Witness for the Prosecution

An ailing barrister (Charles Laughton) defends a man accused of murder.

Witness for the Prosecution is a tour de force. A great cast, sharp script, and a brilliant director combine to deliver a truly first-rate picture.

First, there’s the cast. Charles Laughton is simply a joy to watch as he stomps through the film. Sure, he gets all the best lines, but he carries the movie with ease. Backing him, Tyrone Power and Marlene Dietrich are quite formidable, though Dietrich does over do it from time to time (possibly an attempt to upstage Laughton), she makes up for it by delivering one of the film’s best surprises. And don’t forget Elsa Lanchester as Laughton’s nurse, who provides the perfect foil for Laughton in his early scenes.

The script, adapted from Agatha Christie’s play, is smart. Very smart. It’s rare for me not to see an ending coming, but boy was I blindsided by this one. If it has a weakness, it’s that it can’t completely escape its stage origins and does get a little talky from time to time. Of course, when it’s a cast this good that’s doing the talking, it’s a little easier to bear.

Tying all this together is the masterful hand of director Billy Wilder. His uncanny ability to mix comedy and drama without deluding either is what makes this film work so well. Played completely straight, the movie would be a bore, made up of endlessly dry court proceedings, played as a total comedy, the ending would seem ridiculous and lose any emotional impact, but played as it was, a mix of both, it’s brilliant.