Sidney Lumet

Sidney Lumet

1924-06-25 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA 96 Credits

Biography

Sidney Lumet (June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his name. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for 12 Angry Men (1957), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), Network (1976) and The Verdict (1982). He did not win an individual Academy Award, although he did receive an Academy Honorary Award and 14 of his films were nominated for various Oscars, such as Network, which was nominated for 10, winning 4. The Encyclopedia of...

Known For

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Complete Filmography

One Step Further: Becoming Lumet

2023

as Self

Acting

An all-new documentary detailing the first half of this celebrated filmmaker’s career; from his early beginnings as director for television, to the re...

The Enigmatic Charlotte Rampling

The Enigmatic Charlotte Rampling

2023

as Self (archive footage)

6.8
Acting

Screen icon Charlotte Rampling has fascinated the world of cinema, fashion and photography with her mysterious and almost inaccessible beauty. A major...

Paul Newman: The Restless

Paul Newman: The Restless

2023

as Self - Interviewee (archive footage)

8.1
Acting

Multi-talented, Paul Newman is one of the greatest American actors of all time. With his silhouette of a Greek statue and his unreal blue eyes, he emb...

Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall

Michael Jackson's Journey from Motown to Off the Wall

2016

as Self (archive footage)

7.0
Acting

Director Spike Lee chronicles Michael Jackson's early rise to fame.

By Sidney Lumet

By Sidney Lumet

2015

as Self

6.8
Acting

An analysis of director Sidney Lumet's work (12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, Before The Devil Knows You're Dead) in his own words, based on a five-da...

And the Oscar Goes To...

And the Oscar Goes To...

2014

as Self (archive footage)

7.0
Acting

The story of the gold-plated statuette that became the film industry's most coveted prize, AND THE OSCAR GOES TO... traces the history of the Academy ...

In Her Skin

In Her Skin

2009

Consulting Producer

6.0
Producing

Tale of a 15-year-old Australian girl who went missing.

I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale

I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale

2009

as Self

6.9
Acting

John Cazale was in only five films – The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather: Part II, Dog Day Afternoon and The Deer Hunter – each was nominat...

You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story

You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story

2008

as Self

8.5
Acting

Jack L. Warner, Harry Warner, Albert Warner and Sam Warner were siblings who were born in Poland and emigrated to Canada near the turn of the century....

Directed by Sidney Lumet: How the Devil Was Made

Directed by Sidney Lumet: How the Devil Was Made

2008

as Self

5.3
Acting

An involved behind-the-scenes documentary that focuses on the High Definition cameras used for the movie as well as intimate interviews with the cast ...

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Making '12 Angry Men'

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Making '12 Angry Men'

2008

as Self

Acting

A making of featurette of 12 Angry Men made exclusively for the Collector's Edition DVD.

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

2007

Director

7.1
Directing

When two brothers organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store, the job goes horribly wrong, triggering a series of events that send them and ...

Prince of the City: The Real Story

Prince of the City: The Real Story

2007

as Self

Acting

The true story behind the Prince of the City.

Eugene O’Neill: A Documentary Film

Eugene O’Neill: A Documentary Film

2006

as Self

Acting

Eugene O'Neill tells the haunting story of the life and work of America's greatest and only Nobel Prize-winning playwright -- set within the context o...

Find Me Guilty

Find Me Guilty

2006

Director, Screenplay

6.6
Directing Writing

Based on the true story of Jack DiNorscio, a mobster who defended himself in court for what would be the longest mafia trial in U.S. history.

The Making of 'Dog Day Afternoon'

The Making of 'Dog Day Afternoon'

2006

as Self

7.8
Acting

A documentary chronicling the making of the 1975 film "Dog Day Afternoon."

The Making of 'Network'

The Making of 'Network'

2006

as Self

Acting

An engrossing feature-length documentary about the making of Sidney Lumet's classic film "Network."

