Witness to Murder (1954)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Roy Rowland

Writer:

Chester Erskine (writer)

Release Date:

15 April 1954 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

THE SUSPENSE SHOCK OF THE YEAR!

Plot:

Barbara Stanwyck sees a murder through her bedroom window, but no one will believe her. She is stalked...

Plot Keywords:

Murder

Cast

Barbara Stanwyck	...	Cheryl Draper
George Sanders	...	Albert Richter
Gary Merrill	...	Police Lt. Lawrence Mathews
Jesse White	...	Police Sgt. Eddie Vincent
Harry Shannon	...	Police Capt. Donnelly
Claire Carleton	...	Mae - the blonde in mental ward
Lewis Martin	...	Hospital psychiatrist
Dick Elliott	...	Apartment building manager
Harry Tyler	...	Charlie
Juanita Moore	...	Hospital worker
Joy Hallward	...	Cheryl's co-worker
Adeline De Walt Reynolds	...	Old lady in hospital

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Canada:14A (Ontario) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved

Company:

Chester Erskine Productions

Goofs:

Continuity: When the police confront Cheryl Draper with the second letter she supposedly typed (with her typewriter present, to prove it matches), it isn't in the typeface of the letter we saw Richter retype on her typewriter, but in the quite different typeface of his original typing.

Movie Connections:

References "Dragnet" (1951)

Soundtrack:

Nowhere Blues

Great movie

I just saw this today, also thanks to TCM. It was well-paced and very believable and kept my interest throughout. Stanwyck, Merrill and Sanders were all superb, as were the minor roles well-played. Barbara is one of my very favorite actresses, always bringing professionalism and passion to the roles she played. You just imagined her with a backbone of steel, a perfect feminist heroine, most especially in her later roles. There is not a wasted moment in this film, and I particularly liked the first scene with the windy backdrop, adding an air of foreboding to what was unfolding. NO ONE plays a villain better than George Sanders, and he gives his usual splendid portrayal in this film.