WITNESS (1985)

Not till he hit the ripe old age of 43, after three STAR WARS and two INDIANA JONES, did Harrison Ford become the sort of movie star who didn’t need a blockbuster franchise behind him to ‘open’ a film. Previous tries (FORCE 10 FROM NAVARONE; HANOVER STREET) went nowhere, even cult phenom BLADE RUNNER didn’t work at the time. And you can pinpoint the exact moment it came together for Ford, dancing flirtatiously in a barn loft (with co-star Kelly McGillis, the young Amish widow whose son accidentally witnessed a murder) to an ‘oldie’ pop tune in this finely observed Peter Weir policier. Ford must have known it, too, coming thru with a sincerity, sensitivity & serious sexiness he’d not previously shown on screen, while letting Weir’s calm storytelling style chart the flow of his growing relationship with this strange Amish farming community & with McGillis as he protects her and hides from a dirty trio of big city cops he’s exposed them all to. Sparingly dialogued, sensationally well-cast (first timers, non-pros, actors from other disciplines like opera & ballet), with cinematographer John Seale’s Vermeer-like interior lighting schemes, the film casts a romantic spell as strong as its well-honed suspense elements.

DOUBLE-BILL: John Wayne’s ANGEL AND THE BADMAN/’47 is usually cited as a big influence, but the film is much closer in spirit to BRIEF ENCOUNTER/’45 or ROMAN HOLIDAY/’53.