Ace of Spades HQ

April 09, 2011

Sidney Lumet, Dead at 86
— Dave in Texas

Passed away today. His first film was "12 Angry Men".

"Serpico." "Dog Day Afternoon." "Network."

Here's a scene from "12 Angry Men", when the racism boiled over. I watched what he did with the camera that the actors did when confronted with racism from a juror. They withdrew, pulled away. It's as if they didn't want to get it on them.

That was the thing I felt when I watched this, I have no idea how many years ago. And every time I watched it again.

via Andylevy on Twitter.

RIP.

Posted by: Dave in Texas at 09:29 AM | Comments (63)
Post contains 101 words, total size 1 kb.

1 Great Director! Will be missed.

Posted by: LurkingPoet at April 09, 2011 09:33 AM (4gJyt)

2 "ATTICA! ATTICA!"

Posted by: Sonny at April 09, 2011 09:36 AM (cUNcx)

3 Jack Klugman remarked that this was the only film he enjoyed working on. I still watch it everytime it's on TCM.

Posted by: mpfs at work at April 09, 2011 09:37 AM (iYbLN)

4 Dave, I don't know how to reach Gabe but his post is kinda screwed up. The link to the whole story doesn't work and the New comments thing doesn't bring up the balance of the story.

Posted by: Ohio Dan at April 09, 2011 09:38 AM (2o7Ys)

5 which post Dan?

Posted by: Dave in Texas at April 09, 2011 09:39 AM (Wh0W+)

6 Did he make any crappy films?

Posted by: eman: Japanese Babe Rescue Team at April 09, 2011 09:41 AM (dT+/n)

7 The only bad movie I can think of he made was "Gloria" with Sharon Stone

Posted by: Quilly Mammoth at April 09, 2011 09:44 AM (u8zUk)

8 This is but one of the first senior citizens to die because of the extreme Right Wing's anti-government extremism.

Posted by: Chuck Schumer at April 09, 2011 09:45 AM (MMC8r)

9 Yeah, he has a few lesser films to his credit, but no smoking craters. RIP, in any case.

Posted by: eman: Japanese Babe Rescue Team at April 09, 2011 09:49 AM (dT+/n)

10 I still hate all the Fondas

Posted by: nevergiveup at April 09, 2011 09:51 AM (0GFWk)

11 He did 12 Angry Men? Ahh, I remember watching that in English class in high school. I, also, remember this was one of the few times I had ever wanted class to continue as normal than to watch a movie. If anything, this movie made me dread jury duty in the very pit of my soul, but still I continued on and was chosen for it and recently ended. This was so accurate, one guy on the wrong side of an issue not wanting to come around. But in the end, what else could I say? It was done as justly as my civic duty was. But I wish I had taken the message more to heart: this movie sucks because jury duty sucks.

Posted by: SnowSoul at April 09, 2011 09:52 AM (+7e79)

12
The film as an example of classic juror misconduct.

But, it's only considered misconduct when it hurts the defendant - not when it denies the victims of a crime justice.

I hate that film (but otherwise admire Lumet).

Posted by: moi at April 09, 2011 09:55 AM (dDbkT)

Dave, it looks like he yanked it already. I assume he is fixing it now. Thanks

Posted by: Ohio Dan at April 09, 2011 09:55 AM (2o7Ys)

14 Yeah, that one is probably the pinnacle of the 'St. Henry Fonda' films.

Give me Jimmy Stewart any day.

Posted by: nickless at April 09, 2011 09:56 AM (MMC8r)

15 12 Angry Men is one of a handful of movies that I cannot channel surf past.

No matter what is going on, if I see it flash on the screen I have to sit down and watch.

12 Angry Men was the first real courtroom drama I ever saw and it set the hook deep.
I even have to watch that awful John Grisham adaptation shit they keep churning out.

Sadly, for every Sidney Lumet there are twelve thousand Paul Verhoevens and Ewe Bolls.

