss this as being unnecessary but it is highly entertaining focusing on the different performances - notably Lemmon - and overall adaptation in Friedkin's hands. It offers a clean, if not dynamic, image transferred in 1.78:1. I thought it was a worthwhile addition to the package - less as a comparison to the 57' classic, but fascinating if approached openly. Included from the 50th anniversary MGM DVD are the two, relatively weak featurettes - Beyond a Reasonable Doubt - the Making of 12 Angry Men and Inside the Jury Room. They run respectively 23 and 15 minutes long and input comes from some left-field resources with even George Wendt ('Normie') giving some comments (he played a juror in the updated theatrical version). Also included are Klugman, Robert Osborne and Patricia King Hanson and many others. Lastly are trailers for both the 1957 and 1997 versions as well as a handful of other tangentially-related films.

Kino's 4K UHD release of Sidney Lumet's "12 Angry Men" has essential value for the exceptional 2160 Dolby Vision 4K scanned image in 1.85:1 (for the first time on digital.) Commentaries and the inclusion of Friedkin's 1997 adaptation provide further rewards. The film is a masterpiece - both a highly impacting, gritty celebration of the justice system and brilliantly economical thriller filled with memorable, sweaty, performances. Fonda's humanity embodies the quote "it is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death." Civic duty, biases and prejudices surface and are also deliberated upon within the debate regarding the fate of a teenager accused of patricide. Civilized juror number 8, Fonda, forces the dismissal of a hasty verdict - to simply talk about their decision first... as a human life is at stake. What a riveting cross-section of 50's America including an assistant high school football coach (Balsam), a meek bank teller (John Fiedler), a factual stockbroker (E. G. Marshall) and a principled architect (Fonda) among others. The system, for all its flaws, works. God damn. Our highest recommendation.

Gary Tooze