Witness Movie Review 1985

A young Amish boy, Samuel Lapp (Haas), traveling from his father's funeral witnesses a murder in a Philadelphia bus station. Investigating detective John Book (Ford, in one of his best roles) soon discovers the killing is part of a conspiracy involving corruption in his department. He follows the child and his young widowed mother, Rachel (McGillis) to their home in the country. A thriller with a difference, about the encounter of alien worlds, with a poignant love story. McGillis, in her first major role, is luminous as the Amish mother, while Ford is believable as both a cop and a sensitive man. An artfully crafted drama, richly focusing on the often misunderstood Amish lifestyle.

Distribution

Home Vision Cinema, c/o Image Entertainment, 20525 Nordhoff St., Ste. 200, Chatsworth, CA 91311, URL: http://www.homevision.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 112 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Undercover Cops, Religion, Police Detectives, Widows & Widowers, Culture Clash, Philadelphia, Rogue Cops

Screenplay

William Kelley, Earl W. Wallace

Cast

Harrison Ford, Kelly McGillis, Alexander Godunov, Lukas Haas, Josef Sommer, Danny Glover, Patti LuPone, Viggo Mortensen, Robert Earl Jones

Cinematography

John Seale

Director

Peter Weir

Music

Maurice Jarre

Producer

Edward S. Feldman

Awards

Oscars 1985: Film Editing, Orig. Screenplay; Writers Guild 1985: Orig. Screenplay.