Overview
A gripping tale of survival and forbidden love unfolds in a quiet Amish community.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- tense
- intimate
- romantic
- classic thriller night
- thoughtful movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film's assured direction, beautiful imagery, cultural-collision drama, and Harrison Ford's unusually sensitive performance, while some found the climactic action excessive beside its delicate romance.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
John Book, a Philadelphia detective, is forced to live among the Amish and adapt to their nonviolent agricultural way of life.
Book's police instincts and the Amish commitment to nonviolence create the film's distinctive tension during the investigation and pursuit.
Book and Rachel fall in love while Amish standards make their relationship socially and religiously forbidden.
Book hides in the Amish community, but the murderers eventually discover his location and bring the threat into the countryside.
Films like Witness, and why
No Way Out
Shares a crime thriller framework, an outsider hiding within an unfamiliar community, and tension between violence and nonviolence.
Chinatown
Combines a morally pressured detective, institutional corruption, romantic tension, and a carefully escalating suspense plot.
The Mosquito Coast
Features an outsider entering a closed rural society, cultural collision, restrained romance, and sudden bursts of violence.
The Bodyguard
Shares a fish-out-of-water crime story, strong procedural momentum, and a romance complicated by conflicting social worlds.
Movie Details
- Director
- Peter Weir
- Release Date
- 1985-02-08
- Runtime
- 112 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (1968)
Cast
- Harrison Ford
- Kelly McGillis
- Josef Sommer
- Lukas Haas
- Jan Rubeš
- Alexander Godunov
- Danny Glover
- Brent Jennings
- Patti LuPone
- Angus MacInnes
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Witness about?
- A hardened Philadelphia detective finds refuge, love, and a radically different moral code among the Amish while protecting a child who witnessed a murder.
- What is Witness like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Witness as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Witness violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Witness as moderate.
- What did critics think of Witness?
- Critics broadly praised the film's assured direction, beautiful imagery, cultural-collision drama, and Harrison Ford's unusually sensitive performance, while some found the climactic action excessive beside its delicate romance.
- Which films are like Witness?
- Films with a similar feel include No Way Out, Chinatown, The Mosquito Coast, and The Bodyguard.
- How long is Witness?
- Witness runs 112 minutes.
- Where can I watch Witness?
- In United States, Witness is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand.
