Between Justice and Mercy: Comparison of American and Russian Versions of 12 Angry Men Cover Image

Między sprawiedliwością a miłosierdziem. Porównanie amerykańskiej i rosyjskiej wersji Dwunastu gniewnych ludzi
Between Justice and Mercy: Comparison of American and Russian Versions of 12 Angry Men

Author(s): Paweł Jabłoński
Subject(s): Law, Constitution, Jurisprudence, Film / Cinema / Cinematography, Philosophy of Law
Published by: Stowarzyszenie Filozofii Prawa i Filozofii Społecznej – Sekcja Polska IVR
Keywords: law; respect for law; ethics; “West”; “East”; justice;mercy;

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the article is to thematize two different types of attitudes to the law – which, referring to works by Marek Jan Siemek and Lon Luvois Fuller, I call the “Eastern attitude” and the “Western attitude”. This task is realized by a comparative interpretation of two famous films: 12 Angry Men, directed by Sidney Lumet, and Nikita Mikhalkov’s Russian-language remake of Lumet’s movie, titled 12. I try to show that although these two films tell similar stories, there are significant differences between them in regard to the perception of the law. In the American version, the law is a system of mechanisms that really work and are taken seriously. In the Russian version, the law is, to a large extent, only an appearance, which in reality must be replaced by ethics.

  • Issue Year: 26/2021
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 45-61
  • Page Count: 17
  • Language: Polish