The Witness
An innocent Hungarian dike keeper rises through a paranoid communist hierarchy only to face its most grotesque demand: a false confession against a friend.
Overview
A darkly comedic journey through the absurdities of a totalitarian regime.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- darkly comic
- absurdist
- political film night
- cult cinema evening
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a sharply observed, enduringly funny satire of Stalinist communist bureaucracy and political repression.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Pelikán is repeatedly promoted through incompetent communist institutions despite remaining unqualified and confused.
The film turns Pelikán's pig slaughter, promotions, and official ceremonies into escalating comic attacks on communist rule.
Pelikán is pressured to give false testimony against his longtime friend in a fabricated trial.
Comrade Virág's unexplained patronage and the regime's ceremonial promotions reveal politics as coercive performance.
Films like The Witness, and why
The Death of Stalin
shared dark political satire, absurdist humor, and critique of authoritarian bureaucracy
Good Bye, Lenin!
shared oppressive communist setting, surreal institutional absurdity, and tragicomic resistance
The Firemen's Ball
shared Eastern European political satire, comic entrapment, and ordinary people navigating ideological power
Brazil
shared blackly comic examination of authoritarian systems and coerced public performance
Movie Details
- Director
- Péter Bacsó
- Release Date
- 1979-06-06
- Runtime
- 108 min
- Rating
- 8.2 / 10 (69)
Cast
- Ferenc Kállai
- Lajos Őze
- Zoltán Fábri
- Béla Both
- Georgette Metzradt
- Róbert Rátonyi
- Károly Bicskey
- Lili Monori
- László Vámos
- Ida Versényi
Common questions
- What is The Witness about?
- An innocent Hungarian dike keeper rises through a paranoid communist hierarchy only to face its most grotesque demand: a false confession against a friend.
- What is The Witness like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Witness as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Witness violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Witness as mild.
- What did critics think of The Witness?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a sharply observed, enduringly funny satire of Stalinist communist bureaucracy and political repression.
- Which films are like The Witness?
- Films with a similar feel include The Death of Stalin, Good Bye, Lenin!, The Firemen's Ball, and Brazil.
- How long is The Witness?
- The Witness runs 108 minutes.
