Home > Witness (1985 movie)

Whilst changing trains in Philadelphia, an Amish widow's son witnesses a murder in the train station's toilets. It turns out that a police officer is the murderer, and Philadelphia detective John Book quickly decides to hide the mother and child for their own protection. But when John's partner is murdered by another crooked cop looking for the boy, John himself must go into hiding.

The only place he can think of is the farm run by the woman's family, where he takes her and boy. Forced to stay because he has been shot, he adopts Amish dress, participates in the community, and begins to fall in love with the widow he is protecting.

But upon a visit to town to use a public telephone, he gets into a fight with some youths who are abusing some Amish -- blowing his cover. The corrupt police from the city hear of this event which is uncharacteristic of the Amish, and come looking for him.

The movie portrays the strong contrasts between the debased and unempathetic urbanised world John Book lives in, and the simpler, ruralistic lifestyle of the Amish, which is pre- industrial revolution- European in nature.

Although the train station is not identified in the film, the station scenes (including the murder) were filmed in Philadelphia's 30th Street Station30th Street Station is the main railroad station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is the heart of Philadelphia's passenger rail network. Originally known as Pennsylvania Station the Chicago-based architectural firm of Graham, Anderson, Probst & White des.

The film won the OscarBob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. The Academy Awards (often better known as Oscars) are the most prominent film award in the United States. The Awards are granted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, a p for Best Original ScreenplayThe Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best script not based upon previously published material. Before 1940 there was an Academy Award for Best Story for writing. For 1940 it and the award in this article were sepa. Harrison Ford was nominated for the Academy Award for Best ActorThe Academy Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; nominations are made by Academy members who are actors and actresses. The winners are chosen b for his performance as Book, his only Oscar nomination to date.