- Based on the novel by Agatha Christie and directed by Billy Wilder, Witness for the Prosecution is a film probably best known for its "twist" ending, an association the film itself promoted with a post-credit request that audiences "not divulge to anyone the secret of the ending." These days, that warning comes across as a charming reminder of a bygone era in which such surprises were the exception rather than the rule -- do they even make suspense pictures without twists these days? Regardless, the success of this particular film's surprise ending largely depends on how you feel about Marlene Dietrich. If you're a huge fan, presumably you love this and everything else she ever did. If you've never seen her act before, maybe the ending would come as a complete shock. For those of us who live somewhere between those two extremes, the ending is an odd footnote in an otherwise enjoyable film.
- The proceedings consist primarily of two extended scenes and a small number of flashbacks. In the first scene, the esteemed English barrister Sir Wilfrid Roberts (Charles Laughton) listens carefully to the account of the hapless inventor Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power), who finds himself suspected of murdering wealthy dowager Emily Jane French (Norma Varden). According to Vole, the two accidentally became friends after an amusing series of incidents involving a hat, but the fact that French amended her will in favor of Vole suggests that she thought rather more of their relationship. But now French is dead, and Vole's only alibi is his wife Christine (Dietrich), who is slightly worse than no alibi at all. Christine has this remarkable penchant for saying one thing and implying another. Not exactly what you want in a witness for the defense.
- The second scene is Vole's trial, in which Sir Wilfrid must balance his delicate heart condition with his passion for objecting as strenuously and as often as possible. At first, things look like they could go either way. The police inspector (Philip Tonge) found blood on a jacket discarded at Mrs. French's home but can't quite rule out the possibility that the blood came from Vole's own much-discussed household accident. Mrs. French's amusingly sour maid (Una O'Connor) testifies that she overheard her employer discussing the amended will with Vole but maybe doesn't hear as well as a witness should. Finally, Christine takes the stand as the eponymous witness for the prosecution. Sure, wives can't testify against their husbands, but it would seem that Christine's earlier legally binding marriage in Germany will void any such considerations. Now it will take nothing short of a miracle to save Vole...which is why Sir Wilfrid is understandably skeptical when such a miracle arrives at precisely the 11th hour.
- Plot twists aside, the real reason we should remember Witness for the Prosecution is for Charles Laughton's tour-de-force performance as a man who just can't help himself. He must drink brandy and smoke cigars, much to the chagrin of the ever-suffering nurse Miss Plimsoll (Elsa Lanchester), because that's what he's been doing for years. He must trust Vole and mistrust Christine because his reflecting monocle interrogation technique has never failed him before. He must take Vole's case because he trusts nobody else to handle it properly, and he must issue courtroom objections in the most wry and conceited manner possible because that's what is expected of Sir Wilfrid Roberts. Even at the end, after the case is won, he must ponder that missing banana peel that he suspects is waiting under somebody's foot. Although Dietrich, Power, and a host of talented character actors all turn in memorable performances, it can truly be said that none loom so large as Laughton.
- Also featuring John Williams and Ian Wolfe.
- It's always funny to note that Lanchester and Laughton were married in real life.
