In general I despise remakes. This is most directly true of any movie were the word ‘revisioned’ is in any way attached. As has been obvious to most movie-goers over the last decade or 2, more often than not such a film is not only a waste of time but usually an insult to the audience.
Now given my state of mind on this issue, I am faced with a dilemma of sorts. Does the remake philosophy I have hold up with films that are redone in another nation? And I’m not talking about a one time lucky break. I mean a film that has been done more than once, and is now being adapted to fit a world with war, and terrorism?
That ultimately is the question facing anyone who wishes to see 12. This is a remake of the great film 12 Angry Men with Henry Fonda. The story is simple and well known. A jury debates what may be an open and shut case. Only 1 juror believes that the defendant is innocent. Thus he goes on a journey in pursuit of justice, with a life in the balance.
Is the young man innocent? Is there reason to have doubt in a war torn section of Russia? Does one life getting justice matter? Can 12 strangers live with the consequences of their decisions? Consequences that go far beyond the courtroom.
I do not know the Russian actors in this film. Nor do I know the director. But I have learned a bit about the film. And it not only takes us through the drama that Fonda first portrayed on the big screen, but it adds the next level of the story – the what next.
This is an interesting take on an old classic. It’s a remake, and a sort of revision, but at it’s heart it is faithful and dedicated to the original. That’s the difference in any language. Like the original film, I would suggest seeing this one.
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