Average Rating: 8.5/10
Reviews Counted: 25
Fresh: 25 | Rotten: 0
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 3
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 0
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Average Rating: 4.2/5
User Ratings: 7,302
Having just recovered from a heart attack, fabled British barrister Sir Wilfred Robards (Charles Laughton) has been ordered by his doctor to give up everything he holds dear-brandy, cigars and especially courtroom cases. Robards' already shaky resolve to follow doctor's orders flies out the window when he takes up the defense of Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power), a personable young man accused of murdering a rich old widow. The case becomes something of a sticky wicket when Vole's "loving" German wife
Unrated, 1 hr. 56 min.
Dec 1, 1957 Wide
Dec 11, 2001
MGM
All Critics (25) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (26) | Rotten (0) | DVD (9)
His theatrical mise-en-scene -- his proscenium framing -- serves the material well, as does Charles Laughton's bombastic portrayal of the defense attorney.
A courtroom meller played engagingly and building evenly to a surprising and arousing, albeit tricked-up, climax...
Top CriticAnd the air in the courtroom fairly crackles with emotional electricity, until that staggering surprise in the last reel.
Marlene Dietrich tries not to give anything away as usual while Agatha Christie's whodunit plot whirs tidily about her expressionless beauty.
Wilder's adaptation is guilty of being absolutely marvelous.
This Oscar-nominated courtroom drama represents Billy Wilder at his most theatrical and old-fashioned, but the saga is enjoyable and so is the acting of all-star cast.
A slew of terrific performances help to elevate Wilder's twist-ridden courtroom drama above your standard fare in the genre.
Wilder plays the suspense well, but this movie belongs to Laughton, who makes his every line resonate like music and thunder.
Too much artificiality.
...the film's origins as an Agatha Christie novel and play, combine to give the movie a heavy -- almost stolid -- theatrical flavour.
Marlene Dietrich, Billy Wilder, Agatha Christie: What's not to like?
Splendid version of the play with perfect cast and Wilder at the helm.
Witness for the Prosecution is a witty, terse adaptation of the Agatha Christie hit play brought to the screen with ingenuity and vitality by Billy Wilder.
It's got enough unpredictable twists of its own to satisfy even Judge Judy's appetite for justice.
Witness for the Prosecution is a wonderfully-directed, by-the-numbers courtroom drama based on an Agatha Christie play. The story doesn't tread too much new ground but Charles Laughtron keeps the show going magnificently and more than makes up for it. Between this and Night of the Hunter he's my new favorite underrated
November 22, 2006Super Reviewer
This movie was too boring, I didn't watch it all the way through.
September 5, 2010Super Reviewer
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