Aya97
Romania
This review may contain spoilers
12 Angry Men is not only considered a classic among movies of all genres but it's also one of my all time favorite. I was sceptical regarding Juror 8 because it sounded exactly like 12 Angry Men. I can say I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong - also the fact that is based on a real case from South Korea. Now, does it have similarities? Yes it does. What's important is that the overall vibe of the movie is completely different.
First of all, I liked the small details that helped to describe the society of 2008 in South Korea, and more exactly the "not so subtle" misogyny: the press mistaking the presiding judge to be a man in place of the splendid Kim Joon Gyum (played by Moon So Ri), her colleagues assuring the people in charge that she will do a good job because "she thinks almost like a man" and other little nuances here and there.
Secondly I want to say that the idea of a jury always fascinated me. In my country we don't have this kind of a system and I can say I've always seen it kind of grey - it sometimes can be good and sometimes not so. The way the characters are portrayed it's quite good, but they weren't as developed as I would have liked. You don't really get to see the part where they change their minds and what made them do it, apart from Nam Woo(played by everyone's favorite Park Hyung Shik) who from the beginning gave the culprit the benefit of the doubt.
I would have liked to see a lot more friction between the characters and their opinions, because in reality people don't change their mind so easily especially when they have kind of a big ego, as was the case for Juror 4(Seo Jung Yeon) and Juror 5(Jo Han Chul).
The movie succeeded though, despite of the things pointed out, to make me connect with the defendant and his trial. It drove home the important aspect of the difference between "guilty or not guilty" which is basically the life of a human. I especially approved with the principle of "when in doubt choose in the defendants favor", which in my country we say as "found guilty in absence of reasonable doubt"...I don't think that I can underline this hard enough.
All in all, Juror 8 is a meaningful watch that won't let you get bored and maybe even touch some of your strings along the way. It's a good movie, and you don't have to be interested in law to enjoy or understand it.
First of all, I liked the small details that helped to describe the society of 2008 in South Korea, and more exactly the "not so subtle" misogyny: the press mistaking the presiding judge to be a man in place of the splendid Kim Joon Gyum (played by Moon So Ri), her colleagues assuring the people in charge that she will do a good job because "she thinks almost like a man" and other little nuances here and there.
Secondly I want to say that the idea of a jury always fascinated me. In my country we don't have this kind of a system and I can say I've always seen it kind of grey - it sometimes can be good and sometimes not so. The way the characters are portrayed it's quite good, but they weren't as developed as I would have liked. You don't really get to see the part where they change their minds and what made them do it, apart from Nam Woo(played by everyone's favorite Park Hyung Shik) who from the beginning gave the culprit the benefit of the doubt.
I would have liked to see a lot more friction between the characters and their opinions, because in reality people don't change their mind so easily especially when they have kind of a big ego, as was the case for Juror 4(Seo Jung Yeon) and Juror 5(Jo Han Chul).
The movie succeeded though, despite of the things pointed out, to make me connect with the defendant and his trial. It drove home the important aspect of the difference between "guilty or not guilty" which is basically the life of a human. I especially approved with the principle of "when in doubt choose in the defendants favor", which in my country we say as "found guilty in absence of reasonable doubt"...I don't think that I can underline this hard enough.
All in all, Juror 8 is a meaningful watch that won't let you get bored and maybe even touch some of your strings along the way. It's a good movie, and you don't have to be interested in law to enjoy or understand it.
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