12 Angry Men Page #5

[There is a long pause as NO. 7 and NO. 5 eye each other angrily.]

NO. 9:
(quietly). There's nothing for him to tell you. He didn't change his vote.

I did. (There is a pause.) Maybe you'd like to know why.

NO. 3:
No, we wouldn't like to know why.

FOREMAN:
The man wants to talk.

NO. 9:
Thank you. (Pointing at NO. 8) This gentleman chose to stand alone against us. That's his right. It takes

a great deal of courage to stand alone even if you believe in something very strongly. He left the verdict up to

us. He gambled for support, and I gave it to him. I want to hear more. The vote is ten to two.

: Thank you. (Pointing at NO. 8) This gentleman chose to stand alone against us. That's his right. It takes

a great deal of courage to stand alone even if you believe in something very strongly. He left the verdict up to

us. He gambled for support, and I gave it to him. I want to hear more. The vote is ten to two.

NO. 10:
That's fine. If the speech is over, let's go on.

[Foreman gets up, goes to door, knocks, hands guard the tagged switch knife and sits down again.]

NO. 3 (to NO. 5): Look, buddy, I was a little excited. Well, you know how it is. I . . . I didn't mean to get

nasty…nothing personal.

[NO. 5 looks at him.]

NO. 7:
(to NO. 8). Look, supposing you answer me this. If the kid didn't kill him, who did?

NO. 8:
As far as I know, we're supposed to decide whether or not the boy on trial is guilty. We're not concerned

with anyone else's motives here.

NO. 9:
Guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This is an important thing to remember.

NO. 3:
(to NO. 10). Everyone's a lawyer. (To NO. 9) Supposing you explain what your reasonable doubts are.

NO. 9:
This is not easy. So far, it's only a feeling I have, a feeling. Perhaps you don't understand.

NO. 10:
A feeling? What are we gonna do, spend the night talking about your feelings? What about the facts?

NO. 3:
You said a mouthful. (To NO. 9) Look, the old man heard the kid yell, "I'm gonna kill you." A second

later he heard the father's body falling, and he saw the boy running out of the house fifteen seconds after that.

NO. 12:
That's right. And let's not forget the woman across the street. She looked into the open window and saw

the boy stab his father. She saw it. Now if that's not enough for you....

NO. 8:
It's not enough for me.

NO. 7:
How do you like him? It's like talking into a dead phone.

NO. 4:
The woman saw the killing through the windows of a moving elevated train. The train had five cars, and

she saw it through the windows of the last two. She remembers the most insignificant details.

[Cut to close shot of NO. 12 who doodles a picture of an el train on a scrap of paper.]

NO. 3:
Well, what have you got to say about that?

NO. 8:
I don't know. It doesn't sound right to me.

NO. 3:
Well, supposing you think about it. (To NO. 12) Lend me your pencil. ~

[NO. 12 gives it to him. He draws a tic-tac-toe square on the same sheet of paper on which NO. 12 had drawn

the train. He fills in an X and hands the pencil to NO. 12]

NO. 3:
Your turn. We might as well pass the time.

[NO. 12 takes the pencil. NO. 8 stands up and snatches the paper away. NO. 3 leaps up.] NO. 12 takes the pencil. NO. 8 stands up and snatches the paper away. NO. 3 leaps up.]

NO. 3:
Wait a minute!

NO. 8:
(hard). This isn't a game.

NO. 3:
(angry). Who do you think you are?

NO. 7:
(rising). All right, let's take it easy.

NO. 3:
I've got a good mind to walk around this table and belt him one!

FOREMAN:
Now, please. I don't want any fights in here.

NO. 3:
Did ya see him? The nerve! The absolute nerve!

NO. 10:
All right. Forget it. It don't mean anything.

NO. 6:
How about sitting down?

NO. 3:
This isn't a game. Who does he think he is?

[He lets them sit him down. NO. 8 remains standing, holding the scrap of paper. He looks at it closely now and

seems to be suddenly interested in it. Then he throws it back toward NO. 3. It lands in the center of the table.

NO. 3 is angered again at this, but NO. 4 puts his hand on his arm. NO. 8 speaks now and his voice is more

intense.]

NO. 8:
(to NO. 4). Take a look at that sketch. How long does it take an elevated train going at top speed to pass

a given point?

NO. 4:
What has that got to do with anything?

NO. 8:
How long? Guess.

NO. 4:
I wouldn't have the slightest idea.

NO. 8:
(to NO. 5). What do you think?

NO. 5:
About ten or twelve seconds, maybe.

NO. 8:
I'd say that was a fair guess. Anyone else?

NO. 11:
I would think about ten seconds, perhaps.

NO. 2:
About ten seconds.

NO. 4:
All right. Say ten seconds. What are you getting at?

NO. 8:
This. An el train passes a given point in ten seconds. That given point is the window of the room in

which the killing took place. You can almost reach out of the window of that room and touch the el. Right?

(Several of them nod.) All right. Now let me ask you this. Did anyone here ever live right next to the el tracks? I

have. When your window is open and the train goes by, the noise is almost unbearable. You can't hear yourself

think.

: This. An el train passes a given point in ten seconds. That given point is the window of the room in

which the killing took place. You can almost reach out of the window of that room and touch the el. Right?

(Several of them nod.) All right. Now let me ask you this. Did anyone here ever live right next to the el tracks? I

have. When your window is open and the train goes by, the noise is almost unbearable. You can't hear yourself

think.

NO. 10:
Okay. You can't hear yourself think. Will you get to the point?

NO. 8:
The old man heard the boy say, "I'm going to kill you," and one second later he heard a body fall. One

second. That's the testimony, right?

NO. 2:
Right.

NO. 8:
The woman across the street looked through the windows of the last two cars of the el and saw the body

fall. Right? The last two cars.

NO. 10:
What are you giving us here?

NO. 8:
An el takes ten seconds to pass a given point or two seconds per car. That el had been going by the old

man's window for at least six seconds and maybe more, before the body fell, according to the woman. The old

man would have had to hear the boy say, "I'm going to kill you," while the front of the el was roaring past his

nose. It's not possible that he could nave heard it.

NO. 3:
What d'ya mean! Sure he could have heard it.

NO. 8:
Could he?

NO. 3:
He said the boy yelled it out. That's enough for me.

NO. 9:
I don't think he could have heard it.

NO. 2:
Maybe he didn't hear it. I mean with the el noise....

NO. 3:
What are you people talking about? Are you calling the old man a liar?

NO. 5:
Well, it stands to reason.

NO. 3:
You're crazy. Why would he lie? What's he got to gain?

NO. 9:
Attention, maybe.

NO. 3:
You keep coming up with these bright sayings. Why don't you send one in to a newspaper? They pay

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