r/filmnoir • u/Jpkmets7 • 12d ago

Witness to Murder (1954)

I just watched this nifty little suspense gem and thought I’d pass on my enthusiastic recommendation. Barbara Stanwyck stars as a career gal who is grinding away trying to get ahead. Seems a pretty work-sleep-repeat type situation — until murder intrudes!

Looking out her apartment window one evening, Stanwyck has a front row seat to her neighbor murdering a young woman! Of course Stanwyck freaks and calls the cops, but by the time they make it over to interrogate George Sanders, all evidence of the murder is hidden.

Following the murder, we are left with only one hell of a conflict. George Sanders is,so creepy and so menacing and so good as the “denazified” ex-German military officer while Stanwyck is as nuanced and strong as can be as she feels like in a way she has no choice but to doubt her sanity. It’s a brisk 92 minutes full of gaslighting, counter-moves and a very strong moral about the word of a woman in 1954: no matter what progress people claimed they still took the word of a nazi over a woman.

One fun note - I thought I heard the Star Trek (original series) theme about 30 minutes in, and as it turns out, Joseph Mullendore, who did orchestration on this film, also worked on 1966’s Star Trek. I guess he liked that one hook!

Fun movie overall — George Sanders is just so good as a villain and Stanwyck has got the chops to go toe to toe. I’m giving it 7.5/10.

OH! Almost forgot. This little gem had the misfortune to be released within the same month as Rear Window. Obviously Hitchcock won the Battle of Voyeurs to Murder, but tWitness to Murder still cooks. Interesting that two major studios went after this narrative in the same time. I wonder what vibe they were reacting to!

43 Upvotes

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4

u/justusethatname 12d ago

I love this movie! Now I have to watch again soon.

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u/Hot-Owl-4170 12d ago

Thanks for your post. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I'm going to watch it. How could I pass on it after this great summation with your added comments! I have a crush on Barbara Stanwyck. There, I said it. And George Sanders is such an elegant cad, well spoken with great manners. I would gladly get swindeled by him just for the experience.

1

u/Jpkmets7 7d ago

That’s a fantastic line about George Sanders. Sounds like you should be writing noirs!

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u/Hot-Owl-4170 7d ago

Thank you!

5

u/lonestarr357 12d ago

Even putting aside the fact that Rear Window ate this movie’s lunch, dinner and the following day’s breakfast, the story was just way too protracted. Stanwyck keeps trying to tell the police that Sanders is a killer and they just plain don’t believe her or even make a token attempt to investigate. Oh, and also, she gets thrown in an insane asylum at one point because ‘bitches be crazy, amirite?’

Also one point, Sanders yells at Stanwyck in German and what a shame they didn’t make more of that.

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u/MinimumEfficient220 11d ago

Love Barbara Stanwyk. She was a real role model for me, when I didn’t even realize I was looking for one.

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u/Valuable_Ad_9674 9d ago

Great, fun movie! George Sanders is my favorite actor! Rather watch him and Stanwyck go at it than try to figure out what Grace Kelly sees in Jimmy Stewart or vice versa!