Making 'Murder on the Orient-Express'

Making 'Murder on the Orient-Express'

2004

as Self

6.5
Acting

This featurette takes a closer look at the production history of Murder on the Orient Express. Included in it are clips from archival interviews with ...

Rachel, When the Lord

2004

Director

Directing

A passionate performance of "Rachel, quand du Seigneur" (Rachel, when the Lord...), a celebrated aria from the Fromental Halévy's famous opera "La Jui...

The Manchurian Candidate

The Manchurian Candidate

2004

as Political Pundit

6.5
Acting

Years after his squad was ambushed during the Gulf War, Major Ben Marco finds himself having terrible nightmares. He begins to doubt that his fellow s...

Strip Search

Strip Search

2004

Director

6.2
Directing

Strip Search follows several parallel stories examining personal freedoms vs. national security in the aftermath of 9/11; two main subplots involve an...

Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust

Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust

2004

as Self

6.5
Acting

Daniel Anker’s 90-minute documentary takes on over 60 years of a very complex subject: Hollywood’s complicated, often contradictory relationship with ...

The Education of Gore Vidal

The Education of Gore Vidal

2003

as Self

6.0
Acting

A contrarian and wickedly funny man, this PBS American Masters special explores Gore Vidal's extraordinary life and work, joining him at his cliff-sid...

The Evolution of an American Filmmaker

The Evolution of an American Filmmaker

2003

as Self

7.3
Acting

Spike Lee's filmmaking career is examined in this partial making-of for the film 25th Hour (2002). Interviews with cast members from this film and his...

A Decade Under the Influence

A Decade Under the Influence

2003

as Self

8.0
Acting

A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential direc...

Inside 'Serpico'

Inside 'Serpico'

2002

as Self

8.0
Acting

In this documentary about the classic film "Serpico," Sidney Lumet and Martin Bregman discuss the logistics of production and post-production, as well...

Serpico: From Real to Reel

Serpico: From Real to Reel

2002

as Self

8.0
Acting

In separate interviews about the classic film "Serpico," director Sidney Lumet and producer Martin Bregman discuss the genesis of the project, the evo...

New York at the Movies

2002

as Self

10.0
Acting

Meryl Streep conducts us to a trip to New York City as presented in many films during the 20th Century, and how its cultural importance and impact are...

The Tramp and the Dictator

The Tramp and the Dictator

2002

as Self (uncredited)

6.9
Acting

A look at the parallel lives of Charlie Chaplin and Adolf Hitler and how they crossed with the creation of the film “The Great Dictator,” released in ...

Dziga and His Brothers

Dziga and His Brothers

2002

as Self

6.0
Acting

The fascinating and tumultuous lives of Mikhail, Boris and Denis Kaufman (better known as Dziga Vertov) are the focus of this powerful documentary. Us...

Revisiting 'Fail-Safe'

Revisiting 'Fail-Safe'

2000

as Self

Acting

Documentary featuring interviews with director Sidney Lumet, "Fail-Safe" (2000) producer George Clooney, star Dan O’Herlihy and screenwriter Walter Be...

Inside: 'Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'

Inside: 'Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'

2000

as Self - Director, 'Fail Safe'

5.6
Acting

A documentary on the making of Stanley Kubrick's classic 1964 film.

Gloria

Gloria

1999

Director

5.7
Directing

After serving a prison term for her boyfriend, a streetwise, middle-aged moll named Gloria stands up against the mobs, which is complicated by a six-y...

Anthony Perkins: A Life in the Shadows

Anthony Perkins: A Life in the Shadows

1999

as Self

Acting

The life of legendary actor Anthony Perkins is recounted by friends and family, colleagues and co-stars, revealing the man underneath Norman Bates.

Intimate Portrait: Sean Connery

Intimate Portrait: Sean Connery

1998

as Self

Acting

Oscar-winning actor Sean Connery is profiled in this segment of "Intimate Portrait." Includes film clips, never-before-seen photos and interviews with

Critical Care

Critical Care

1997

Director, Producer

6.4
Directing Producing

Werner Ernst is a young hospital resident who becomes embroiled in a legal battle between two half-sisters who are fighting over the care of their com...

