12 sets the tale of the 1957 classic 12 Angry Men in crooked modern-day Moscow. The 12 titular jurors must decide the fate of a young Chechen boy accused of murdering his stepfather. In Sidney Lumet’s civil-rights-era flick, the boy in question is black; the all-white jury ultimately looks beyond his skin color and acquits him. Though the plot remains fairly faithful to Lumet’s version, 12 communicates a message so different from the original’s racism-transcending moral that one hesitates to call it a remake.
Award-winning director Nikita Mikhalkov, a vocal supporter of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, makes no effort to veil his political leanings. The film seems to suggest that sidestepping the law is admissible, at least for a select few whose superior intelligence saddles them with such responsibility. Even though it purports questionable values, 12’s cinematic virtues redeem it, somewhat.
The film’s merit largely rests on the ensemble cast’s performances. The motley jurors supply poignant anecdotes of personal tragedies, while arm-twisting their fellow jurors in gripping scenes of violent coercion and underhanded persuasion.
Stylized vignettes depicting the devastation in war-torn Chechnya likewise strike an emotional chord, but the film is also full of dead air. The dialogue is often trite and repetitive; even with ample time to develop its characters, much of the jurors’ heated interactions feel contrived. Many references are esoterically Russian, and without extensive knowledge of Slavic culture, many of the plot’s tangents seem irrelevant.
Though designated Russia's entry at this year’s Academy Awards, 12 falls short of Oscar-worthy, failing to achieve the magnanimity of the original.
2 stars Directed by: Nikita Mikhalkov Starring: Sergei Makovetsky, Sergey Garmash Rated: PG-13, 159 min.