Posted by: sifty at April 09, 2011 09:57 AM (FhUzC)

16 I think Fonda was the killer. Sneaky fucker, he was.

Posted by: eman: Japanese Babe Rescue Team at April 09, 2011 09:58 AM (dT+/n)

17 This is an obviously inaccurate portrayal of white men in America. Oh, we're all angry but against prejudice and racism? Yeah, right. /

Posted by: catmman at April 09, 2011 09:59 AM (DTzwU)

18 14:
If Henry Fonda had gotten a vasectomy at age 18 I would like him much more. He produced some real scumbags.

The Cheyenne Social Club is pretty good though. Probably couldn't get that one made these days.

Posted by: sifty at April 09, 2011 10:00 AM (FhUzC)

19 That was the thing I felt when I watched this, I have no idea how many years ago. And every time I watched it again.

My ex-VP used to chat up the kids coming in the door. He'd talk to them about movies and music and tried to steer them beyond the Perrys, Tyler and Katy. One of the films that he would insist they watch was 12 Angry Men.

One of the brighter girls' review after watching it "I didn't think it was all that."

Subtlety, I fear, is utterly lost on this generation.

Posted by: Biggie Smalls at April 09, 2011 10:02 AM (piMMO)

"Prince of the City" was a masterpiece

Posted by: TexasJew at April 09, 2011 10:03 AM (QK1rf)

21 Sadly, for every Sidney Lumet there are twelve thousand Paul Verhoevens and Ewe Bolls.

Don't forget me!!!

Posted by: Michael Bay at April 09, 2011 10:03 AM (piMMO)

22 19:

My buddie's little sister after seeing Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

"that stuff isn't even real"

Posted by: sifty at April 09, 2011 10:04 AM (FhUzC)

23 Actually I like the "odd couple" version better

Posted by: nevergiveup at April 09, 2011 10:05 AM (0GFWk)

24 Great scene. I just love the setting. Even the fan. It's a 1957 film, but it's hard to know it's not 1947 or even '37 (well, not too much). B&W is just an amazing medium.

Posted by: ParisParamus at April 09, 2011 10:06 AM (bgSjf)

25 His recent work was good too. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. Awesome movie. Check it out.

Posted by: Ken Royall at April 09, 2011 10:06 AM (9zzk+)

26 Yeah, that one is probably the pinnacle of the 'St. Henry Fonda' films.

Give me Jimmy Stewart any day.

When Jimmy Stewart passed away I was around 30 years old and was completely caught off-guard by how hard it hit me. It was like losing an uncle or the old man next door. He was more than an actor and people genuinely loved him.

As for Fonda, I will admit something that may get me banned from the site, but despite the fact that Jane was in the movie, Fonda brought me to tears in On Golden Pond. The scene where he is lost in the woods was pretty overpowering.

Posted by: Michael Bay at April 09, 2011 10:07 AM (piMMO)

27 "that stuff isn't even real"

Avatar must have really thrown her for a loop!

Posted by: Michael Bay at April 09, 2011 10:08 AM (piMMO)

28 I remember when I was about 20, I happened to walk by the set where Sidney Lumet was shooting a very complicated shot for "Prince of the City." It involved multiple actors, vehicles and a complicated tracking shot. He yelled "action!" for take 1 and when he yelled "cut" he also said "print it, let's move on." They convinced him to do at least a couple more takes for safety, but that was Sidney Lumet's genius. He prepared and rehearsed for several weeks with the actors and key personnel. This, plus his background as a director during the golden age of TV (live with multiple cameras) meant that he had already "cut" the film in his head and knew exactly what he wanted and whether or not he got it. He was the only director I knew that was always ahead of schedule and under budget. What a great director, and as a film maker myself, an inspiration. RIP Sidney.

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at April 09, 2011 10:08 AM (UlUS4)

29 damn sock!

Posted by: Michael Bay is Biggie Smalls at April 09, 2011 10:09 AM (piMMO)

30 damn sock

Posted by: Biggie Smalls is the South Carolina Debutante Coterie at April 09, 2011 10:09 AM (piMMO)

31 Will have the panda sandwiches with gÃ¸Ã¸se sauce.

Posted by: 12 Hungry Men at April 09, 2011 10:11 AM (pPjch)

32 damn sock!

You know, once you start down the sockpuppet path, it's pretty hard to go back and unwind it!

