Alicia I love this movie so much

Vashirdfel Simply A Masterpiece

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Forn55 They don't make 'em like this any more, and perhaps that's not a bad thing.An entertaining, film noir potboiler, "Witness to Murder" is the kind of movie you might want to watch if you're in the mood to eat popcorn and yell at the screen. Hand-cuffed to a pedestrian screenplay, the movie nonetheless gives Stanwyck more than ample opportunity to ring the emotional changes and co-star Sanders to suavely menace her in the guise of nemesis. Even Merrill, known less for his acting abilities than for his square-jawed, photogenic charm, gives a reasonably creditable performance. But any moviegoer looking for ingenious plot-twists should search elsewhere; there's not a bend in this movie's narrative road that one can't see around. The real stars that shine here are the camera-work and the appropriately moody lighting.So pop your corn, turn the lights down low, and spend a pleasant 83 minutes. You won't be sorry you watched this movie, but in a couple days I'm betting you won't even remember the names of the characters in it.

dougdoepke The movie shows what a cast and crew of Hollywood veterans could do even as the B-movie was on its last legs. Sure, the material is derivative. For some reason these windowpane murders were popular plot lines at the time, especially with Rear Window (1954). Maybe that's because there's so much built-in suspense to proving that you're not just imagining or dreaming what you think you see. This movie manages the suspense in spades, thanks to journeyman director Rowland, cinematographer Alton, and a near-perfect cast that make it all seem so real.Pity poor Stanwyck! She spies super slick neighbor Sanders throttling a girl, but can't convince the cops since Sanders is ever one step ahead. Meanwhile, Sanders is at his coldly calculating and charming best, while Stanwick wobbles expressively as a woman in distress. Toss in Gary Merrill as a romantically inclined cop, and together they manage to breathe real life into familiar material.Hard to say enough about Alton's expressive photography. Some of those b&w compositions are darn near artistic; at the same time, they lend the dramatics a properly noirish atmosphere. No, there's nothing really new here, but it's so darn well done, you'll hardly notice. I'm just sorry that these intense little human dramas have been replaced on screen by special effects extravaganzas that entertain mainly 12-year olds.

HeathCliff-2 As you can tell by my headline, I found this a shockingly inferior film. And sad to experience, as a fan of Barbara Stanwyck, that she had reached the age and stage of her career, where was challenged to bring her craft to inferior scripts and directors. The story was infuriatingly sexist, even for the 50s. Because she is a woman, she is brushed off, and told to calm down. I found Gary Merrill's reprise from All About Eve of the smug man who has to patronizingly calm down the little woman absolutely infuriating. As a side note, he's lucky to have AAE in his credits, because he is a mediocre actor lucky enough to be in a famous picture, and he was the same in every role. Obviously Stanwyck is fine here, as usual. But it's such an implausible absurd story that it's hard to really suspend disbelief, when cops don't do rudimentary investigation into a murder allegation. And Stanwyck's incarceration in the booby hatch was so ridiculous that I just fast forwarded through what looked like outtakes from the Snake Pit. There were plot holes to drive a bus through, and plot contrivances and impossibilities that were eye-rolling. She's running down the street shrieking, and everyone is just compliantly following ? And how many duplicate scenes of a) Merrill telling Stanwyck to calm down and see reason and b) Stanwyck reluctantly agreeing against her instincts. Over. And over. And over. Oh - and for all you folks that love t throw around the word Noir when there is a hint of a) night; b) shadow; c) murder; d) black and white -- those do not Noir make, which require a femme fatale, a weak male (usually), hard-boiled dialogue and (often) Voice-over, and a pervasive cynicism. None of which this film, a murder-suspense, is. Shows you that even an A cast can't overcome a bad script and direction.

Michael O'Keefe Roy Rowland directs this black & white mind-bending drama. Suspense grows as an interior decorator Cheryl Draper(Barbara Stanwyck)witnesses a murder in an apartment across the street. She is certain of what she saw; but then is there the chance she was dreaming? The killer in question is an author Albert Richter(George Sanders), who happens to have a dark past. The police seem determined to cease Cheryl's accusations that have no positive proof. A sympathetic detective Lawrence Mathews(Gary Merrill) tries to believe she saw what she saw; and tries to halt her playing detective on her own. Cheryl gets the impression she is Richter's next target. This mid 50's noir gets more suspenseful as it reaches a dramatic finale. Other players: Jesse White, Harry Shannon and Claire Carleton. With small uncredited roles: Claude Akins and Burt Mustin. Stanwyck, Sanders and Merrill work flawlessly.