The Jury Goes Round 'n' Round(1945)

If anyone who ever doubted the probity of the “twelve good men and true” philosophy were to watch this, then then they would have all the ammunition they’d ever need to bring back the likes of hanging judge Jeffreys or the wild west’s Judge Parker. This hapless jury are deadlocked, eleven to one, because “Vera” (Barbara Jo Allen) has taken a bit of a shine to the accused and so is saving him from the chair by any means she can. That’s where the humour comes in, and it’s sadly all a bit ropey at that. The gags are contrived and staged to within an inch of their short lives. Allen was a talented artiste who does exude a degree of charisma here, but the others - who all get their moment in the sun - don’t really add much. It’s interesting to look at what made folks laugh on screen in a war-weary USA in 1945, but that’s about the height of it.