Director: Peter Weir
Screenplay by: Earl W. Wallace, William Kelley
Based on a Story by Pamela Wallace, Earl W. Wallace, William Kelley
Starring: Harrison Ford, Kelly McGillis, Josef Sommer, Lukas Haas, Jan Rubeš, Danny Glover, Alexander Godunov
Country: USA
Running Time: 112 min
Year: 1985
Witness started life as a shelved script for the western TV series Gunsmoke before later being turned into an extended episode of the How the West Was Won series. A number of years later, Pamela Wallace was developing the idea for a novel about an Amish woman who witnessed a murder, and Pamela’s husband, Earl W. Wallace, recalled that the story sounded similar to an episode of How the West Was Won. Earl had written for the show himself and contacted the episode’s writer, William Kelley. The pair then went ahead and reworked the story into the script for a feature film, which would become Witness.
Harrison Ford was brought onto the project not long after the script was picked up, but he wanted a quality director assigned to the film to properly work and shape the script, which was overlong in its original form.
At the time, Peter Weir was struggling to get his next project, Mosquito Coast, off the ground, so he wanted a ‘director-for-hire’ gig whilst he waited. Witness had been presented to him earlier when he thought he’d be too busy, and he found the concept intriguing, so he got on board.
The resulting film ended up being a big success on its release in 1985. It was a sleeper hit at the box office and stacked up a whopping 8 Academy Award nominations, winning one for its screenplay.
Witness is a film I used to own on VHS and enjoyed a great deal. I’ve always been a big fan of Peter Weir’s, aided largely by my great love of this, Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Truman Show. So, I was thrilled to hear that Witness would finally be getting a Blu-ray release in the UK (as well as a UHD release). I got hold of a copy, and my thoughts follow.
The film’s story begins with young Samuel Lapp (Lukas Haas), an Amish boy, and his widowed mother, Rachel (Kelly McGillis), venturing outside their secluded Lancaster County community for a short trip. Whilst waiting for a train in Philadelphia, Samuel witnesses the brutal murder of an undercover police officer. Detective John Book (Harrison Ford) is assigned to the case, and upon realising the killers are corrupt police officers, his life and the lives of Samuel and Rachel are placed in grave danger.
Book is forced to hide out with the Amish, recuperating from a gunshot wound and attempting to protect his key witness. This situation throws the worldly detective into a starkly different way of life.
Harrison Ford was a huge star at the time, thanks to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films, but it was Witness that helped critics take him more seriously as an actor. It gained him his first and still only Oscar nomination and elevated him beyond his action hero persona, beautifully contrasting his hardened exterior with an underlying tenderness.
Similarly, Kelly McGillis, in only her second theatrical feature film, offers a subtle yet powerful performance, embodying the quiet strength and faith of her character. Both actors undertook immersive research for their roles, with Ford spending time with a homicide squad and McGillis living with an Amish family, lending an authentic touch to their performances.
Lukas Haas’s portrayal of Samuel is also staggeringly good for a child of his age. This might be largely down to Weir’s direction and the choice to keep the child’s dialogue minimal, instead relying on his soulful eyes to tell the story. The fact Haas went on to develop a strong career as an adult suggests he had a natural talent too.
The film also has a classical beauty to its visuals. Weir and DOP John Seale drew inspiration from paintings, particularly the work of Vermeer. They perfectly capture the serene, almost idyllic landscape of the Amish countryside, contrasting it sharply with the grittiness of the urban world of Philadelphia.
The production faced challenges in gaining the support of the Amish community, who, due to their aversion to being photographed and concerns about increased tourism, remained largely uncooperative. Despite this, the film’s portrayal of Amish life is handled with sensitivity and respect, showing the simple yet rich tapestry of their customs and beliefs. The film highlights their relationship with the land and their strong sense of community.
There’s also humour, alongside the drama, romance, and thrills. This not only makes for a more entertaining film but imbues it with life. The relationship between Book and Rachel is also well-developed and touching.
The score, often understated and pastoral, uses synthesisers in an orchestral style, further enhancing the film’s unique atmosphere.
Generally speaking, there are many beautifully understated moments throughout the film, most notably the ending. Supposedly, the original screenplay had a couple of pages of dialogue in this sequence, but Weir cut it out, feeling it was unnecessary. This deliberate choice creates a delicate and poignant denouement, proving that sometimes, less is indeed more.
Overall, Witness is a wonderfully mature, finely crafted drama, blended with a few thrills to create an engrossing and deeply rewarding film that stands tall alongside the numerous classics directed by Peter Weir.
Witness is out on 16th June in separate 4K UHD & Blu-Ray limited edition sets, released by Arrow Video. I watched the Blu-ray and thought it had a pleasing image. It looks clean, detailed and natural, if a touch muted in colour. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how it looks, though these have been compressed. You get a choice of 5.1 or original stereo audio tracks. I opted for the latter and had no issues with the quality.
4K ULTRA HD LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS *
– Original lossless 2.0 stereo audio
– Optional DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
– Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
– Audio commentary by film historian Jarret Gahan
– Video interview with cinematographer John Seale
– Visual essay on the film’s performances by film journalist Staci Layne Wilson
– Vintage 1985 interview in which Harrison Ford discusses Witness with critic Bobbie Wygant
– Between Two Worlds – five-part archival documentary on the making of the film, featuring interviews with Harrison Ford, Kelly McGillis, Peter Weir, John Seale, producer Edward S. Feldman, and actors Lukas Haas, Patti LuPone and Viggo Mortensen
– A Conversation with Peter Weir – archival interview with the film’s director
– Deleted scene from the network TV version of the film
– Theatrical trailer
– Image gallery
– Limited edition packaging with reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tommy Pocket
– Limited edition 60-page perfect bound booklet illustrated by Tommy Pocket, featuring writing on the film by Dennis Capicik, Martyn Conterio, John Harrison and Amanda Reyes
– Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Tommy Pocket
– Six double-sided collector’s postcards
* The Blu-ray edition offers the same extras but with a 1080p presentation, of course.
Jarret Gahan provides a commentary over the film. It’s a strong track that takes a deep dive into the story behind the production.
There’s also an excellent hour-long documentary about the making of the film. This contains interviews with most of the key figures involved, including Weir, Ford, McGillis, Haas and even Viggo Mortensen, whose minor part marked his film debut.
Staci Layne Wilson provides an essay, looking at the power of Weir’s quieter moments. It clearly demonstrates one of the film’s key strengths.
The interviews with Weir, DOP John Seale and Ford are all well worth watching too. You can tell they are pleased with the work they did on the film and look back fondly on the production.
There are a pair of EPK pieces from the original release too. These have some fun interviews with the principals and a little on-set material.
There’s also a deleted scene which sees Samuel and Rachel up in the morning with Ford’s sister and her kids. It’s a nice scene, but it doesn’t forward the film, and I’m not sure McGillis is quite as strong as usual in it.
I didn’t get a copy of the booklet to comment on that, unfortunately.
Overall, Arrow have given Peter Weir’s masterful film the treatment it deserves, and the disc makes for an easy recommendation.
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