Posted by: Whatever! is jmflynny at April 09, 2011 10:11 AM (piMMO)

33
If you want to see a good legal movie that is accurate, rent Anatomy of a Murder. It also has Lee Remick, one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen.

Posted by: moi at April 09, 2011 10:20 AM (dDbkT)

moi,

Anatomy of a Murder was outstanding. Very risque in it's time.

Posted by: mpfs at work at April 09, 2011 10:30 AM (iYbLN)

35 12 Angry Men is one of the most overrated movies in history.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at April 09, 2011 10:32 AM (61b7k)

36 36:

Surely the critics can't ever be wrong!

Posted by: Avatar at April 09, 2011 10:34 AM (FhUzC)

37 Brian Denehy was awesome. I love the way that he just seemed to become an extension of Lumet's thoughts

Posted by: beedubya at April 09, 2011 10:36 AM (AnTyA)

38 Raquel Welch did full nude in that one.

Posted by: sifty at April 09, 2011 10:40 AM (FhUzC)

39 Raquel Welch did full nude in that one.

I did a Bing for an image of her to add to a comment not too long ago. It was a bit surprising how easy it is to find photos of her hooters.

Posted by: Whatever! is jmflynny at April 09, 2011 10:44 AM (piMMO)

40 Anatomy of a Murder was outstanding. Very risque in it's time.

Jiggle jiggle jiggle....panties!

Posted by: moi at April 09, 2011 10:47 AM (dDbkT)

41 I, too, love 12 Angry Men. Of course the movie is not a documentary on how be a juror; rather, the movie is about one person standing up to group-think and ultimately bringing the group to his way of thinking.

Posted by: Retired Buckeye Cop at April 09, 2011 10:49 AM (S2+uh)

42 I liked Sydney Pollack better.

Posted by: Dr Spank at April 09, 2011 10:51 AM (4ZxEW)

43 David Mamet does some good stuff. Ronin was good.

Posted by: sifty at April 09, 2011 10:54 AM (FhUzC)

44 Sorry, but I thought it was a crummy movie, and Fonda was a pain in the ass, as he was in every movie I ever saw him in.

Posted by: Dan Blather at April 09, 2011 11:36 AM (mQMnK)

45 12
The film as an example of classic juror misconduct.

But, it's only considered misconduct when it hurts the defendant - not when it denies the victims of a crime justice.

I hate that film (but otherwise admire Lumet).

Posted by: moi at April 09, 2011 01:55 PM (dDbkT)

Well it was a play before it was a movie. So he was working with the source material. We read the play in high school before watching the film.

Posted by: buzzion at April 09, 2011 11:55 AM (oVQFe)

46 I had to go to IMDB to figure out that Sidney Lumet and Sydney Pollack were two different people. For years, I thought that Three Days of the Condor and The Anderson Tapes were from the same director. The Verdict and 12 Angry Men. Network and Tootsie. Duh!

Posted by: Little Miss Spellcheck at April 09, 2011 12:33 PM (a5ljo)

Gotta admit, Network was years ahead of it's time.

Oh, and he did Fail Safe also.

Posted by: HH at April 09, 2011 12:36 PM (6oDXl)

48 Wiki has this quote about 12 Angry Men

For Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, seeing the film became a "pivotal moment" in her life, as she was at that time considering a career in law. "It sold me that I was on the right path," she said.

That tells you all you need to know about that movie.

Posted by: Vic at April 09, 2011 12:39 PM (M9Ie6)

That tells you all you need to know about that movie.

I disagree. It shows one man standing up for what he thinks is right, and persuading others have already decided the outcome.

Anyone can bring anything from a movie.

Posted by: HH at April 09, 2011 12:45 PM (6oDXl)

50 Watched Prince of the City recently. A disappointment. Way too long, and still left some plot details unanswered at the end. And Treat Williams was so over-the-top he was uncomfortable to watch. Maybe the real-life person was that way, but that style of acting is probably better suited for the stage than the screen.

Posted by: Book Geek at April 09, 2011 12:52 PM (1+OO5)

OT, sort of, since we are on movies. TCM is going to start showing a bunch of Liz Taylor films starting tomorrow. So if you want to see things like Giant or Raintree County, now is your chance.