Night Falls on Manhattan

Night Falls on Manhattan

1997

Screenplay, Director

6.3
Writing Directing

A newly elected District attorney finds himself in the middle of a police corruption investigation that may involve his father and his partner.

Guilty as Sin

Guilty as Sin

1993

Director

5.7
Directing

Before a criminal lawyer knows what has happened, she is forced to defend a wife killer she knows is guilty.

A Stranger Among Us

A Stranger Among Us

1992

Director

5.5
Directing

Detective Emily Eden is a tough New York City cop forced to go undercover to solve a puzzling murder. Her search for the truth takes her into a secret...

Fonda on Fonda

1992

as Self

6.0
Acting

Jane Fonda hosts a tribute to her father.

Night of 100 Stars III

Night of 100 Stars III

1990

as Self

4.0
Acting

A celebrity benefit for The Actors' Fund of America, featuring music, songs, dance and comedy.

Q & A

Q & A

1990

Screenplay, Director

5.8
Writing Directing

A young district attorney seeking to prove a case against a corrupt police detective encounters a former lover and her new protector, a crime boss who...

William Holden: The Golden Boy

William Holden: The Golden Boy

1989

as Self

Acting

It was said of him that in more than 70 films, he never once gave a bad performance.

Family Business

Family Business

1989

Director

5.7
Directing

Jessie is an aging career criminal who has been in more jails, fights, schemes, and lineups than just about anyone else. His son Vito, while currently...

Running on Empty

Running on Empty

1988

Director

7.5
Directing

The Popes are a family who haven't been able to use their real identity for years. In the late sixties, the parents set a weapons lab afire in an effo...

Funny

Funny

1988

as Self

Acting

People are asked to tell their favorite jokes.

The Morning After

The Morning After

1986

Director

5.9
Directing

Failed actress Alex Sternbergen wakes up hungover one morning in an apartment she does not recognize, unable to remember the previous evening -- and w...

Power

Power

1986

Director

5.9
Directing

Pete St. John is a powerful and successful political consultant, with clients spread around the country. When his long-time friend and client Ohio sen...

Garbo Talks

Garbo Talks

1984

Director

6.2
Directing

When New York accountant Gilbert Rolfe finds out his mother has a brain tumor, he is devastated. His incorrigible mother, Estelle, has one last wish: ...

Daniel

Daniel

1983

Director, Executive Producer

6.6
Directing Producing

The fictionalized story of Daniel, the son of Paul and Rochelle Isaacson, who were executed as Soviet spies in the 1950s. As a graduate student in New...

The Verdict

The Verdict

1982

Director

7.4
Directing

Frank Galvin is a down-on-his-luck lawyer and reduced to drinking and ambulance chasing, when a former associate reminds him of his obligations in a m...

Deathtrap

Deathtrap

1982

Director

6.7
Directing

A Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's script.

The Making of 'Tootsie'

1982

as Self

6.0
Acting

Behind-the-scenes documentary on the set of Sydney Pollack's 1982 film "Tootsie."

Prince of the City

Prince of the City

1981

Screenplay, Director

7.0
Writing Directing

New York City detective Daniel Ciello agrees to help the United States Department of Justice help eliminate corruption in the police department, as lo...

Just Tell Me What You Want

Just Tell Me What You Want

1980

Director, Producer

4.5
Directing Producing

A television producer woman tries to let down her overbearing boyfriend who is her boss. She wants to marry with a young writer.

The Wiz

The Wiz

1978

Director

6.0
Directing

Dorothy Gale, a shy kindergarten teacher, is swept away to the magic land of Oz where she embarks on a quest to return home.

Wiz on Down the Road

Wiz on Down the Road

1978

as Self - Director

5.0
Acting

A short promotional film on the making of “The Wiz” (1978). Includes a brief history of Oz portrayals in film and behind the scenes interviews.

