New DVD Movies

12 Angry Men was first written as a play by Reginald Rose then made into a movie in 1957 starring Henry Fonda. This riveting story begins in the midst of a jury deciding on a first degree murder charge. The setting is New York City. A teenage Puerto Rican boy from the inner city is charged with murdering his father. The judge has instructed the jury that they must come to unanimous decision. And if they all vote guilty, there will be a mandatory death sentence and the defendant will go to the electric chair.

There are twelve all white, male jurors. They are placed in a small, hot room after spending four days listening to testimony during the murder trial. None of these men can relate to the defendant due to their own personal biases. Throughout the story, they address each other based on their jury numbers.

The jurors spend several uncomfortable hours arguing over the facts of the case. Most of them are content with a guilty verdict. But for one juror, the stakes are too grave to rush into a verdict of convenience. Juror number 8 decides to dissent from the popular opinion and persuade his fellow jurors to see past their particular views. And in doing so, reasonable doubt settles into the minds of these men.

The jurors each bring their own personal experiences and biases to the table which make coming to a unanimous decision very difficult. To most, the evidence appears to be overwhelming. Neighbors heard a fight between the son and father. During the trial, a witness said he heard the son threaten to kill his father.

The thought provoking plot has the audience examine the prejudices, fear and ignorance we hold against one another as a society. These men represent a microcosm of our greater society. The American justice system as well as the defendant is on trial in this riveting story.

As we become familiar with the jurors, we begin to realize that their anger, fear, bias philosophies and cultural ignorance may hinder them from making a fair and just decision on the verdict of the case. But there is one particular juror that stands up for the defendant, ultimately standing up for justice. He is known as juror number 8.

During the very vote, eleven juror vote guilty. But after several hours of deliberating, Juror 8 is able to convince them to turn the vote. They all unanimously vote not guilty. Not only has Juror 8 changed the vote he helped these men to be aware of their damaging views. It also caused the other jurors to self examine their bias views as individuals and as a society.

Juror number eight is able to successfully convince the others that there is enough reasonable doubt not to vote guilty. The others are able to look past their prejudices and now fairly examine the evidence. Because to the courage and persistence of one man, a life is spared which is a deeper lesson on how no matter how many we may be up against, it is important to stand up for what is just and fair. The 12 Angry Men become aware of their biases and from this experience they have learned how damaging their views can be.

When you buy movies online with iTunes, they range from $9.99 for older movies to $14.99 for more recent movie releases. Mail Movie Rental The options for you to watch movies online on your computer are abundant and plentiful. New releases that you can watch online, are typically recorded on a camera in a movie theater and may not be the best quality.