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Witness

1985

Peter Weir

Harrison Ford, Kelly McGillis, Danny Glover, Lukas Haas ...

6.9

39,140

Mystery. Thriller. Drama. Romance When Samuel (Lukas Haas), a young Amish boy traveling with his mother Rachel (Kelly McGillis), witnesses the murder of a police officer in a public restroom, he and his mother become the temporary wards of John Book (Harrison Ford), a detective who's been assigned to solve the crime.

	Author	Review
United States	Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"An electrifying and poignant love story (...) The ways of life in the Amish community are so well observed that they have a documentary feel (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United States	Vincent Canby The New York Times	"It's not really awful, but it's not much fun. It's pretty to look at and it contains a number of good performances, but there is something exhausting about its neat balancing of opposing manners and values."	NEU
United States	Dave Kehr Chicago Reader	"Plotlines don't get much phonier than this (...) [Weir] is on hand to smother all the contrivances in his solemn, academic style, and the result is a moderately effective, highly affected thriller"	NEU
United Kingdom	Ian Nathan Empire	"Arguably Harrison Ford’s finest performance, and one of the strongest thrillers to emerge from the heady gloss of the ‘80s (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Paul Attanasio The Washington Post	"'Witness' never hangs together (...) What saves 'Witness' is its cast, and Weir's artistry in orchestrating and modulating their performances"	NEU
United States	Pauline Kael The New Yorker	"[Weir] has succumbed to blandness (...) The farm country is used as a fantasyland for the audience to visit; it has its allure, but you’re ready to leave when Book goes"	NEU
United Kingdom	John Ferguson Radio Times	"It's as if the world of 'Dirty Harry' had suddenly stumbled into a canvas by Brueghel. This bucolic world is brilliantly evoked (...) The performances are immaculate (…) Rating: ★★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

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