Equus

Equus

1977

Director

7.0
Directing

A psychiatrist, Martin Dysart, investigates the savage blinding of six horses with a metal spike in a stable in Hampshire, England. The atrocity was c...

Network

Network

1976

Director

7.8
Directing

When veteran anchorman Howard Beale is forced to retire his 25-year post because of his age, he announces to viewers that he will kill himself during ...

Dog Day Afternoon

Dog Day Afternoon

1975

Director

7.8
Directing

Based on the true story of would-be Brooklyn bank robbers John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile. Sonny and Sal attempt a bank heist which quickly turn...

Murder on the Orient Express

Murder on the Orient Express

1974

Director

7.1
Directing

In 1935, when his train is stopped by deep snow, detective Hercule Poirot is called on to solve a murder that occurred in his car the night before.

Lovin' Molly

Lovin' Molly

1974

Director

4.7
Directing

Spanning nearly 40 years from 1925 to 1964, two Texas farm boys; straight-arrow Gid and laid-back Johnny fight over the affections of the beautiful an...

Serpico

Serpico

1973

Director

7.5
Directing

New York cop Frank Serpico blows the whistle on the rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.

The Offence

The Offence

1973

Director

6.8
Directing

A burned-out British police detective finally snaps while interrogating a suspected child molester.

Child's Play

Child's Play

1972

Director

6.0
Directing

At an exclusive boys' school, a new gym teacher is drawn into a feud between two older instructors, and he discovers that everything at the school is ...

The Anderson Tapes

The Anderson Tapes

1971

Director

6.2
Directing

Thief Duke Anderson—just released from ten years in jail—takes up with his old girlfriend in her posh apartment block, and makes plans to rob the enti...

King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis

King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis

1970

Director

7.1
Directing

Constructed from a wealth of archival footage, the documentary follows Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from 1955 to 1968, in his rise from regional activi...

Last of the Mobile Hot Shots

Last of the Mobile Hot Shots

1970

Director, Producer

4.6
Directing Producing

A new bride gets caught between her decadent husband and his black half-brother.

The Appointment

The Appointment

1969

Director

5.5
Directing

Lawyer Federico Fendi has reasons to suspect that his fashion model wife Carla is secretly one of Rome's highest paid call-girls.

The Sea Gull

The Sea Gull

1968

Director, Producer

6.2
Directing Producing

Film adaptation of Anton Chekhov's story of life in rural Russia during the latter part of the 19th century.

Bye Bye Braverman

Bye Bye Braverman

1968

Director, Producer

6.7
Directing Producing

One day, Morroe Rieff learns that his friend and fellow writer, Leslie Braverman, has died. After meeting Leslie's widow, Inez, who is more flirtatiou...

The Deadly Affair

The Deadly Affair

1967

Producer, Director

6.2
Producing Directing

Charles Dobbs is a British secret agent investigating the apparent suicide of Foreign Office official Samuel Fennan. Dobbs suspects that Fennan's wife...

The Group

The Group

1966

Director

5.6
Directing

It's 1933, and eight young women are friends and members of the upper- class group at a private girl's school, about to graduate and start their own l...

The Sun... the Sand... the Hill

1965

as Self

1.0
Acting

Promotional film depicting the production and Cannes premiere of the Sidney Lumet film "The Hill."

The Hill

The Hill

1965

Director

7.5
Directing

North Africa, World War II. British soldiers on the brink of collapse push beyond endurance to struggle up a brutal incline. It's not a military objec...

The Pawnbroker

The Pawnbroker

1965

Director

7.1
Directing

A Jewish pawnbroker, a victim of Nazi persecution, loses all faith in his fellow man until he realizes too late the tragedy of his actions.

Fail Safe

Fail Safe

1964

Director, Executive Producer

7.8
Directing Producing

Because of a technical defect an American bomber team mistakenly orders the destruction of Moscow. The President of the United States has but little t...

