The Witness

I recently had the pleasure of viewing the documentary Witness in my intro to writing English class. The documentary shows an in-depth analysis of the murder case of Catherine "Kitty" Genovese. She was murdered around 3 am by a man named Winston Moseley who has had an unrepresented history of murdering and raping women. Before I watched the doc, I read the first article posted by the New York Times (38 who saw murder and didn't call police) that was printed a couple weeks after Kitty's murder. From viewing Witness, I found that this article was intentionally skewed to push the blame of kitty's murder onto the residents of Kew Gardens in Queens, where kitty was murdered. It also neglected to inform its audience of the details of her murderer, the true antagonist of this story. This documentary has shown me that I shouldn't just stop at ground level if I want the true story, I need to really investigate what I'm being told. Thank you, Bill Genovese and family, for opening your world to us.

The brother of Kitty Genovese investigates the circumstances of her murder and the truth of the story that dozens of locals witnessed the crime and did nothing to intervene.

This is a story I have been aware of for 20 years. I never investigated it in any detail, but had been fascinated and did hear that much of the original story as reported in the media (and subsequent textbooks) was wrong. Here, in painstaking detail, we get to the bottom of things.

Anyone who takes the time to seek out the documents, track down witnesses,and even speak with the killer's son... that deserves a commendation. This should be winning awards right and left. The fact it is a family member makes it even stronger.

The Witness is a well-directed documentary about the journey Bill Genovese embarks on to uncover the truth about the murder of Kitty Genovese that pulls on the heart strings of viewers. It features interviews with family members who reflect on their life with Kitty and witnesses who recall their experiences from the night of her murder. The Witness exposes parts of Kitty's life that you can't get from basic research and paints her as the human she was, rather than a psychology study or social figure. At times the documentary can seem a bit over dramatic but it plays in well with the topics brought up and the events that occurred. This documentary represents the effects that exaggerated and untrue journalism can have on public opinion. Although it was a little slow at parts, it captures the attention of viewers and is well worth the watch.

I saw this new doc at a double play with The Lovers and The Despot and the two films couldn't be more different. In scale, the two subjects don't match at all: one woman's senseless 50-year-old slaying against a couple of South Korean filmmakers captive to the whims of Kim Jong Il. Yet The Lovers and The Despot put me to sleep.

The Witness, by contrast, kept me riveted. My jaw dropped, my eyes wet, I got very angry --- everything you want from a good documentary. I'm old enough to remember the murder of Kitty Genovese or at least the aftermath. You know, the woman who screamed for help and was murdered over a 35 minute period while her neighbors did nothing to assist her?

Or did they? And that's where The Witness really goes in for the choke. What you thought you knew for certain may not be true, just as what Kitty's brother Bill assumed was fact and based many of his voluntary (and involuntary) life decisions upon for the rest of his life.

Filmmaker James Solomon holds back nothing while holding his subjects in nothing but the utmost respect. This is largely in credit to Bill Genovese who displays incredible honesty, tolerance, and courage as he uncovers holes, detours, and details in his sister's senseless murder and it's subsequent reporting and media blitz that are shocking and very disturbing.

But you're never invited to pity Bill, and you won't. The Witness takes a very grim and depressing event and turns it inside out by placing you as close to the action as possible, then gently daring you to not look away. You won't.

I've been super interested in this case ever since college, and this documentary didn't disappoint! 50 years after her murder, Kitty's brother re-looks at the facts of the case and tries to find closure. I didn't think that it mattered how many exact witnesses there were, and whether they were "eye" or "ear" witnesses. To me, people knew Kitty needed help, and they didn't help her. End of story. Looking at her mug shot always effects me greatly. And watching the re-enactment at the end, almost moved me to tears. It is a terrible case, and I hope this film does her memory justice. That poor, poor woman.

and p.s. - shame on the killer's son for making excuses during his interview. He seemed very out of touch, and sort of delusional about what happened. And playing the race card? Wow...