Witness For the Prosecution

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	Director: Billy Wilder Actors: Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich, Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester, John Williams Studio: MGM (Video & DVD) Category: DVD Buy New: $24.19 as of Mar 19th, 2010 19:28 CDT 2 In Stock Qty New (7) Used (5) Collectible (4) from $19.99 Seller: astro_video 5.0 out of 5 stars from 95 reviews Sales Rank: 11,920 Format: Anamorphic, Black & White, Closed-captioned, Dubbed, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC Languages: English (Original Language), French (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), French (Dubbed) Rating: NR (Not Rated) Region: 1 Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Number Of Discs: 1 Running Time: 116 Minutes Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2 Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.9 x 0.7 MPN: MGMDM110367D ISBN: 0792851668 UPC: 027616869425 EAN: 9780792851660 Theatrical Release Date: 1957 Release Date: December 11, 2001 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days


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Editorial Reviews Product Description Studio: Tcfhe/mgm Release Date: 05/20/2008 Run time: 116 minutes Rating: Nr HDTalking Shopping essential video Billy Wilder cowrote and directed this brilliant 1957 mystery based on Agatha Christie's celebrated play about an aging London barrister (Charles Laughton) who's preparing to retire when he takes the defense in the most vexing murder case of his distinguished career. In his final completed film (he died of a heart attack less than a year later), Tyrone Power plays the prime suspect in the murder of a wealthy widow, and Marlene Dietrich plays the wife of the accused, whose testimony--and true identity--holds the key to solving the case. A classic of courtroom suspense, Witness for the Prosecution is one of those movies with enough double-crossing twists to keep the viewer guessing right up to the very end, when yet another surprise is deftly revealed. This being a Billy Wilder film, the dialogue is first-rate and the acting superb, with both Laughton and his offscreen wife Elsa Lanchester (playing the barrister's pesty nurse) winning Academy Awards for their performances. Although later films would concoct even more complicated courtroom scenarios, this remains one of the best films of its kind and a model for all those films that followed its lead. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews: Showing reviews 1-5 of 95 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... 19 next » Witness for the Prosecution By C. P. Gilmore (Intermountain West, USA) \| March 11, 2010 I caught this movie early one morning on TCM and thought to myself, "Oh, just another old black and white 'whodunnit?' with Marlene Dietrich and Tyrone Power. I'll give it a go until I get bored with it." But I didn't get bored with it! As the plot unfolded and the characters made themselves known I became hooked. Little did I know that it would become one of my favorite movies of all time! The movie is obviously the film version of a stage play, and the acting is overdone by modern standards, but it is one completely entertaining movie all the way through, something that cannot be said for many of today's movies. The interaction between Charles Laughton and his real life wife, Elsa Lanchester, as the aging, hypertensive defense attorney and his nurse, is hilarious and not to be missed! They steal the show. There is plot twist after plot twist, and after you think you have it all figured out the plot twists yet again. And again, right up until the closing credits. There is even an on screen plea by the narrator at the end to not divulge the movie's ending to your friends so you won't spoil the ending for them. Not since "Wait Until Dark" in 1968 has there been a similar plea to the audience. This is old fashioned entertainment that is rarely found in today's theaters, and I heartily recommend this movie for your personal enjoyment. Witness for the Prosecution By Dorothy Parker (Philadelphia, PA USA) \| August 16, 2009 I first saw this movie a long time ago....and when it was on PBS recently I knew I had to have a copy in my personal library. I am so glad I was able to purchase this and to share it with so many people who will appreciate an engrossing thriller and wonderful acting...which is unfortunately missing in so many of the films today. excellent vintage entertainment By T. Osgood (Detroit suburb, MI USA) \| June 13, 2009 \| 1 out of 1 found this review helpful Bought this to show my teenagers that some oldies are excellent. They couldn't believe the sharp (sarcastic) humor from Laughton's character. Lots of plot twists and turns. Good family entertainment for 12+. Black and white. Wilder a talent director By Nestor Sanchez \| May 14, 2009 Wilder is really in my opinion one of the best and talented director's i 've ever seen.His capacity to write an script, to translate his ideas into a cinematographer language is brilliant.The election of the performers was made with great accuracy,power is a versatile actor and mrs Dietrich is magnetic Laughton is a remarkable british performer who combines with the whole enterprise Classic movie By R. Bagula (Lakeside, Ca United States) \| April 23, 2009 This movie is one of Agatha Cristie's best plays. This version is only faulted by the lead Tyrone Power not seem as British as he probably should. Marlene Dietrich and Charles Laughton are both very good. I liked it even seeing for at least the second time having forgotten the strange ending. Showing reviews 1-5 of 95 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... 19 next »