Long Day's Journey Into Night

Long Day's Journey Into Night

1962

Director

7.0
Directing

An Irish miser, his morphine addicted wife, their debauched older son, and a gravely ill younger son. A quiet Connecticut vacation home on one foggy d...

A View from the Bridge

A View from the Bridge

1962

Director

6.3
Directing

Eddie Carbone, a Brooklyn longshoreman is unhappily married to Beatrice and unconsciously in love with Catherine, the niece that they have raised from...

Play of the Week: Rashomon

Play of the Week: Rashomon

1960

Director

7.0
Directing

Several different accounts of the same incident tell quite different stories about what happened.

The Iceman Cometh

The Iceman Cometh

1960

Director

7.1
Directing

Theodore Hickman, a hardware salesman, makes by-yearly visits to Harry Hope's 1910-era waterfront bar for his periodical drinking binges. But on this ...

John Brown's Raid

John Brown's Raid

1960

Director

Directing

White abolitionist John Brown and twenty of his men attempt to start an armed slave revolt in 1859 by seizing a U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virgini...

The Dybbuk

The Dybbuk

1960

Director

Directing

The Dybbuk is a made for TV film adaptation of a classic Jewish folktale. The story is about a young Jewish man, Sender (Theodore Bikel) who loves a y...

Beyond the Time Barrier

Beyond the Time Barrier

1960

Casting Director

5.9
Directing

In 1960, a pilot testing an experimental rocket powered aircraft accidentally flies into the future and finds himself in a sealed city whose people su...

The Fugitive Kind

The Fugitive Kind

1960

Director

6.9
Directing

Val Xavier, a drifter of obscure origins, arrives at a small town and gets a job in a store run by Lady Torrence. Her husband, Jabe M. Torrance, is dy...

That Kind of Woman

That Kind of Woman

1959

Director

5.9
Directing

A young G.I. falls in love with a kept woman on a train to New York.

All the King's Men

All the King's Men

1958

Director

Directing

The life of populist Southerner Willie Stark, a political creature loosely based on Governor Huey Long of Louisiana, based upon the Robert Penn Warren...

Stage Struck

Stage Struck

1958

Director

5.9
Directing

A young woman arrives in New York City determined to become a great theatrical star, but discovers that her goal may not be as easily attainable as sh...

Three Plays by Tennessee Williams

Three Plays by Tennessee Williams

1958

Director

5.0
Directing

A presentation of Tennessee Williams' three one-act plays: "Moony's Kid Don't Cry", "The Last of My Solid Gold Watches", and "This Property Is Condemn...

Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates

Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates

1958

Director

Directing

In Holland, poor but industrious and honorable 15-year-old Hans Brinker and his younger sister yearn to participate in December's great ice skating ra...

Mr. Broadway

Mr. Broadway

1957

Director, Producer

Directing Producing

A musical television special chronicling the early career of playwright George M. Cohan, focusing primarily on his vaudeville years as part of his fam...

12 Angry Men

12 Angry Men

1957

Director

8.5
Directing

The defense and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young Spanish-American is guilty or innocent of m...

Tragedy in a Temporary Town

Tragedy in a Temporary Town

1956

Director

6.2
Directing

Fifteen-year-old girl Dotty Fisher is assaulted at a construction camp. In the wake of this incident, the construction workers form a vigilante group ...

The Challenge

The Challenge

1955

Director

4.5
Directing

A school bus driver (Jack Warden) is fired by the local school board when he refuses to sign a loyalty oath. This was a pilot for a proposed anthology...

The 400 Million

The 400 Million

1939

as Additional Voice (voice)

5.9
Acting

The 400 million people of China are heirs to a great civilization, as their pagodas and stone lions can attest. But they are under attack from the Jap...

One Third of a Nation

One Third of a Nation

1939

as Joey Rogers

5.8
Acting

The negligent owner of a tenement slum becomes romantically involved with one of the building's residents.