Witness

My Fiance is a Millennial and I've been trying to get her and her friends to watch some classic films. Some, Taxi Driver, Chinatown, The Godfather, Godfellas, The Princess Bride, Blazing Saddles were epic fails for a variety of reasons. Witness actually stood the Millennial taste test for some reason, and this is significant because it is really hard to get them to watch or listen to anything that is older than 4 years. That says something, I'm not sure what, but it was a film that they actually sat through. It is also one of the tightest scripts Hollywood has produced, which is saying something since it was released in 1985 following almost a decade of the best movies that Hollywood has ever produced. It's pure story, and that story is backed up with acting and directing making for a beautiful picture all around.

**An action film mixed with a guided tour of an Amish community.** Here in Portugal, there are few religions other than the Catholic Church and there are no Amish, Mennonite or similar communities. Therefore, this curious religious community is an object of fascination for me and also of renunciation: to explain further, I radically disagree with their religious conceptions, I would never be part of such a religious congregation and, however, I find it fascinating, in today's world, the idea of ​​trying to have a simpler life, without excessive technology and in greater harmony with the natural rhythm. It would be a lifestyle that I wouldn't mind trying, even though I knew I would have difficulty adapting and living without access to the technologies that I work and entertain myself with. In this film, we follow a police officer who, upon discovering a case of corruption in the ranks, finds himself on the verge of having to disappear to avoid being killed and to protect the only witness to a crime in which another police officer was murdered: an Amish boy who lives with his mother, a widow, and his maternal grandfather, in an isolated rural area that is not very receptive to visits from “the English” (as some of them call to the normal people in this film). In the midst of all this, the film shows us the habits, beliefs and customs of these strict religious communities who, out of appreciation for humility and simplicity, renounced everything that could be a luxury and live stoically from subsistence agriculture. I won't go into considerations about the verisimilitude of the plot, but I believe that the script made an effort to create a convincing and reasonable story that we can believe in. It won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, which means something. What I can say is that, although the film is engaging, there are aspects that could be improved: the identity of the killers and villains could be kept a mystery for longer and, on the other hand, their motivations don't seem clear enough for me. Another aspect that was not clear was the fate of the young Amish widow's husband. The tension created between her and the congregation's elders could have been better explored, as well as the community's acceptance/rejection of the police officer. Directed by Peter Weir, the film had serious difficulties in finding a studio willing to commit money to the project, and did not have great support from the Amish community, which not only rejects the capture of images but also fears being invaded by crowds of curious, eager of souvenirs and photographs. Technically, the film is exceptional: in addition to the good cinematography, excellent editing (another Oscar that won) and good action scenes, we have good sets and costumes, which perfectly recreate the environment in which the Amish live, and their simple ways of living. Negative note: Kelly McGillis's nude scene, in addition to being out of place in the film, doesn't fit into the story and seems gratuitous. After many fantastic and sci-fi films, Harrison Ford got a different work, in a style that he would invest heavily in over the following decades: the action hero, with a pistol in hand and willing to do anything to save the day. The actor seems to be completely at ease with the task and gives us excellent work, fully deserving the Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Kelly McGillis doesn't do so well, but she does what needs to be done and doesn't deserve a negative rating. Danny Glover is a convincing villain.

When a young Amish boy "Samuel" (Lukas Haas) and his mum "Rachel" (Kelly McGillis) take a trip from their rural, largely agrarian, community into the big city he gets a little more than he bargained for - he witnesses the brutal murder of an undercover cop. The police decide the best way to protect him is to send him home to his family, accompanied by "John Book" (Harrison Ford), whist they await the trial. The perpetrators are on the hunt for him though, and it soon becomes clear that there is someone from within the investigation working with the baddies to track down and eliminate the witness. As an introduction to the lifestyle of this community, Peter Weir offers us quite an insightful assessment of a pacifist, technology free, society trying to live cheek by jowl with the relentless march pf progress and the teasing intolerance of their occasionally provocative neighbours. That they are wholly underprepared for what is coming when the location of the young lad is discovered, is an understatement - and this adds a great deal to the edginess of this thriller, as does the cunning game of cat and mouse amongst the grain silos at the end. There's romance too - as "Book" gradually falls for "Rachel" much to the chagrin of "Daniel" (Alexander Gudunov) which keeps the narrative progressing, albeit slowly, on that front, too. The script doesn't give Ford too much latitude when it comes to charisma - indeed, his characterisation is really rather dull and coupled with the serious paucity of verbiage from McGillis does hold the pace back for quite long chunks of the film. The years have not been especially kind to this - it has become more of a curio than any sort of gripping crime drama, but is still worth watching - and the 9 year old Hass is really rather impressive.