介绍:
Despite some credibility and consistency issues, Chinese courtroom drama "12 Citizens" is otherwise a successful adaptation of a classic text.
In 1954 American film and television writer Reginald Rose wrote the script for the teleplay "Twelve Angry Men," where 12 jurors try to reach a unanimous decision on the fate of a young murder suspect. The story has since been adapted multiple times by various filmmakers in different countries. Each of the adaptations reflected different social-political issues in a specific time and place.
In the 1957 American film, the fate of a Latino slum dweller was the centre of jury deliberation. In the 1991 Japanese adaptation, the examination of gender equality was an underlying agenda. The 2007 Russian interpretation involved a young Chechen boy and his Russian military officer step-father. In the Chinese remake "12 Citizens," wealth gap, social equality and stereotyping are scrutinized.
While the problems in question are valid concerns in China today, the filmmakers have to cobble up an imaginary circumstance because jury is not part of the judiciary system in the Chinese mainland. So 12 people from all walks of life are gathered for no compelling reason to play the role of jurors in a mock trial held in a law school. No real suspect's life is at stake and no juror is in a hurry to watch a football game, none of the 12 citizens has an actual stake in the case, but they get emotional over the course of discussion nonetheless.
The slippery setting notwithstanding, the film does unfold to dramatic results. 36-year-old first time feature director Xu Ang has been a director at Beijing People's Art Theatre for more than a decade, his rapport with stage actors has blessed the film with distinctive theatric glamour.
All major characters in the film are played by stage actors from Beijing People's Art Theatre, who are widely known for their professionalism and devotion. Their excellent acting breathes life into their characters and the largely dialogue-dominated story, therefore lending dimensions to the small shabby warehouse where the debate takes place.
A taxi driver, a real estate developer, a physician and a shop keeper, people of different professions and ages offer their opinions from their own perspectives, as much about the case as about their own obsessions and dilemmas. For all the various social problems the film has revealed, "12 Citizens" also points to a prevalent lack of understanding for the rule of law and people's inability or reluctance to adopt reason.
"12 Citizens" may not qualify as an authentic courtroom drama, but like other adaptations of Reginald Rose's story, it offers an analysis into the lives and values of different members of a specific society. And unlike a high-flying Avengers film, it brings people down to earth and makes them wonder why it is so hard for people to have a normal, cool-headed conversation.
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