The Witness
- 2015
- 1h 29m
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.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.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.
- Awards
- 1 win & 6 nominations total
- Self - Kitty's Brother
- (as Bill Genovese)
- Self - Murder Victim
- (archive footage)
- Self - Producer 20
- (voice)
- …
Featured reviews
Couple of comments: this documentary is directed by James Solomon, but is really driven by Bill Genovese, whose investigation we follow on screen (and who co-produced the movie). The most puzzling aspect of the entire story is how the famed NYT got this story so wrong, I mean, their reporting has holes the size of Manhattan in it! Bill also takes the opportunity to look back at Kitty, not just her death, but also her life, in which we get a couple of interesting surprises as well. All that, plus a look back at the 50s and early 60s era, make for interesting viewing, and then some.
I happen to catch this on a recent trans-Atlantic flight, and it certainly helped the time move along. If you like crime documentaries, you could to a lot worse than this.
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.
Did you know
- Trivia"The Witness" was Shortlisted for the 2017 Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary.
- Quotes
William Genovese: If I was going to have more success, Charlie Skoller suggested that I start with the trial transcript. My family couldn't bear to go to the trial in 1964 so I never heard the testimony of the witnesses. Only 5 of the 38 witnesses were called to take the stand.
- ConnectionsFeatures Perry Mason (1957)
- How long is The Witness?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Свидетель
- Filming locations
- New York, USA(location)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $159,305
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $14,523
- Jun 5, 2016
- Gross worldwide
- $159,305
- Runtime1 hour 29 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1