12 Angry Men Essay

Submitted By Aja-Pound

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Aja Pound
Communication 101
Film Critique #1
12 Angry Men

The juror I was assigned was Juror #8, Mr. Davis the architect played by Henry Fonda.
During the beginning of the film he seems very disinterested and distracted and wasn’t interacting with the other jurors. But when they are all called to the table and they take the initial vote you really get to see his character come out. As the first dissenter he challenges the others thoughts and views on the whole case. As the protagonist of the film we see him start to cause reasonable doubt in the other jurors’ minds. He does this all without saying what he really thinks. He is there just asking questions to provoke a sometimes heated discussion on what really happened causing the other jurors to really think about what they were presented in court.

Mr. Davis’ communicates in a very calm, thoughtful and smart manner, though some would say that he is trying to be deceitful to persuade the vote in his favor. We notice that once the temperature in the room starts to rise so do the tempers of the other jurors. Mr. Davis continually stays calm and focused on his task at hand. This is clearly seen though his non- verbal communication. As I mentioned earlier he regulates his interaction with the other jurors, even throughout the film we learn very little about him. He is very good at limiting/hiding any emotion he may have towards the case. He is continuously calm and presents a certain image. You can tell that he has a high level of self-respect. He is an: other- orientated listener, focused on the needs and concerns of the other jurors while he maintains his own personal integrity and goals.

We have learned that being an effective communicator you have to be able to present your topic with care making sure there is no miscommunication. I feel that Mr. Davis has done this throughout the film by staying calm, presenting the facts in such a way that it makes sense to all the jurors. Letting them all speak and actively listening to

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