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Features: DVD, Collector's Edition, Widescreen
A young amish boy is sole witness to a murder. Policeman johnbook goes into hiding in amish country to protect him until thetrial.
"A dynamic, thoughtful thriller that balances its themes extraordinarily well." Rob Thomas, CAPITAL TIMES
"...gripping and engrossing cop saga..." Shannon J. Harvey, Sunday Times (Australia)
Editor's Note
Australian Peter Weir's first Hollywood film tells the story of John Book (Harrison Ford), a Philadelphia cop whose life is altered while trying to help Rachel (Kelly McGillis), an Amish woman, and her son Samuel (Lukas Haas), who witnesses a murder in a Philadelphia train station bathroom. After discovering that the murder was committed by a member of his force, Book travels to Lancaster County with Rachel and Samuel and poses as a member of the Amish community to hide from his murderous police peers. While there, love blooms between Rachel and Book, and he finds himself drawn in by the honesty and simplicity of the old-world Amish lifestyle. Fine performances and beautiful cinematography are prevalent throughout.
Plot Summary
A romantic thriller about a tough urban cop who falls in love with an Amish women while hiding out in Pennsylvania Dutch country. When Detective John Book discovers that the police department may be responsible for the brutal murder he is investigating, Book realizes that both his life and that of Samuel Lapp, the young Amish boy who witnessed the murder, are in danger. Laying low in Lancaster County with Samuel's family, Book finds himself increasingly drawn to the boy's mother, a lovely young widow named Rachel. Though Book grows to cherish the simple ways of the Amish, the gulf between Rachel's culture and his own remains a formidable barrier to their romance.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital Stereo | | Audio: English, French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Deleted Scenes | | Featurette: The Making of Witness | | Interactive Menus | | Previews | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, Spanish | | TV Spots | | Widescreen Version Enhanced For 16:9 TVs |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Paramount |
| Release Date: 1/16/2007 |
| Running Time: 112 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1985 | | Catalog ID: 030954 | | UPC: 00097360309546 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, French Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 1.78:1 |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Oscar (1986) |  | Thom Noble, Winner, Best Film Editing | | William Kelley et. al., Winner, Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen | | | Harrison Ford, Nominee, Best Actor | | | Peter Weir, Nominee, Best Director | | | Edward S. Feldman, Nominee, Best Picture |
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| | Professional Reviews | Sight and Sound
"...[An] inspired film -- one of those quintessentially American movies in which story, theme and visual style coalesce; a film rich in both skill and suggestion..." 06/01/1985 p.221-2Variety
"...A gentle, affecting story of star-crossed lovers..." 01/30/1985 Los Angeles Times
"...[McGillis] is authoritative and quietly sensual..." 02/08/1985 p.C1 USA Today
"...Compelling..." 01/20/1995 p.8D Total Film
"Showing shocking good sense, the Academy awarded Harrison Ford his only Oscar nomination for his performance as straight-laced city 'tec John Book..." 04/01/2004 p.136 Chicago Sun-Times 10 of 10
Witness comes billed as a thriller, but it's so much more than a thriller that I wish they hadn't even used the word "murder" in the ads. This is, first of all, an electrifying and poignant love story. Then it is a movie about the choices we make in life and the choices that other people make for us. Only then is it a thriller - one that Alfred Hitchcock would have been proud to make. - Roger Ebert
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