# Find Me Guilty
**Find Me Guilty** is a 2006 American courtroom comedy-drama directed by [Sidney Lumet](https://www.edgepedia.org/sidney-lumet), based on the true story of Giacomo "Jackie Dee" DiNorscio, a low-level [Lucchese crime family](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucchese-crime-family) member who defended himself in what became the longest criminal trial in United States history.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY) • [2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) [Vin Diesel](https://www.edgepedia.org/vin-diesel) stars as DiNorscio, with Peter Dinklage, Linus Roache, Ron Silver, Annabella Sciorra, and Alex Rocco in supporting roles.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | Premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2006; Los Angeles and New York openings March 17, 2006[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html) • [1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY) |
| Director and writers | Sidney Lumet, with T.J. Mancini and Robert J. McCrea[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY) |
| Lead role | Vin Diesel as Giacomo "Jackie Dee" DiNorscio[2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) |
| Historical basis | 20 New Jersey Lucchese family members tried on 76 charges in a 21-month trial, the longest in U.S. criminal history[2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) |
| Real outcome | The trial ended in August 1988 with the acquittal of DiNorscio and 19 other alleged mobsters on racketeering charges[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html) |
| Runtime and rating | 125 minutes, rated R for strong language and violence[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY) • [2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) |
| Box office | $2,636,637 worldwide against a $13,000,000 budget[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0419749/credits/) |
## Spoilers
### Story and historical basis
The film follows DiNorscio, already serving a 30-year sentence on drug charges, who is offered a shorter term in exchange for testifying against his closest associates. He refuses to betray his "family" and instead defends himself at trial.[2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) After years of federal investigation, 20 members of the New Jersey Lucchese crime family face 76 charges, and DiNorscio's self-representation makes him the central figure of the proceedings.[2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml)
The real trial ran 21 months in [Newark, New Jersey](https://www.edgepedia.org/newark-new-jersey), and stood out for its 20 defendants, 20 defense attorneys, and unusually extensive summations; one defense lawyer's closing statement alone ran for five days.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html) • [2](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml) The film's title comes from DiNorscio's closing statement, in which he tells the jury he is already serving 30 years and has nothing to lose: "Find me guilty," but let his friends go.[5](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/find-me-guilty-2006) The trial ended in August 1988 with acquittals on racketeering charges for DiNorscio and the 19 other defendants.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html)
## Production and casting
Lumet, whose 1957 debut *12 Angry Men* is a landmark courtroom film, said he overcame "snobbery about action heroes" to cast Diesel, previously known for *XXX* and *The Pacifier*.[3](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html) Diesel said Lumet was his inspiration to become a film director and that, as a New York actor, appearing in a Lumet film was a long-held ambition.[6](https://www.hollywood.com/general/gravel-to-gavel-find-me-guiltys-vin-diesel-57171253) The film was shot quickly and cheaply in high-definition video, almost entirely on one set.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/critic-reviews/) Ron Fortunato served as cinematographer, Jonathan Tunick composed the score, and Tom Swartwout edited.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY) Production companies included Yari Film Group, Bob Yari Productions, One Race Films, MHF Zweite Academy Film, Crossroads Entertainment, and 3 Wolves Productions.[8](https://librarycatalog.centralpenn.edu/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=99615&shelfbrowse_itemnumber=117164)
## Reception
Critics responded favorably to Diesel's performance while dividing on the film itself. On Metacritic it holds a score of 65 based on 27 critic reviews, with 22 positive and 5 mixed and none negative; the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer stands at 63 percent from 103 reviews.[9](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/) • [10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/find_me_guilty) Roger Ebert, longtime critic of the [Chicago Sun-Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-sun-times), called it "very genuinely interesting, and that is rare."[5](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/find-me-guilty-2006) The New York Times found Lumet "near the top of his game" in what was his first feature in seven years.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/critic-reviews/) The critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes judged the film's length and narrative heavy-handedness as limitations but called Diesel's performance well worth watching.[10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/find_me_guilty)
Commercially the film did not recoup its cost: it earned $1,173,643 domestically and $1,462,994 internationally, a worldwide total of $2,636,637 against a $13,000,000 budget, with a domestic opening of $628,000.[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0419749/credits/)
## Legacy
The film has been read as the thematic bookend to Lumet's career in legal drama; the [San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-chronicle) wrote that it brings the filmmaker "thematically full circle, back to his starting point, 1957's '12 Angry Men'."[9](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/) It was one of Lumet's final features, and reviews have repeatedly singled it out as evidence of Diesel's range beyond action roles.[10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/find_me_guilty)
## References
1. [Find Me Guilty (2006), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/63815-FIND-ME-GUILTY)
2. [First Look: Find Me Guilty, blackfilm.com (February 2006)](https://blackfilm.com/20060203/features/findmeguilty.shtml)
3. [Director Lumet's 'Guilty' admission, Los Angeles Times (February 18, 2006)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-feb-18-et-quick18.5-story.html)
4. [Find Me Guilty (2006), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0419749/credits/)
5. [The gangster as gagster, review by Roger Ebert (2006)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/find-me-guilty-2006)
6. [Gravel to Gavel: Find Me Guilty's Vin Diesel, Hollywood.com](https://www.hollywood.com/general/gravel-to-gavel-find-me-guiltys-vin-diesel-57171253)
7. [Find Me Guilty critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/critic-reviews/)
8. [Find me guilty videorecording, Central Penn College library catalog](https://librarycatalog.centralpenn.edu/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=99615&shelfbrowse_itemnumber=117164)
9. [Find Me Guilty, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/find-me-guilty/)
10. [Find Me Guilty, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/find_me_guilty)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Crime, thriller, and mystery films (individual works) › 2005–2009 films › Released 2005 to 2007*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license