Hostile Witness

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Hostile Witness
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Detail of original British quad poster
Directed byRay Milland
Screenplay byJack Roffey
Based onplay Hostile Witness by Jack Roffey
Produced byDavid E. Rose
StarringRay Milland
Sylvia Syms
CinematographyGerald Gibbs
Edited byBernard Gribble
Music byWilfred Josephs
Caralan Productions Ltd. (as Caralan-Dador)
Distributed byUnited Artists
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Running time
101 mins
Template:Pluralize from textUnited Kingdom
Template:Pluralize from textEnglish

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Hostile Witness is a 1968 British courtroom drama film based on a play by Jack Roffey, directed by Ray Milland (who had appeared in the play on Broadway) and starring Milland, Sylvia Syms, Raymond Huntley and Julian Holloway.[1][2][3]

Plot

A distinguished barrister finds himself on the wrong side of the law when accused of the murder of the motorist who killed his daughter.[4]

Cast

Production

The play debuted in 1964 starring Michael Denison and transferred to the West End.[5]

Jay Julien bought the production rights to stage the play in the United States. In 1965, Ray Milland agreed to appear in the play in New York. It was Milland's first theatrical appearance in some years, apart from appearing in a road version of My Fair Lady.[6]

The New York Times called it "serviceable".[7] The show had a capitalisation of $125,000 and ended on July 2 after 157 performances. Milland then took the play on tour.[8] The Los Angeles Times called the production "absorbing, completely satisfactory, and wholly successful thriller."[9]

In March 1967, it was announced that Milland would star in and direct a film version for Edward Small and United Artists.[10] Shooting began in London in July 1967 with David Rose producing.[11]

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Coming after the somewhat off-beat films Ray Milland has been associated with in recent years, this present piece seems an entirely conventional and unprofitable choice. Based on a play which manages to include all the hoary clichés of court-room drama, it is weighed down by extremely lifeless direction and the kind of acting associated with the lower rungs of radio drama. Milland's own performance consists mainly of worried closeups, and the few moments of tension at the end when the murderer is revealed are hardly worth the wait."[12]

DVD Talk wrote: "It's not terrible and has its moments, but Billy Wilder's Witness for the Prosecution or your average episode of Rumpole of the Bailey is a lot more fun."[13]

The entry in Halliwell's Film Guide states: "Complex courtroom thriller, filmed in a flatly boring way with stagey sets and performances. The plot is the only interest".[14]

A review in the Radio Times by Joanna Berry described it as an "interesting but ultimately disappointing tale", which Berry considered "missable".[15]

References

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  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Hostile Witness". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  2. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Hostile Witness (1968)". Archived from the original on 14 January 2009.
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.The Broadway League. "Hostile Witness – Broadway Play – Original". IBDb.
  4. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Hostile Witness (1968) – Ray Milland – Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related". AllMovie.
  5. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Cole, Ronald (13 October 1964). "review: Erroll Garner at Leicester". The Guardian. p. 9.
  6. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.William Glover. (9 January 1966). "'Lost Weekend' Irks the 'Witness'". The Washington Post. p. G2.
  7. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Stanley Kauffman (8 February 1966). "Theater: Milland in 'Hostile Witness': Courtroom Melodrama Is at the Music Box". New York Times. p. 26.
  8. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Sam Zolotow (22 June 1966). "Kentucky Offers 2 Boone Pageants: Rival Productions Staged in Harrodsburg and Berea". New York Times. p. 37.
  9. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Smith, Cecil. (16 September 1966). "'Hostile Witness' Superbly Performed". Los Angeles Times. p. C13.
  10. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."'Hostile Witness' to Be Filmed". New York Times. 27 March 1967. p. 41.
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Martin, Betty (31 August 1967). "Barbra's Husband to Debut". Los Angeles Times. p. c13.
  12. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Hostile Witness". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 37 (432): 147. 1 January 1970. Template:ProQuest.
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Hostile Witness". DVD Talk.
  14. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Halliwell, Leslie (1985) [1983]. Halliwell's Film Guide. London: Granada. p. 663., Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Halliwell, Leslie; Walker, John (1999). Halliwell's Film & Video Guide 2000. London: HarperCollins. p. 391.
  15. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Berry, Joanna. "Hostile Witness". Radio Times. Retrieved 22 March 2022.

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