Wick's Review

Summary - Really Great 4.5

Harrison Ford came down to earth in Witness, proving his stardom transcended SciFi and Fantasy. More importantly, Peter Weir’s big hit proved a heartwarming thriller. Still is, some 30 years after its premier.

Ford plays an ambitious Philly Detective who holes up with a nearby Amish family after their little boy witnesses a murder. The movie expertly juxtaposes the uncorrupted Amish way-of-life with deeply corrupt Big City mores, spinning out a gripping thriller plot in the foreground. The combo proves transfixing.

The little boy was played by a then 9-year-old Lukas Haas, who has since become a successful adult actor, with a soulful Kelly McGillis as his widowed mother. Their plight and the loving effect they have on Ford’s hard-bitten character make Witness as heartwarming as it is thrilling. Not at all sappy, it’s simply masterful.

Acting - Really Great 4.5

Harrison Ford had a breakthrough with Witness: his first starring role in a down-to-earth movie and the one that garnered him his only Oscar nomination. He’s terrific as an up-and-coming Philly Police Detective fighting interior and external demons. We expect such well-rounded performances from this superstar now, but Witness was somewhat of a revelation at the time.

Kelly McGillis also broke through with Witness, her first starring role. A year later, she hit her commercial peak opposite Tom Cruise in the mega-hit Top Gun. Anyway, she’s lovely and affecting as a young Amish widow, torn between her way-of-life and the heroic man protecting her and her son. While that sounds rather romance-novel-like, she underplays the well-written role masterfully.

Lukas Haas charmed Harrison Ford’s character and moviegoers alike as the little witness of the title. Haas is perhaps more active in his movie career now than ever, but will ever be known as the boy from Witness.

Supporters

• Josef Sommer as Ford’s mentor on the police force
• Danny Glover as a corrupt Detective
• Brent Jennings as Ford’s hapless partner
• Patti LuPone as Ford’s bedraggled sister: LuPone is more famous as a Broadway star.
• Jan Rubes as an elder in the Amish community
• Alexander Godunov as an Amish man with eyes for Kelly McGillis’s widow: Godunov is more famous as a Russian ballet star than an actor.
• Viggo Mortensen as an Amish fellow: This tiny role was his screen debut.

Film - Perfect 5.0

Witness won its Oscars for the script from William Kelley and the husband-wife team of Pamela & Earl Wallace, and for editing. Its six other nominations included Direction, Cinematography and Art Direction. In short, it is a masterful film, for which director Peter Weir deserves enormous credit.

He opens on waving fields of grass, a fitting way to introduce the pastoral way-of-life practiced by the Amish. The film proceeds to deftly and respectfully mine their throwback ways, contrasting those with the often crude and craven modern world.

Edge - Sordid 2.8

Reality - Glib 1.3

The Pennsylvania Dutch (aka, the Amish) weren’t pleased with the movie, as they shun most aspects of modernity. Playing a starring role in a murder movie that also features a topless scene didn’t sit well. Nor did they want more tourist attention. Wikipedia has details.

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