One other thing. I saw that TCM is going to show Birth of a Nation. I've never seen it, and I just might record it. So has anyone else seen it? Is it worth viewing?

Posted by: HH at April 09, 2011 12:53 PM (6oDXl)

52 So has anyone else seen it? Is it worth viewing?

I have seen part of it. It was ground breaking at the time for cinematography but the liberals hate it for the subject matter.

It gives a favorable treatment to the original KKK.

Posted by: Vic at April 09, 2011 01:14 PM (M9Ie6)

53 BTW, the reason I only saw part of it as it gets boring very quickly. it is a silent movie.

Posted by: Vic at April 09, 2011 01:15 PM (M9Ie6)

#53

Woodrow Wilson's favorite movie.

Just another reason to hate that waste of skin.

Posted by: CAC at April 09, 2011 01:44 PM (Gr1V1)

55 One other thing. I saw that TCM is going to show Birth of a Nation. I've never seen it, and I just might record it. So has anyone else seen it? Is it worth viewing?

It's worth viewing in the sense that it was the very first full-length, epic motion picture in the sense that we understand them today. Its historical value is immeasurable.

The movie is split into two halves; the war, and Reconstruction. The first half of the movie is a remarkable technical accomplishment, and really a very well-made film overall. The second half is unbelievably racist; even for 1915 it was unbelievably racist. The success of the film is often credited for the Klan's resurgence in the '20s.

Posted by: The War Between the Undead States at April 09, 2011 04:44 PM (ulj0Z)

56 One of my all time favourite films is "Network". The film accurately portrayed what would be the demise of big broadcast media. I watched the film with a friend's teen-aged kids a few years ago, and they found the film boring. We have gone so far beyond what was then a horrifying and nearly unbelievable scenario that kids today find the film lame! Trouble is, they don't see anything wrong with that sort of media either... Doomed I say, doooooooomed.

Posted by: TrueNorthist at April 09, 2011 04:56 PM (RQtDB)

Network. Network. Network. One of the best movies ever.

Decades ahead of its time.

Savaged the MFM, mocked cynical PC schmoozing with far-left radicals.

Explosive performances by the entire cast.

The "mad as hell" scene is one of the most electrifying in film history and is still relevant nearly 40 years later even though the movie was very topical/70s. Can you say "Tea Party"?

Posted by: Gary Rosen at April 09, 2011 05:18 PM (9CzKK)

Ã‡Ã›Ã‡Ã¤Ã ÃšÃ‘Ã‡ÃžÃÃ‰ ÃŽÃ‡Ã¡Ã Ã‡Ã¡ÃÃ¤ÃÃ¤

Posted by: ve at April 10, 2011 01:28 AM (pVQ7G)

59 Vic, Only liberals hated it because it gave favorable treatment of the KKK? I hope everyone disliked that aspect of it.

Posted by: Ann NY at April 10, 2011 02:31 AM (TPZrx)

60 Should have been "Twelve Angry Men and Women." I recoil from the sexism every time I see the title.

Posted by: Sherri Lynn Shriller-Harridan at April 10, 2011 06:09 AM (FeRav)

Racism? Please, it was prejudice, ethnic prejuice as I recall.

Wasn't the accused "Italian"??? (If so, I guess the prejudice was well-deserved---erf! erf! eeerf! That's a joke, son, A JOKE I tell ya!)

No! Wait.....Puerto Rican! Same thing!

Prejudice: it starts with wolves. They pre-judge others who are not members of their pack! And continues right on up the evolutionary chain! We hope to overcome it through our intelligence, but........

Posted by: Earl T at April 10, 2011 08:53 AM (HVp8r)

62 I hate 12 Angry Men. It is a fantasy pure and simple and anyone pulling this in a jury room would be removed quickly.

Posted by: Molon Lobe at April 10, 2011 09:49 PM (PTpqi)

63 "They withdrew, pulled away. It's as if they didn't want to get it on them." Fantasy film. In real life people love racism so much they call it "affirmative action" or found academic departments--"studies" departments--to promote it.

Posted by: ErisGuy at April 12, 2011 03:00 AM (xfvCt)

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