Neighbour: Bro, see this movie I am sure you will like it very much.
Me: Who will see this movie made in 1957 and all. I don’t even have the patience to see a short film.
Neighbour: Just see it once. I can give it to you in writing that you will like the movie. If you don’t like it I will stop recommending you movies once & for all”.
Me: Trust me I seriously don’t have the patience. I will see it some other time. Movies hardly fascinate me excepting one or two.
Neighbour: If that’s the case then I am definitely sure that this movie will fascinate you. (He also played few scenes from the movie)
Me: Ok give. I will see it later.
I saw the movie the same day and lo & behold I was blown away and was feeling flabbergasted.
If there are movies that has left a lasting impression on me old English movies like Witness for the prosecution, 12 angry men, Anatomy of a murderer, To kill a mockingbird etc would easily win hands down. Here I’d like to differentiate between liking a movie and leaving a lasting impression. When you like a movie you simply say “it’s nice”, “can be seen once” whereas when movies leave a lasting impression you talk more about it to your friends, you recommend them to watch it, amidst the movie you will feel like why its ending so soon, the dialogue deliveries gives you goose bumps and much more.
I sensed the curiosity in my neighbour’s eyes. His words somehow made me believe that there has to be some magic in the movie. For, this guy doesn’t know that I am a sucker when it comes to knowledge of movies. My friends even go to the extent of disowning me during their brain storming discussions on the latest grapevine in the woods.
First I’d like to get down to “Witness for the prosecution” as I saw that before 12 angry men.
The curtains open at a chaotic English courtroom hall where the judge enters and an appeal is made to God to save the queen & her crown before the proceedings begin for the day. The movie was set up & shot exclusively in London.
Sir Wilfred Roberts (Charles Laughton) is a senior and a leading Barrister practicing in Criminal cases and is better known as “Wilfred the Fox”.
Leonard vole is the man who is suspected for murder of one Ms. Emily French. Naturally the police arrests him as he was the one who was last seen with Ms. Emily French. He is introduced to Charles Laughton (Sir Wilfred) who is the Barrister defending Leonard.
Charles Laughton the protagonist has lived his role as a senior barrister. Despite being at the brink of his acting career Charles Laughton effortlessly maintains his dominating screen presence. His body language perfectly resembled that of a senior barrister who can take on anyone with sheer experience.
His flawless usage of the queen’s language in the chambers & the court room, the slap stick humour with his grim & tough look, the cross examinations & the war of words between the public prosecutor and the barrister, the way the case is built up at various phases of the trial, how facts of the case is deliberated upon has been perfectly shot.
The movie is definitely intriguing at every stage. Overall the movie is a neatly packed combo of courtroom drama, mystery and a healthy dose of humour by all the artists.
It would not be fair for me to reveal the plot here. Well I could even be sued for breach of contract for you will get to know why when you see the movie. The movie will keep you seated at the edge of the seat until climax. In other words witness for the prosecution goes very well on a lazy weekend with a couple of butter popcorn's.
12 Angry Men:
I was introduced to this legendary movie when I appraised my brother about Witness for the Prosecution. He goaded me to see 12 Angry Men and was very confident that I would like it as both the movies are made on similar story lines.
Unlike Witness for the Prosecution 12 Angry Men gets into the plot directly.
The Jury consists of 12 Men and is called upon to decide the fate of a juvenile who was being tried for Culpable Homicide.
Apart from a brief epilogue the movie was completely shot in a jury room. The jury consists of individuals from various walks of life.
The jury is also instructed that they should be unanimous on their decision. The jury is also reminded that their decision whether the defendant is ‘Guilty or not guilty’ will be the final conclusion as the right of appeal has been exhausted.
Once the story gets into your head you get the feel of as if you are sitting next to the jurors and deliberating upon the facts of the case. The dissection of the mind when the facts of the case is broken down into pieces gives us mindgasm for sure.
The society’s influence on individuals, how thought process can be flawed by privilege, psychological hacks, pre-emptive motive and the emotional tilts that goes into decision making is perfectly discussed in the movie.
Following are some of the traits which I could make out from both the movies:
- The subject matter deals with Judiciary & justice system. WFP deals with murder and 12 angry men deals with culpable homicide.
2. WFP is shot on the lines of British laws whereas 12 angry men deals with the justice system in the United States.
3. WFP puts forth the arguments of the public prosecutor and the Barrister. In 12 angry men the Jury puts forth the facts of the case and discusses them in great detail before deciding on the conviction.
I’ve seen few old English movies like Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, Dial M for murder. However movies like WFP, 12 angry men, anatomy of a murderer, to kill a mockingbird blew me off. Such movies never had unwanted fight scenes, voyeurism, sci-fi hacks nor illogical scripts.
Those were the golden age of movies. Actors like Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, James Stewart didn’t have ripped bodies or displayed their style in swanky cars. Their body language defined their style. The plot, the scripts were impeccable. The dialogue delivery and a simple cigar denoted the best styles than ever. Simply put the sensation and the suspense shown in yesteryear movies can never be replaced in present day movies nor are the present day directors talented enough to write such brilliant scripts (even though there exists some exceptional present day movies).
Both WFP and 12 angry men were definitely huge eye openers to me. The other mind blowing movies such as Anatomy of a murderer, to kill a mockingbird will be reviewed for another day.
Thank you for the patient read. Do let me know if you watch any interesting old English movie.
Cheers,
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